
Hillbilly Elegy
A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis
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Narrated by:
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J. D. Vance
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By:
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J. D. Vance
About this listen
THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER / OVER A MILLION COPIES SOLD
THE AMERICAN VICE PRESIDENT'S ORIGIN STORY
‘Essential reading for this moment in history’ New York Times
'You will not read a more important book about America this year' Economist
‘Brilliant … offers an acute insight into the reasons voters have put their trust in Trump’ Observer
J. D. Vance grew up in the hills of Kentucky. His family and friends were the people most of the world calls rednecks, hillbillies or white trash.
In this deeply moving memoir, Vance tells the story of his family’s demons and of America’s problem with generational neglect. How his mother struggled against, but never fully escaped, the legacies of abuse, alcoholism, poverty and trauma. How his grandparents, ‘dirt poor and in love’, gave everything for their children to chase the American dream. How Vance beat the odds to graduate from Yale Law School. And how America came to abandon and then condescend to its white working classes, until they reached breaking point.
‘A beautiful memoir but it is equally a work of cultural criticism about white working-class America … Vance offers a compelling explanation for why it’s so hard for someone who grew up the way he did to make it … a riveting book’ Wall Street Journal
** Now a major-motion picture directed by Ron Howard and starring Amy Adams, Glenn Close, and Gabriel Basso **
©2016 J. D. Vance (P)2016 HarperCollins PublishersRelated to this topic
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What listeners say about Hillbilly Elegy
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Bree
- 11-19-24
What I thought I knew...
..about 'hillbillys' I now know could be written on the back of a postage stamp.
Besides filling in so many blanks and fleshing out the bare bones lives of mountain folk in a way that was both interesting and informative, JD told his personal story with a sincerity and forthrightness that is mirrored in his guest appearances on longform podcasts.
No affectations, no hyperbole, no candy coating.
It is heartening to realise we are finally going to unvarnished and genuine grassroots people such as this in the White House to reinforce those of his ilk already in Congress and the Senate.
#Vance2028
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- Guy Murray
- 07-31-24
Wonderfully honest & insightful
An honest, insightful and deeply personal account of life growing up as a Hillbilly.
The book provides insight to the very real problems socio-economic problems experienced in an entertaining way, with humour.
An excellent body of work superbly narrated by the author.
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- Nyaribo
- 06-01-17
The strangely familiar reality of the American dream
If your like me and your searching for answers about today's world and how to succeed , then J.D Vance takes you closer to the door step of your enlightenment and freedom.
The book is a memoir of an American white man that is rarely shared that transcends race and unites the poor/working class and their struggle for upward social mobility that is strangely familiar.
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- Anonymous User
- 06-07-17
Great book, insightful and well written.
an inspiring story, personal and honest. Lessons we all can learn from and be inspired by.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Geoff
- 02-17-25
Painfully real.
I didn’t know what to expect, and I grabbed this when the POTUS race was on to know more about JD. What I found was an even worse version of my 70/80s childhood with drugs instead of alcohol.
I’m glad he made himself. I’m glad he had the right family at the right time. I’m glad they all saw the qualities of JD and gave him a shot. Getting that support is critical. For want of a Meemaw, USA may have been lost, because JD was a big factor in the Trump win.
And now he is paying it forward in Spades. Thanks for the story you shared JD.
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- Greg D. Joffe
- 10-14-17
Fabulous mix of autobiography and social analysis read by the author
I always enjoy autobiographies read by the author and this was an exceptionally good one. Amazing life story surviving incredible poverty and family challenges but also some robust thinking and analysis about what makes a difference and how things work.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Pieter Reyneke
- 06-21-17
Wonderful book.
This book gave me a better understanding and I g of my own life and failures. It is more a self help kind of book as one of literary significance. Well written and it answers so many of the questions to socio-economic problems we are trying to solve.
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- Frank N
- 01-22-18
hilarious
hilarious but original. an ordinary story that everyone can relate to. I so recommend this book
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1 person found this helpful
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- Greg
- 08-11-24
Great story, great production
I enjoyed every aspect of this audio book.
It’s far outside my experience, but provided amazing education into the experience of Mr Vance.
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- Elo
- 12-04-24
All and all ok.
Honest story, some seconds were a bit fake, but overall it was quite enjoyable. I don’t know about the person as such but this book was ok.
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