 Vance first gained fame for his best-selling memoir, Hillbilly Elegy, which chronicles his upbringing in poverty in Middletown, Ohio, and highlights the Appalachian values held by his Kentucky family. Vance is seen by some and paints himself as a man of the people who can connect with the millions of Americans in Appalachia and in the industrial heartland, many of whom struggle with poverty and addiction. Vance describes abusive alcoholic grandparents and a mother addicted to drugs.