I had wanted to read Hillbilly Elegy by J. D. Vance for quite awhile, but just hadn't picked it up. It was chosen by one of my book groups, so that was my chance!
I was surprised how easily this book read. It is the story of J.D. Vance and how he lived and survived his upbringing. It is a story of success for the author's life, but is also a stunning look at what the lives of "hillbillies, rednecks or white trash" are, how they deal with what life has given them and how society works against their chances of getting out of the poverty of their lives. The book tells the real story of what it is like to be born into poverty and the difficulties that come with that.
Vance was essentially raised by his grandmother, herself being a survivor of poverty. She was a hell-raiser and a strong influencer and proponent of her grandson. Vance completed high school, joined the Marines, then went to college, graduated and went on to Yale Law School. He wrote "I was one lucky son of a bitch."
The book is full of interesting characters (who are real people), and Vance does a good job talking about what is needed to begin to eliminate the poverty that so many are in.
I found this to be a very readable, informative, and, at times, entertaining book.
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