Readers turning to Hillbilly Elegy for some illumination on the mind of JD Vance will be disappointed. The first half follows a hagiography of Mamaw and Papaw, as they transition from small town roots to a middle class family tree. Their characterization as crude tough talkers is afforded as well to Vance’s Mom and her revolving door of male companions. None of it is compelling, or poignant, given the thinnest veneer of peppered insights. It’s the literary equivalent of a chicken fried steak dinner at Eat ‘n Park.

Why am I bothering to read this? To gain some understanding of the Senator from Ohio, this bearded, flatly smug, not evidently sharp man who might be the next Vice President. One doesn’t immediately hate him, not so much as the nastier loons of the fringe. His spiritless charisma pales in comparison to Ron DeSantis – imagine that. But even the most virulent opponents of Donald Trump should not underestimate his political savvy. So let’s not judge the book by its cover.

Despite the prosaic dramas he describes around him, not much is revealed of Vance himself. His story is simple – poor student learns discipline as a Marine (specializing in public affairs) and then a knack for political mobility at Yale. “For much of that first year in law school, I reveled in the fact that I was the only big marine with a Southern twang at my elite law school.” We follow the conveyor belt of his life, like a toaster, as the springs and screws are set in place, and enough sheen applied to put on the shelf at Target.

Lip service is given to a pull-up-your-bootstraps mentality that is not without merit. “(T)here’s something powerful about realizing you’ve undersold yourself – that somehow your mind confused lack of effort for inability” is a fine thought. Along with a section undercutting conspiratorial thinking, particularly the right wing toxicity of the Obama era. The media is already reporting his flip flopped position on Donald Trump. Reading Hillbilly Elegy, it makes sense. The man is still on the conveyor belt, pliant and amenable for whatever upgrades his masters deem necessary.