kickerdad - , reviewed on 3/28/2020 + 115 more book reviews

To be honest, I'm not sure why I was interested in "Hillbilly Elegy" by J.D. Vance. When I first saw it online, it called to me and I ordered it. When I first received it, I opened it as I do most new books and randomly read a passage or two. After a comment about this book emboding the Scotch-Irish culture in America I was hooked. My grandfather used to proclaim he was Scotch-Irish (something I am working diligently to validate). Then reading a heart wretching memory about a decorated Christmas tree being being tossed out the front door, coupled with my own past of being born into a blue-collar town (steel not coal), I was reeled in.

Many of the reviews of "Hillbilly Elegy" seem to be heavily political. While Vance addresses policy and its effect on culture - how policy is often set by those with limited or no experience with the problems they are setting policy to resolve; and how these policies, from within the circumstances being addressed, often make situations worse. Overall, I did not think of the book as political. The book is a blending of personal history and a study of society evolution focusing on people from eastern Kentucky; the trials and tribulations, and how, even after you move away, you can never leave your past behind.

I loved the pace, tone, and structure of the book. Vance is a great story teller, able to imbue sincere emotion into experiences often difficult to even think about much less share with the world. [4.5/5]

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