Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis by J.D. VanceMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
I really do recommend reading this book, and then reading Sherman Alexie's You Don't Have to Say You Love Me. Vance's memoir is justification of why hillbillies in the rust belt are the way they are--they are declining rapidly as the generations go by. I am a product of the Scotch Irish, too, although my mom's side settled in southeast Indiana for a few generations after leaving Pennsylvania. And there the similarities end, other than the fact that I was raised to believe in work ethic and that my choices dictate where I end up, just like Vance's grandparents believed.
I did work in high schools in southern and central Illinois for 14 years, and I know exactly what kids were raised in families like Vance. They are the screamers and complainers--the ones who believe that EVERYONE is out to get them. And they don't take responsibility for their choices--ever. These are the kids that made me say "I wish I could take them away from their family" so that they had a chance. But the cycle repeats, the teenage pregnancy and drug use happens again, and very few escape. It's depressing. And we are supporting these families through social welfare, and our schools are trying their best to save some of these kids.
All rural and small town educators need to read this book. It's a great discussion starter, even if it isn't the sociologist tome that I was hoping it would turn into. I want a solution for the problems in my area of Illinois, yet Vance notes that it needs to be a community effort--not something that progressive schools can solve.
View all my reviews
No comments:
Post a Comment