Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis by J.D. Vance

9 reviews

jdromsky's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective tense fast-paced

4.0

I agree with the praise on the front cover of my copy that this book “is essential reading for this moment in American history.” Hillbilly Elegy was incredibly informative but lovingly so: author JD Vance just wants to tell his story and explain how his life has led him to draw certain conclusions about the world. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Emotional abuse, Drug use, Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Classism, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Death, and Toxic relationship

iamahmedkhalifa's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative sad medium-paced

4.75

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Content Warnings

Minor: Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Mental illness, Child abuse, Drug use, and Drug abuse

isleoflinds's review against another edition

1.0

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Content Warnings

Minor: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Bullying, Toxic relationship, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Classism, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, Drug use, Drug abuse, Gaslighting, Sexism, Physical abuse, Ableism, Addiction, Gun violence, Hate crime, Mental illness, and Misogyny

angelasosh's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

2.0

I didn’t know who J.D. Vance was before I started this book and had I known, I would’ve been more hesitant to listen to it. I listened to this as an audiobook and don’t think I would’ve been able to read a physical copy of it as I don’t believe the writing was all that fantastic. As a memoir of his childhood, the book is fine. But I personally felt his analysis of a culture in crisis was lacking; it felt kind of vague to me and i don’t feel he addressed the core of why some Appalachian families struggle the way they do. He analyzed his specific family but missed the mark on the culture as a whole. I won’t argue that his childhood wasn’t difficult, but I do feel he failed to acknowledge some of the privileges that did work to his advantage. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Gaslighting, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Drug use, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, and Bullying

lngoldstein's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, and Mental illness

sophiejohn's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

1.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Mental illness, Physical abuse, and Violence

judereadsalot's review against another edition

sad medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, and Toxic relationship

charlotte03's review against another edition

emotional informative fast-paced

3.0

His view on the influence of race in society is very one dimensional, and seems to miss the point that  being white was one of the few privileges he had growing up and not that  white male privilege discards hardships. However, his experience does highlight the inaccessibility to the valued cultural and social capital in society.
This should be seen as biography and not a sociological text. However, it would good to read alongside, and in addition to, sociological and political  based books focusing on class and intersectionality. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, and Violence

askannakarenina's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

2.0

I listened to J.D. Vance's narration of this book on Audible...I'm very conflicted about this book. On the one hand, Vance's narration of his own life experience is highly compelling, and he's tackling important and under-discussed issues from the position of a person who has lived through them. On the other hand, this book has faced a lot of criticism for placing the issues of Appalachia too much on the cultural habits of the people who live there, or for not placing enough blame on them. Vance is so proud of his own heritage, but so critical of that same culture, and I was in places quite angry with his tone or with the prescriptions he made. This book has been important in American political culture over the past few years, so I'm glad I read it, but I don't think it's something I will be revisiting.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, and Violence