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dorhastings's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
4.25
How this book ended up on my TBR: I was perusing my local library, and they had a random assortment of books in a display case. This caught my eye, and I only had two weeks to read and return it! I had not heard of the authors before reading this book.
Oh boy, the reviews on this book really do run the gamut on GoodReads. The timing of this book could not be more appropriate. I can imagine that both authors were originally interested in White Rural America (they make the point that Rural America is majority white, but that the majority is beginning to decline), but that took a pretty sharp turn possibly after the January 6th insurrection. And make no mistake: Schaller and Waldman do not pull any punches, sugar coat, or waffle over "well, on the one hand." I appreciate their directness.
I can imagine the impetus for this book was not only Donald Trump's election, but also the "all or nothing" dedication to him, to all he represents, and his ability to the quiet parts out loud with zero repercussions. Due to county lines, rural Americans are overrepresented in both local and federal government. And yet they are a demographic that uniquely suffers in matters of health, economics, and quality of life. GOP politicians have misdirected their ire at immigrants, minorities, and liberals and not at their own failure to enact policies that would actually support their constituents. The sad thing is that it seems to be working. The dangerous thing is that this demographic, perhaps more than any other, is willing to toss the Constitution and the foundational elements of our democratic republic to get back a nostalgic lifestyle that, truthfully, never really existed.
The nostalgia for something that did not exist is not new. I think about reading Tannen's "The Way We Never Were" in college; nostalgia is great for groups that didn't experience oppression and discrimination in those bygone years. And focusing on the past, alas, is not an efficient way to plan out a future.
Schaller and Waldman do try to humanize White Rural America, but they also provide a whole lot of research to explain why they identify this demographic as a troubling one. To a certain extent, they also sort of dismiss the group as one that is open to persuasion and change. It isn't. That is, I think, one of the reasons some folks are fired up about the book. And I do like that the authors note that Rural America is changing, whether or not White Rural Americans recognize or like it. I also like that the authors don't let Democrats off the hook, but they also seem to acknowledge that Democrats could say and do all the right things and still not gain the support of White Rural Americans.
At the end of the day, the book is a little depressing. There really is no going back to a time when a significant portion of the population believed in voter fraud and overthrowing the government and other unpatriotic beliefs. But the box is open, and everything's out in the open. The authors probably expect a Trump win in 2024, and I can see why they do. The changes that would need to happen (getting rid of the US Senate, redrawing county lines) are not impossible, but they're about as close as they can get to it. Nevertheless, I enjoyed reading this book and gaining a better understanding of small town and rural America.
Oh boy, the reviews on this book really do run the gamut on GoodReads. The timing of this book could not be more appropriate. I can imagine that both authors were originally interested in White Rural America (they make the point that Rural America is majority white, but that the majority is beginning to decline), but that took a pretty sharp turn possibly after the January 6th insurrection. And make no mistake: Schaller and Waldman do not pull any punches, sugar coat, or waffle over "well, on the one hand." I appreciate their directness.
I can imagine the impetus for this book was not only Donald Trump's election, but also the "all or nothing" dedication to him, to all he represents, and his ability to the quiet parts out loud with zero repercussions. Due to county lines, rural Americans are overrepresented in both local and federal government. And yet they are a demographic that uniquely suffers in matters of health, economics, and quality of life. GOP politicians have misdirected their ire at immigrants, minorities, and liberals and not at their own failure to enact policies that would actually support their constituents. The sad thing is that it seems to be working. The dangerous thing is that this demographic, perhaps more than any other, is willing to toss the Constitution and the foundational elements of our democratic republic to get back a nostalgic lifestyle that, truthfully, never really existed.
The nostalgia for something that did not exist is not new. I think about reading Tannen's "The Way We Never Were" in college; nostalgia is great for groups that didn't experience oppression and discrimination in those bygone years. And focusing on the past, alas, is not an efficient way to plan out a future.
Schaller and Waldman do try to humanize White Rural America, but they also provide a whole lot of research to explain why they identify this demographic as a troubling one. To a certain extent, they also sort of dismiss the group as one that is open to persuasion and change. It isn't. That is, I think, one of the reasons some folks are fired up about the book. And I do like that the authors note that Rural America is changing, whether or not White Rural Americans recognize or like it. I also like that the authors don't let Democrats off the hook, but they also seem to acknowledge that Democrats could say and do all the right things and still not gain the support of White Rural Americans.
At the end of the day, the book is a little depressing. There really is no going back to a time when a significant portion of the population believed in voter fraud and overthrowing the government and other unpatriotic beliefs. But the box is open, and everything's out in the open. The authors probably expect a Trump win in 2024, and I can see why they do. The changes that would need to happen (getting rid of the US Senate, redrawing county lines) are not impossible, but they're about as close as they can get to it. Nevertheless, I enjoyed reading this book and gaining a better understanding of small town and rural America.