"Hillbilly Elegy" by J.D Vance

"Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis"  
Elegy means 'lament' - to praise and express sorrow in a story or a poem.
  I think the title is perfect!  It gets to the core of the story.  This memoir expresses sorrow for the hillbilly culture, but praise for those who do their best with the life they have.  I think the author wishes to educate those who have no connection with such life experiences.
   This memoir begins with the story of the author's grandparents, married at ages 14 and 17, who grew up in the hills of Kentucky, where they learned 'hillbilly justice',  involving guns and violence.  Vance calls himself, as well as his extended family, 'hillbillies'.  
          There was an exodus out of Kentucky when the mines closed and the hillbillies migrated to other states- Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Pennsylvania.  But, "you can take the boy out of Kentucky but you can't take Kentucky out of the boy". And so, the violence, yelling and lives of dysfunction continued.
Quote: "Hillbilly culture blended a robust sense of honor, devotion to family, and bizarre sexism into a sometimes explosive mix".

J.D.Vance

   J.D. Vance never forgot the grandparents who helped him through his childhood.  The dedication on this book says: 'For Mamaw and Papaw, my very own terminators".
  This book was written in 2016 and people believe that the book tries to show how Americans could be drawn to Donald Trump, who was running for president.
  The author made an interesting point that we can't judge a person's actions when we have no idea what their life circumstances have been.  The results of domestic violence and drug addiction in a child's life are well documented.  We know that the author was able to 'rise above his raising', but he explains in detail how difficult it is to move from the working class to the professional class.  It means leaving your identity behind.