Julie Maruskin answers “This is a hard read. I am 53 years old...”

Atheena asked this question about Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis:

This is a hard read. I am 53 years old and just finished this book yesterday. I have cried all day yesterday, all night woke with nightmares and am crying now. I know this is for questions. The only question I have is... does it ever get ok?

Julie Maruskin This is one person's view of growing up in Appalachia. I was raised in southeast KY. My family were miners and farmers. We were raised to despise the …moreThis is one person's view of growing up in Appalachia. I was raised in southeast KY. My family were miners and farmers. We were raised to despise the use of the term "hillbilly" along with other ethnic and cultural slurs. My parents grew up in the US Steel and American Harvester-owned towns Lynch and Benham in Harlan, KY; my mother's father began working in the mines as a spragger at the age of 8. His father, uncles, and cousins were murdered in mine strike raids because of their outspoken support of unionization. And no, my extended family did not function like Vance's, and yes, they educated themselves when and where ever possible. Some left Harlan and some stayed. Some are still miners. Most of us are still poor, but we are not scrabbling in the dirt like animals.(less)

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