Where do you find books? I buy some on Amazon (because it's easy); I buy some at my favorite independent bookstore (because it's the right thing to do - and, I love the smell and the creaky old floors); I've checked out a couple at the library (which isn't as easy as it should be because my neighborhood library has weird hours and not a ton of books); and I borrow a lot from my well-read co-workers. This book, though, found me. I think.
I've read about and heard about this book for awhile. It's often cited as a resource people should read if they want to understand the mindset of many Americans who voted for Donald Trump. I'm not going to make this political, but that is certainly part of the reason why I wanted to read it. It's hard for me to understand why large swaths of people have become so angry at the government. I live a pretty easy life; I have no reason, really, to complain. So, I wanted to step out of my echo chamber and see what I was missing.
This book showed up in my inter-office mailbox at work. It had a sticky note that said "Jerry" and, though my boss's name is Jerry and another co-worker's name is Jerry, no on claimed it. So, I grabbed it as the perfect read for a spring break road trip to Montana.
Is how I ended up with the book relevant at all? No. But, maybe the rightful owner will read this and ask for it back. Sorry, Jerry.
The book is a memoir about life rooted in the Appalachian region. There have been many. But, this is written by a man who made it up and out, despite every cultural stereotype threatening to keep him there. JD Vance grew up to be a Marine, to go to Yale Law School, and to create a life that personifies the American dream. He did so, despite a childhood fraught with physical and emotional abuse. Now, he's able to look back at those circumstances in an effort to help the rest of us understand why much of America's working class feels such anger towards the rest of society. And, he makes no apologies for it.
Vance survives - and, thrives - because he had adults in his life willing to do what his parents did not: parent. He paints such a vivid picture of his grandparents, who he calls Mamaw and Papaw. Papaw was once a violent drunk, who gave it all up and became the male role model JD desperately needed. Mamaw is what he describes, lovingly, as a mean old hillbilly who would do anything for him. Her mouth would make a trucker blush and she had something of a mean streak, but it was always in protection of her family. Mamaw taught him how to throw a punch and to take one; and, that it's acceptable to start a fight if someone insults your family. Reading about her is pure joy.
Though his journey takes him from a rundown steel town in Ohio to the halls of one of America's most prestigious universities, Vance talks about the cultural PTSD that he still faces. And, he talks at length about why others aren't able to overcome it.
"I am a hill person," he writes. "So is much of America's white working class. And we hill people aren't doing very well."
Poverty, domestic violence, lack of education, lack of resources... those common factors unite this frustrated group of Americans. Many blamed Obama. Many blamed the Bushes and Clintons before him. But, Vance doesn't blame the government at all for abandoning this class of Americans, as many do. In fact, he cites all the government programs that probably saved his life. The public schools, the financial aid, the health insurance, etc. In Vance's perspective, the working class blames society and the government, but it's really their own choices that have led them down this dead-end road.
He talks about socio-economic islands. Places where people in poverty are surrounded on all sides by people with the same lot in life. It's hard for many to even dream of growing up to be a doctor or lawyer in a two-parent home because they've never actually seen it with their own eyes.
The Pew Economic Mobility Project found that there's no more pessimistic group of Americans than working-class whites. But, what are they actually doing about it?
In one passage, Vance talks about how many in his hometown hated (still hate) President Obama. And, how their hate is probably directed more at themselves.
"Barack Obama strikes at the heart of our deepest insecurities," he writes. "He is a good father while many of us aren't. He wears suits to his job while we wear overalls, if we're lucky enough to have a job at all. His wife tells us we shouldn't be feeding our children certain foods and we hate her for it - not because we think she's wrong, but because we know she's right."
Think on that for a second.
He also talks about a childhood friend who told him he couldn't hold a job because he didn't like getting up early. Then, that same friend posts on Facebook something about "Obama's economy."
Vance describes himself as a conservative, by the way.
It's a fascinating read about a culture to which many of us have never been exposed. Vance challenges them to find their own solutions to the problems within their culture, rather than waiting for the government to come in and do it for them. Hard to argue with that point.
This book didn't help me relate to this culture's views and problems. I don't think you could relate without living it. But, it did help me get some perspective, which is really all you can ask for.
I hope this book finds its way into your mailbox with a sticky note bearing someone else's name. You'll learn something. You'll think. You'll wish you had a hillbilly grandma, if only for the colorful vocabulary.
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