Everything Must Go

BreakBeat Poets

by Kevin Coval, Langston Allston (Illustrator)

Award-winning poet Kevin Coval and graphic artist Langston Allston bare witness to the effects of gentrification in a Chicago neighborhood.

Everything Must Go is an illustrated collection of poems in the spirit of a graphic novel, a collaboration between poet Kevin Coval and illustrator Langston Allston. The book celebrates Chicago’s Wicker Park in the late 1990’s, Coval’s home as a young artist, the ancestral neighborhood of his forebears, and a vibrant enclave populated by colorful characters. Allston’s illustrations honor the neighborhood as it once was, before gentrification remade it. The book excavates and mourns that which has been lost in transition and serves as a template for understanding the process of displacement and reinvention currently reshaping American cities.

Genres: Poetry, Nonfiction, Graphic Novels

112 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2019

About the author

Kevin Coval is an award-winning poet & author of Everything Must Go: The Life & Death of an American Neighborhood, A People's History of Chicago & over ten other full-length collections, anthologies & chapbooks. He is the founding editor of The BreakBeat Poets series on Haymarket Books, & Artistic Director of the MacArthur Award-winning cultural organization, Young Chicago Authors, & founder of Louder Than a Bomb: The Chicago Youth Poetry Festival, the world's largest youth poetry festival, now in more than 19 cities across North America. He's shared the stage with The Migos & Nelson Mandela, has published in Poetry Magazine, The Chicago Tribune & CNN.com & co-hosts the podcast, The Cornerstore, on WGN Radio.

Reviews

[Gretchen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection breaks my heart - full of emotion and empathy. A resounding picture of gentrification, and a model of how to be respectful and interactive on a personal level. A good call to action on all our (gentrifiers, anyway) parts.

[Jasmine]

i enjoyed this a lot more than i thought i would. i don't know much about wicker park, but in general as a chicagoan much of this resonated. i do wish he spent less time talking about girls he banged. i basically never want to hear poetry from a white cis het dude talking wistfully about sex he's had. there wasn't too much of that here, but even just a few poems are too! much!

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ever since I read A People’s History of Chicago, I have come to appreciate Coval as the neo-local voice of verse and beat. He has a mellow that cannot be harshed about the city of Chicago, observant though in its character driven intricacies when urban blight diminishes in time and space. Who stays when the neighbors move out of the neighborhood? Or rather, who moves in? The poetry is filled with an eclectic cast of characters wrapped in micro memoirs of Chicagoland gentrification. As readers, as an audience, as fellow Chicagoans, we are left with a glimpse of Chicago both past and present, reminiscent perhaps of someone or someplace we knew once or when, even if we didn’t want to have the memory retrieved, too painful for some, detached for others, sonically or spiritually poignant for the city itself, for as long as it changes, it is alive.

[Larry Olson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everything Must Go by Kevin Coval with drawings by artist Langston Allston is an illustrated collection of poems that serves as a tribute to Wicker Park in Chicago during the 90’s, but also chronicles the neighborhood’s growing gentrification that is displacing the community that the author once knew. While I’ve never been to Wicker Park, the issues of gentrification are shared in communities all over the US. But it’s not just the gentrification issue really, but more about the systemic issues that are hurting working communities and communities of color on a daily basis. He really taps into a nostalgic place of remembrance and wonder of the history of buildings and community. Colorful characters and accompanied by amazing illustrations. Highly recommended.

[Shamiram · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everything Must Go is a collection of poetry detailing the gentrification of Wicker Park, a neighborhood in Chicago. Honestly, I feel like some of the message came across even in just the ways the poems were written.. i.e. the poems about gentrification/the processes of gentrification are harder to read, which I think conveys how disorienting such processes can be to the people originally in the neighborhood. Anyway, I really liked this collection & the illustrations were awesome.

[Hubes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Local to Chicago but speaks to the process of gentrification in cities across the United States in such an evocative way. Can't wait to read again

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really like the idea behind this collection, but knowing nothing about Chicago and this neighborhood, i just didn’t connect with the poems.

[Lily · Rating 4 out of 5]

This poetry collection is about gentrification in Chicago accompanied by illustration. The book portrays a diverse, vibrant neighborhood, some notable characters, places, experiences, and activities, on the verge of change. It is both mournful and nostalgic, celebration of the neighborhood and critique of the forces at work changing it. As is sometimes said the first wave of gentrification is the artists, so in some regard Coval's local perspective is still a privileged one, but it does bring up a lot of questions about who owns what, the legacy of people and places, displacement, and affordability. There's some powerful pieces and excellent call-outs to people and place.

[Drick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kevin Coval describes the changing nature of the West Chicago neighborhood of Humboldt Park as the old gives way to the new in the form of gentrification. While the changing taking place hangs in the background, Coval focuses his attention on the many people who made up his community: The Tamale Guy, Jayson his roommate, the car mechanics, the waitress at the all-night diner, and many more. His poetry-stories remind us that the place we live is not primarily about buildings but about the people who touch our lives.

[Nels · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the biographical aspect with some recurring characters and the historical snapshots of Wicker Park. The variety of structure in the poems was enough to keep it interesting. The only thing I would have liked would be a bit more of the transition during the actual gentrification, but I'm not sure if Coval was actually there, so that might be why it sort of just jumped from old Wicker Park to rich and white.

[Val · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is probably actually really amazing, and I know gentrification isn't solely happening in Chicago and I should be able to connect with the work regardless, but I just couldn't for some reason?? I feel like if I had a stronger connection or more background awareness of Chicago specifically this would have really rocked me. I'll definitely come back if I ever move to Chicago or become hyper focused on it. :)

[Jonathan Lothspeich · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having met Kevin many times in the past few years working with LTAB, I couldn't help but read this in his voice. That said, I don't know how much I would have enjoyed it if that wasn't the case. I liked reading it knowing him as I do, but I think if I had read this book in a vacuum it wouldn't have been as good.

[Katie Eddy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another beautiful work from Coval.

[elena brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

regardless of my thoughts on poetry in general, the concept and execution of this collection is still brilliant.

[Angelica Lasala · Rating 4 out of 5]

This poetry collection feels like riding the blue line through time through neighborhoods as they were, to arrive at—and reckon with—what they’ve become. A resonant read for people who love Chicago especially. 4.5 stars if rounding were possible here.

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kevin Coval
Everything Must Go
Haymarket
112 pages
8.1

[Doug · Rating 4 out of 5]

Coval's poems are playful, detailed, and juiciest for those in the know (which as a 1990s Lakeview kid, I regretfully cannot claim). He illustrates the Wicker Park he remembers, one that was rough and tumble in its lived experience and whose clear definition as it saw change was slippery, evasive. The plurality of the poems are odes - microbiographies of friends who defined his Wicker as well as salutes to institutions (people and places). Summed, they start to paint a jagged picture of the life of the neighborhood.

He fails to live up to the other part of the tagline, neglecting to adequately illustrate WP's death. Coval's self-criticism doesn't reach much conclusion beyond confusion. It's ok that he feels this way and his cultural contributions to the city allow for forgiveness, but my dude, call yourself out a bit more - you know better. The book works best as a sensual memoir for those who remember this place in that time, not as a critical reflection on what gentrification means for culture and community. I expected more of a critical approach after adoring the incisive People's History of Chicago.

The illustrations failed to add much to the book, unfortunately. Someone reading this already knows what Chicago residential architecture looks like. It felt like the illustrator skimmed the poems for details to illustrate and made a quick doodle to fill the page.

[Janelle Bailey · Rating 3 out of 5]

2: Everything Must Go by Kevin Koval. I heard Kevin speak and also read from this volume at the Wisconsin Book Festival in Madison in October...and loved the themes indicated there and bought the book with that expectation. While some of the poems lived up to that expectation, others did not satisfy what then became my desire to read more about the gentrification of Chicago and its outer parts. Sounded intriguing. And I've so enjoyed the opportunities I have seized to visit that city and explore, specifically while learning more about Frank Lloyd Wright's influences and while visiting the Ukrainian village another time. And perhaps unfairly I expected it to address more of that which interested and intrigued me. And it had a lot of other things going on instead. But overall, truly: great, accessible poetry.

[Ronnie Stephens · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really, really loved this book. It is poignant and arresting and full of Coval’s signature wit. I would 10/10 recommend it for teen and college readers. My only qualm is that, for me, the book resonates far more for those with a fairly solid understanding of gentrification. From an educator’s standpoint, this book, or excerpts from it, needs to be supplemented with some quick history and/or a couple solid essays for background. Overall, though, this collection does more than entertain. It provides a much-needed perspective on gentrification, moving beyond economics and housing development to celebrate the people who displaced and the businesses that falter when whole neighborhoods are priced up and locals are moved out.

[Rich Farrell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m part of the problem. I started frequenting Wicker Park during college when my friends and I would take the drive out from the suburbs when we all had a Saturday night off before I moved to Humboldt Park with one of my friends. The collection speaks both of a neighborhood I only saw remnants of and of the pulse of that same space.

Coval’s odes especially are timeless, including “Ode to the Waitress,” “Ode to the Dive Bar,” and “The Tamale Guy.” Allston’s illustrations add a fresh meaning, as the drawings are modern interpretations of the retrospective text. This is a must read for anyone around the neighborhood, but is accessible and interesting for those not familiar with the space as well.

[Carolyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another stunning collection from Chicago’s finest poet, Kevin Coval. This collection is also illustrated by the very talented Langston Allston. Beautiful odes to a dwindling middle class and reminders that unless we are dollars personified, capitalism/gentrification doesn’t need heartbeats. While Coval loves the city, he reminds readers of the smudges on the skyline. He has solutions, give young people space and a voice! Lamentations of a true activist.

[Carl · Rating 4 out of 5]

A spirited ode to a Wicker Park of yesteryear, since anesthetized, whitewashed, and robbed of its character(s) by forces that feel as familiar as they do unstoppable. Early on, Coval is self-aware enough to ask the question: “what does it mean when we appear / the children of white flight / back again / where am i supposed to be”.

[Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

This took everything that I loved about A People's History of Chicago with a more personal narrative from Coval about growing up and seeing Wicker Park falling to the evils of gentrification. I loved this so so so so much.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I devoured this book. Coval beautifully speaks to the tragedy & nostalgia that comes with gentrification. On a side note, this poetry made me miss Chicago.

[Frank Karioris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Coming for a reading to Pittsburgh in February, and I couldn't be more excited. This book is f-ing fire. Will be reading again before then as well.