A Review of J.d. Vance's Memoir 'Hillbilly Elegy'

The book Hillbilly Elegy is a memoir of J.D. Vance. He shares his memories of his time growing and how he beat the odds and became an accomplished scholar. It starts with his early beginnings and talks about the hillbilly culture that he grew up with. He later talks about his time though college and how the values he learned from this culture, like honor and loyalty, got him to where he is now. The main point of the novel is that he wants to “understand what happens in the lives of the poor and the psychological impact that spiritual and material poverty has on their children”.

He starts off be talking about his parents and grandparents. He explains where they came from and that there is a history of poverty for his culture. He explains how almost no one ever gets a college education in the hillbilly culture. He also explains about the importance of storytelling in his storytelling and that the values of honor and loyalty come from these stories. These are main two things that J.D. takes with him his whole life that really stick to him.

The next part talks about his early upbringing and the domestic violence that he witnessed between his Mamaw and Papaw. His Papaw was an alcoholic that led to many horrific stories, including one where his Mom tried to light him on fire. This is where J.D. starts to get in to his main point of the memoir about how children with rough upbringings are more likely to carry that in to their life in the future. Although encountering such a rough upbringing, J.D. managed to overcome all this and become a successful scholar. J.D.’s mom always expressed that education was key and the way out of this life of poverty. This is another lesson that J.D. learned and carried with him even after his college career.

After his mom remarried, they moved after a period of time and this where his parents started to fight. This led to a downward spiral of his whole family. His mother tried to commit suicide after her husband found out she was having an affair and shortly after his Papaw died. His mom fell into drug addiction and erratic behavior and eventually he moved in with his Mamaw.

J.D. eventually graduated from High School and was accepted to Ohio State University, but instead opted to go in to the Marines. After he was sent to Iraq, his Mamaw passed away. When he returned from the Marines, he attended Ohio State University and exceled in college. He graduated in less than 2 years and worked many hours while doing so. He decided to go to law school and was accepted in to Yale University.

While attending Yale, there was large social divide between him and the elite class there. Although there was a large gap, he met a girl named Usha who helped out along the way. Eventually after graduating, he married Usha. Through this experience, he gained many valuable skills and how to navigate between the different social classes. But there was always something that would drag him back down after he advanced so much. There was always something that find its way to drag him back to his old life.

J.D. now spends his time trying to be a symbol and mentor for those that come from similar upbringings as him. Although this is a memoir, it also dives deeper and explains the problems of the working class of the east as a whole. This statements seem at times to be too broad and controversial. This could be intentional because his is an inspiring member of the Republican Party. 

None the less, the book is inspiring novel that gives the reader a great insight in the problems that occur in the lower middle class. The book does do a good job of explaining the main idea that experiencing a rough childhood does not mean that you cannot be successful, but if you work hard enough and accept where you came from that you too can make it.