This is one of those books that I didn’t really like, but I’m still going to recommend. The recommendation is because of the author, J.D. Vance.
No matter one’s politics, it’s important to know something about the people on the ballot. Reading Vance’s Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture (Harper Collins, 2016) gives one insight into this man who could be the next vice president.
Memoirs about crappy childhoods could be a category unto itself. I probably don’t need to read another one. If it weren’t for who Vance is today, I would have stopped reading.
I get that writing can be cathartic and therapeutic for the author. I applaud anyone who writes a book. But it doesn’t mean I’m interested.
I had picked the book up from my neighborhood free library long before Vance was picked as a VP nominee. I knew he was a senator, but nothing more. The book got moved to the top of the “to read” pile because of who is today.
In many ways I felt like the book was a cursory look at his life. There were times I wanted more depth—even if it was going to be gritty and hard to read. But that’s the thing about memoirs, they are the author’s take on their life.
Vance seems to want to be the spokesperson for Appalachia; as though everyone experiences what he does. There must be better books out there about life in Appalachia.
Love your comments. One year it was almost picked for the book in Common at Chico State.
I’m glad you chose to read it. I had a different take on it, as I felt it gave insight into people growing up in communities affected by the reduction of industry in that part of the country. It’s been awhile since I’ve read this book, but I remember the sections where the author discussed employers recruiting workers from Appalachia and not surprisingly, that these folks brought their culture with them. Although I have little sympathy for the author’s current political stance, I felt that I got at least a glimpse into what it was like for him to grow up in the culture he did.