young man, with a rough upbringing, done good 
 saw some comments that this 'explained Donald Trump's election' and the state of lower class Appalachian white communities ('hillbillies' to quote author), but did not achieve this for me 
 focus was much more on the personal than the general, although he did seem to be trying to extrapolate and theorise 
 I felt the detail of his youth gave an interesting perspective although, as a read, it got repetitive 
 could have had more on life as marine, deployment to Iraq, college life and legal career 
 despite the harsh light shone on his early life, he does seem to romanticise the community he came from, behaviours presented as evidence of their fierce loyality and toughness came across to me as often fearful and insular 
 can't help feeling the author could write a more interesting book with a few more years perspective 
 As millions migrated north to factory jobs, the communities that sprouted up around those factories were vibrant but fragile: When the factories shut their doors, the people left behind were trapped in towns and cities that could no longer support such large populations with high-quality work. Those who could--generally the well educated, wealthy, or well connected--left, leaving behind communities of poor people. These remaining folks were the "truly disadvantaged"--unable to find good jobs on their own and surrounded by communities that offered little in the way of connections or social support. 
 We choose not to work when we should be looking for jobs. Sometimes we'll get a job, but it won't last. We'll get fired for tardiness, or for stealing merchandise and selling it on eBay, or for having a customer complain about the smell of alcohol on our breath, or for taking five thirty-minute restroom breaks per shift. We talk about the value of hard work but tell ourselves that the reason we're not working is some perceived unfairness: Obama shut down the coal mines, or all the jobs went to the Chinese. These are the lies we tell ourselves to solve the cognitive dissonance--the broken connection between the world we see and the values we preach. 
 Psychologists call it "learned helplessness" when a person believes, as I did during my youth, that the choices I made had no effect on the outcomes in my life. From Middletown's world of small expectations to the constant chaos of our home, life had taught me that I had no control 
 whenever people ask me what I'd most like to change about the white working class, I say, "The feeling that our choices don't matter." 
 Barack Obama strikes at the heart of our deepest insecurities. He is a good father while many of us aren't. He wears suits to his job while we wear overalls, if we're lucky enough to have a job at all. His wife tells us that we shouldn't be feeding our children certain foods, and we hate her for it--not because we think she's wrong but because we know she's right