Appalachian Reckoning: A Region Responds to Hillybilly Elegy did what it set out to do; it gave the reader a different point of view from J.D. Vance's Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis. Part I consisted of a compilation of educated professionals that gave their assessment on the Appalachian peoples' way of life, poverty, drug abuse, etcetera. It was interesting, but at times, overwhelming with all the cited references disputing J.D. Vance's judgment as to why the white working-class is in crisis.
Part II kept me riveted. Genuine Appalachian people shined, giving the reader insight into their way of life through their poems, letters, and pictures. Appalachian Reckoning: A Region Responds to Hillybilly Elegy gets 5 stars from me.