Hillbilly Elegy by JD Vance

V.I.R.

Very Important Read.


JD Vance might be surprised that he is "old enough" to write a memoir, but anyone who reads his story will be nothing but grateful that he did.


I love that he starts out by saying he did nothing extraordinary in his life.  He went to college, got married, succeeded in business.  But what he states in his prologue and then explains throughout his book is that while he has achieved something that seems ordinary for most Americans, having achieved it considering his childhood experience and family history is indeed extraordinary in that hardly anyone from his hillbilly town in Appalachia ever considered college even possible.   I mean, his Mamaw almost killed a man when she was 12.  She got married as a teenager and his mom is a drug addict.  And that is just the beginning of his family and cultural history.  JD's story is made extraordinary because he was one of a very few that became ordinary - because he came from pretty much nothing. Well, nothing but the fierce determination of his Mamaw and his sister and one very inspiring teacher.

This book is "about a culture that increasingly encourages social decay instead of counteracting it." There are drug addicts, child abusers, lazy workers and welfare moms here, but "there are no villains in this story."  JD loves these people and does not place blame - really not anywhere.  He is simply telling his truth as he lived it.  And THAT is what makes this an important read.

This book is NOT political.  It does NOT serve as the conservative response to Small Great Things or explain why Trump got elected.  Go elsewhere if that is your ulterior motive here.  JD does tell us how a traditionally Democratic culture finally switched to a more Republican based belief system, simply because the programs put in place by the Democrats ended up making situations worse for the people they were trying to help - at least in his experience.

So many quotes I want to share from this book...like "kids (in my youth) don't expect much of themselves because the people around them don't do very much."  And, "poor people don't wear pajamas," (so why do rich people keep donating them? they are an "unnecessary elite indulgence.").

But overall, this is the true story of what is still happening in back woods America.  Yes, you could probably change the race here and it still be a true story, because it does become a story of opportunity and support.  If not for Mamaw, where would JD and his sister be?  If they had married their next door neighbors and never gotten out of Kentucky, they would be stagnant like most of their neighbors.  JD notes that now he looks back and sees that "every single person in my family who has built a successful home married someone from outside our little culture," thereby breaking that cycle. Interesting too is the comment JD makes about meeting and getting to know his future wife's family - he was amazed at the lack of drama in her family!

But what about the people who cannot break out of their cycle?  What about the people who are so dirt poor they cannot leave their dilapidated houses to move to Ohio like JD's grandparents did?  Why was JD able to "get out" and get educated but his Mother never seemed to be able to crawl out of her addictions to drugs, men, and bad news?  (Very interesting that JD never names his mother and is almost detached when he writes of her.  We do not know what her end story is - proving again that no matter what happens or how badly they treat us, these people are fiercely loyal - he is still protecting a woman who abandoned him again and again and once even tried to kill him, because she is family.)  And what will it take for this cycle to change?  Government programs?  Nope, that didn't help JD.  It has to come from within.  He was mostly raised by his hillbilly grandparents.  They stepped up, maybe because their failure with his mother or their inability at the time to steer her right made them determined that JD would not follow that path.  Papaw helped him with his multiplication tables - it wasn't JD's fault he had never been taught them, but thank goodness someone helped him.  Other kids didn't have a Papaw or anyone else who would help them. Mamaw didn't let him get away with anything - her love for him was as fierce as her language (mercy!!).  Most of the kids he grew up with, and even JD himself, are constantly in fight or flight mode - the chemistry in their brains is changed by the constant emotional and sometimes physical stress they endure which is of course different from a child who is secure, safe, and fed.

My point and I think JD's point is this:  HELP MUST COME FROM WITHIN.  From within you, from within your community, from within your family.  The hillbilly people JD knows have no positive role models, they don't see other families building up that college resume or paying for after school sports and getting academic awards (JD admits he learned early on that good grades were for sissies and girls, not for tough boys!  What kind of incentive is that??), they just see teenage pregnancy and menial jobs where it doesn't really matter if you show up because you know you are gonna get fired eventually anyway.  They give up before they try because they don't have goals to strive for.  It is not in their culture.  What exactly are they trying for??  Kids are not exposed to things from "the real world;" JD wasn't stupid, he was just uninformed.  Again, the whole argument of "the uneven geographic distribution of opportunity" comes into play for poor white people in the South, in Appalachia, in the Rust Belt of Ohio - and yes, a similar argument of lack of opportunity is being raised for the lower income African American community as well.  It matters for both of these communities.

JD Vance has written a deep, thought provoking story which happens to be true.  It will open your eyes to the fact that is not just a white story, or a black story, or an immigrant story.  It is an American story that all of us need to stop and pay attention to, and do something about.  Be a role model; connect with a different community than your own; teach or read to kids that have no one to read to them; give jobs not pajamas!   JD says there is no government that can fix these problems for the hillbillies.  It has to start at home. But are the hillbillies tough enough to do what needs to be done to raise up other kids and find opportunities for them like Mamaw did for JD?  Because it comes from within, the winning.

The Silent Corner by Dean Koontz

The Silent Corner (Jane Hawk, #1) 
by Dean Koontz 

Aug 16, 2017 

it was amazing

First of all, shame on me for not realizing this was the start of a series.

Secondly, hooray, this is a series!!!!!!!!!

Now, I love me some Dean Koontz. This novel/series is a bit a departure for him - my favorite of his novels are the ones steeped in the paranormal. Here Koontz leans more towards science fiction, conspiracy, mystery and a bit of loyalty both to country and family. But, it works - mainly because of Jane.

A strong female lead in this type of novel is rare, so I thoroughly enjoyed this story with a main character that was brave and smart and alone and a GIRL. The story was confusing at first, just as Jane was confused by the sudden (I mean, like, in the middle of dinner) suicide of her loving and happy and stable husband. You share her fear, her tilted world, and her determination to find the truth. So Jane, who happens to be FBI, goes underground. She knows something is fishy here, but keeps hitting roadblocks. Spy novels of old, take note - the new future is here, but you can still go off the grid if you know what you are doing.

(And I loved the explanation for the title of the novel.  Well done.  It bothers me a bit when a title really has no meaning for the story.  But I digress.)

Stay with it  - the confusion starts to clear about half way through (yes, I guessed it but that was ok) and the action picks up tremendously. Jane gets some answers, but I did mention that this is a series, right? So more to come....I can hardly wait!

The Fix by David Baldacci

The Fix (Amos Decker #3) 
by David Baldacci

Aug 16, 2017 

really liked it

So often a series begins to wane after the first few books - formulaic, familiar and finite (I am all about alliteration...see what I did there????). But after not really expecting much from this third Amos Decker installment, I was pleasantly surprised!

I LOVED Memory Man (book one). I also enjoyed The Last Mile (book two). So I was thrilled to hear another Amos Decker book was coming out. I really enjoy this character and his "flaws."

The story this time is a bit convoluted, so get ready. Lots of threads in the mystery of why a man shoots a woman in broad daylight and then kills himself when there is no connection to be found between the two people (some reviewers say too many threads). Secrets, espionage, the Hoover building and an imminent threat to the USofA? Decker is on the case with Jamison in tow as usual, but we get a bit more of the human side of Decker in this book I think. Less emphasis on his exacting memory and more on the personal relationships (although he still dashes out of a room with no warning which I think is hilarious, I hope that never changes!!). One arc includes a terminally ill boy and Decker really shows some heart with this kid, very refreshing. Super small hint about the possibility that Decker's memory might fade into normalcy.....hmmmm. And a cameo from Melvin Mars too! Oh! And a reference to To Kill a Mockingbird - loved it!!!

A fun series, I hope it continues but would like to see more of the memory man back if there is a book four, which I am sure there will be!

Anna and the Swallow Man by Gavriel Savit

Anna and the Swallow Man
by Gavriel Savit



I just didn't get it.

Beautiful writing, yes.  Plot?  Not really.  Historical times? Definitely.  Parable?  I can only hope.

I may come back to this after my soon to be Godson-In-Law reads it and explains it to me.  (He's a doctoral candidate in Literature.)  But my girlfriend and I read this simultaneously at the beach and we both gasped at the same page, then threw the book across the room at the same page, then were absolutely stunned at the end - and not in a good way.

My main question - WHAT WAS THE POINT????  Young Polish orphan girl leaves her village to follow a strange man in the midst of WWII; they walk in circles for years, avoiding the troops; pick up another strange man along the way, forming a stranger still family unit of sorts; they see horrors and winter in the woods and have no direction; then it ends.  What the what??

And other reviewers are saying this is young adult or juvenile fiction?  Nope.

Wasted day of reading.  On to better stories.  Sorry, bookseller who told me this was the best historical fiction book in his store.  Definitely not a literal take on the times - I think it was more fantasy/allegory - and even then maybe I just wasn't in the mood.....bring on David Baldacci....ahhhhhhhhh!!!!

Long Way Gone by Charles Martin

Wow.  What a BEAUTIFUL story.

I really enjoyed this book.  A bit dreamlike, and a definite parable, but just a lovely message.  A rebellious teenager with a mega talent for songwriting and guitar playing and singing runs away from his preacher father to build his own destiny, only to find destiny can be a cruel master.  A romantic love story is woven through, but it is the Father Son relationship that is the focus here.  There are not many books of this positive nature on the market these days.  This was a refreshing change from the norm.  A great if unbelievable ending, but that's what miracles are - unbelievable.  Except, you believe it when it happens to you.

I suggest reading this book if for nothing else than the writing.  Martin is a master of the English language and that is part of what makes this read so beautiful.  If I ever wanted to be a writer, THIS is how I would wish to write.  Excellent stuff.

Another bonus is the detail he goes into about guitars and the music industry and how music really does affect you - in the moment, as you sing, as you listen - immersively so.  Such descriptions!!!  Like a John Constable landscape - full of depth, color, realism - you feel like you are right there in the story.  You do have to have an open mind to the parable part of this, and realize this is fiction, entertainment, and there is a moral to the story.  An uplifting moral.  Let me know what you think!!

PS - did you notice the guitar on the cover??  wink!

Camino Island by John Grisham

Other

Now THIS is some serious storytelling.

Maybe it is because I just met John Grisham at Sally's store, where he made small talk about my name and signed my copy of the book and then later recorded a podcast conversation with John Hart about writing styles and their next books, etc., that I witnessed.  I was still on cloud 9 from that experience when I read this book.  So I really heard Grisham's voice in this book since I was thinking of the writer as I read what he wrote.  Make sense??

The cool thing in this story is there is no mystery.  You know from the start who stole what and who got caught.  What you don't know is who else may or may not become involved.  So there is a lot of backstory and narration here, which I really enjoyed.  You can argue that at least two characters are the "main" character - it is shared I think.  And I do love a book about a book seller/writer/fellow reader.  Grisham throws in a lot of insider information about the world of books (and one hilarious comment about lawyers!!!).  He even shares his own voice with MC1 (Main Character 1) Bookseller Bruce when he reveals the rules of writing - these are actually Grisham's own rules and habits in writing his own books (tune in to Grisham's podcast series to find out how Hart writes HIS books - they are polar opposites but apparently good friends!!).

A really good, fun and easy read - a bit of intrigue as MC2 Mercer tries with varying degrees of success to spy on MC1 Bruce (she's a writer not a spy), and some great small town politics and dinner parties on Florida's Camino Island where Mercer grew up and Bruce settled down.  Throw in some priceless stolen F Scott Fitzgerald original manuscripts, one desperate insurance company,  several writers with writer's block but strong opinions, a successful local bookstore, two desperate thieves and a whole lot of money, and  you've got yourself one helluva mess.  This is not a typical Grisham novel, nary a courtroom in site, and I liked it that way.  Encore Mr. Grisham!!!!!

And thank you for signing my book!

The Awkward Age by Francesca Segal

I am so mad at this author.

It has taken me a week and another book between to come back to this review.  The Awkward Age was not at all what I expected.  I expected humor (British humor!!), family dysfunction, a light read.

Not.

This is a story of a middle aged couple who fall in love and decide to move in together, in London, while their daughter and son respectively are still teenagers and living at home.  At first, the kids hate each other.  And then....not so much.  And then.....well, they are teenagers.

I am all for love in middle age, and the feelings widowed Julia and divorced James have for one another are precious indeed.  And kudos to this author for really digging deep into honest feelings and letting us see inside the minds of each of our four main characters - the good, the bad, and the ugly thoughts they have about one another.  Their parenting styles are very different and when the kids reveal that they like each other, the parents begin projecting on their own lover's child. Brutal, but we all have been there in some form.

Here is what angered me - there is a scene between Julia and her daughter Gwen (who she has raised as a single parent for the last five or so years after the devastating illness and death of her first husband) which I just could not believe.  Julia has up until this point spoiled her daughter rotten, but also given her daughter a very firm safety net and exclusive, close relationship.  In this scene, Julia says some utterly unforgivable and uncharacteristic things to her daughter that NO mother, no decent mother, would EVER say to her child.  Ever.  No matter how angry or hurt.  And especially not Julia, who couldn't even say No to her daughter.  It was devastating and ripped my heart to read.  I wondered how Gwen would ever speak to her mother again, much less function.  Cue the therapy.

The story continues, the conflict explodes and then wanes and then, and then - Epilogue. Does the conflict rip the family apart?  Does love overcome all?  And if you had to choose, which love comes first - parental or romantic???   I wasn't very satisfied with the ending, it was too little too late really although it could have been worse, but mainly it was because these characters should never have let it go this far (BE THE PARENT!!) and it just seemed so set up and unrealistic. Yes, ok, I know it is fiction, but I believed Harry Potter more than I believed the way these characters acted toward the middle and end.

The teenage angst here is represented well I think though, so focus on that.  The difference in how the teenage girl reads a situation and the college boy's response to the same conversation is pretty typical I think.  And the grandparents in the book are probably my favorites - wait til you see how Philip Alden ends up!!  HAHA!  I loved that Julia was still close to her in-laws after their shared loss.
And the book is well written, I just had a hard time getting over that scene.

There is definitely sex in this book, but not graphically described.  There are also difficult references to the responsibility that comes with the decision to or not to have sex that are pretty deep and could be disturbing.  No rape, but this is a deep subject.  Proceed with caution.  There could be triggers here.

*Summer 2017 Book One Done!!!