Hillbilly Elegy

were Vances, and all of Mamaw’s
brothers were Blantons. I shared a name
with no one I really cared about (which
bothered me already), and with Bob
gone, explaining why my name was J.D.
Hamel would require a few additional
awkward moments. “Yeah, my legal
father’s last name is Hamel. You haven’t
met him because I don’t see him. No, I
don’t know why I don’t see him.”
Of all the things that I hated about my
childhood, nothing compared to the
revolving door of father figures. To her
credit, Mom had avoided abusive or
neglectful partners, and I never felt
mistreated by any of the men she brought
into our home. But I hated the disruption.