Hillbilly Elegy

spoke to one another. When Lori married
Dan, I learned of at least one exception.
Mamaw told me that Dan and Aunt Wee
never screamed at each other because
Dan was different. “He’s a saint,” she’d
say. As we got to know Dan’s entire
family, I realized that they were just
nicer to each other. They didn’t yell at
each other in public. I got the distinct
impression that they didn’t yell at each
other much in private, either. I thought
they were frauds. Aunt Wee saw it
differently. “I just assumed they were
really weird. I knew they were genuine.
I just figured they were genuinely odd.”
The never-ending conflict took its
toll. Even thinking about it today makes