JD Vance has been on a journey from author of Hillbilly Elegy to Vice Presidential candidate
In October, Tyneside Book Club got the chance of an insight into one of the key players in the 2024 US Presidential election. It was far from a landslide victory though for JD Vance and his 2016 memoir Hillbilly Elegy.
All agreed it was interesting to encounter Vance in the years before he formally entered politics and embraced Donald Trump to become his Vice Presidential running mate. The memoir had been a sensation, and a best-seller at the time, and did provide some insight into the man.
Members were surprised about some of his views given his recent pronouncements, and certainly indicated he had been on quite a political "journey". But most also saw the seeds of the 2024 Vance in his writing.
It was generally agreed that the writing was competent and took the reader through some of his arguments. There has been discussion though about how far he represents the community he came from, and whether he is guilty of sustaining the stereotypes he claims to be undermining.
Some members were concerned that this was a partial and politically-loaded portrait of poor, white America, that did not actually reflect the full picture. There was limits then on how useful it was in explaining the decision by members of the community to abandon traditional Democrat loyalty and vote for Trump.
Vance's grandmother Mamaw was clearly the strongest character he portrayed, and one that was a huge influence on his life. But members felt Vance seemed to lack a compassionate curiosity about the factors that made his mother a more distant and troubled part of his uprbringing.
Vance was also quick to condemn those who failed to escape from the deprivation and problems of the community, but not analyse the luck that allowed him the chance to capitalise on his undoubted intelligence and drive.
One member who had listened to Vance read the audiobook of Hillbilly Elegy thought his narration reinforced the impression that he was a sociopath, with very little empathy for his fellow human beings.
Some members also commented on the flat and unemotional style of his writing, and found it left them with little real insight into his character. Some also found his arguments repetitive.
So it was no ringing endorsement for JD, and members will now wait to see if American electors decide differently.
All agreed it was interesting to encounter Vance in the years before he formally entered politics and embraced Donald Trump to become his Vice Presidential running mate. The memoir had been a sensation, and a best-seller at the time, and did provide some insight into the man.
Members were surprised about some of his views given his recent pronouncements, and certainly indicated he had been on quite a political "journey". But most also saw the seeds of the 2024 Vance in his writing.
It was generally agreed that the writing was competent and took the reader through some of his arguments. There has been discussion though about how far he represents the community he came from, and whether he is guilty of sustaining the stereotypes he claims to be undermining.
Some members were concerned that this was a partial and politically-loaded portrait of poor, white America, that did not actually reflect the full picture. There was limits then on how useful it was in explaining the decision by members of the community to abandon traditional Democrat loyalty and vote for Trump.
Vance's grandmother Mamaw was clearly the strongest character he portrayed, and one that was a huge influence on his life. But members felt Vance seemed to lack a compassionate curiosity about the factors that made his mother a more distant and troubled part of his uprbringing.
Vance was also quick to condemn those who failed to escape from the deprivation and problems of the community, but not analyse the luck that allowed him the chance to capitalise on his undoubted intelligence and drive.
One member who had listened to Vance read the audiobook of Hillbilly Elegy thought his narration reinforced the impression that he was a sociopath, with very little empathy for his fellow human beings.
Some members also commented on the flat and unemotional style of his writing, and found it left them with little real insight into his character. Some also found his arguments repetitive.
So it was no ringing endorsement for JD, and members will now wait to see if American electors decide differently.
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