Interest in Sen. JD Vance’s 2016 book, “Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis,” surged online this week after Vance, R-Ohio, was named as former President Donald Trump’s vice presidential running mate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The book rose to No. 1 on Amazon.com on Monday night and drew an influx of polarized reviews. It was previously No. 220. By Tuesday, which was Amazon Prime Day, the book had maintained a top slot on the bestseller list.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Oscar-nominated film adaptation of the book, directed by Ron Howard, also climbed the Netflix charts Tuesday, appearing at No. 6 on the list of Top 10 movies nationwide. Released in 2020, the movie stars Amy Adams as Vance\u2019s mother, Beverly Vance, and Glenn Close as his grandmother.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Representatives for Amazon and Netflix did not immediately respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The memoir follows Vance\u2019s impoverished upbringing<\/a>, marked by his mother\u2019s struggles with addiction. It chronicles his journey to the Marines and Yale Law School.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Upon its initial publication by HarperCollins, the memoir faced polarized reviews from critics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The American Conservative named \u201cHillbilly Elegy\u201d<\/a> the \u201cmost important book of 2016,\u201d praising it as \u201can extraordinary testimony to the brokenness of the white working class, but also its strengths.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n In a 2017 speech, then-Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin called \u201cHillbilly Elegy\u201d a \u201cthought-provoking book that needs to be read by people who care about Kentucky.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, some residents of Appalachia, which spans 13 states from Mississippi to New York, took issue with Vance\u2019s representation of the region and its inhabitants, who are depicted in the book.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cJ.D. Vance should not be held up as a representative of Appalachia or working class people, as his book … displayed a contempt for both groups,\u201d Kentucky author Silas House told public radio station WUKY of Lexington, Kentucky<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The discourse surrounding the book has resurfaced as Vance was tapped as the Republican vice presidential nominee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Vance, a onetime critic of Trump, was elected to the Senate in 2022 after an endorsement from Trump.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In selecting him as his running mate, Trump cited<\/a> Vance\u2019s success as a bestselling author, saying the memoir \u201cchampioned the hardworking men and women of our Country\u201d and highlighting the \u201cAmerican Workers\u201d of Vance\u2019s native Ohio that were its subject.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Online, several new reviews of the book surfaced after Trump’s announcement. Some mentioned<\/a> Vance\u2019s vice presidential candidacy as the impetus behind their purchases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n S<\/a>o<\/a>me readers no<\/a>ticed<\/a> that Goodreads, a book cataloguing platform owned by Amazon, temporarily restricted ratings on “Hillbilly Elegy,” citing “unusual behavior” on its landing page.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In response to a request for comment, Goodreads directed NBC News to a policy introduced in October<\/a> to “protect the authenticity of ratings and reviews on Goodreads.<\/p>\n\n\n\n