J. D. Vance

James David "J. D." Vance (born James Donald Bowman; August 2, 1984) is an American author and venture capitalist known for his memoir Hillbilly Elegy. The book is about the Appalachian values of his upbringing and their relation to the social problems of his hometown. The book was on The New York Times Best Seller list in 2016 and 2017. It was a finalist for the 2017 Dayton Literary Peace Prize. It attracted significant attention during the 2016 election from national media as a window into the white working class. Vance attracted criticism from some Eastern Kentuckians who said he was 'not a hillbilly', while others supported him.

Early life
James David Vance was born in August 1984 in Middletown, Ohio, as James Donald Bowman, the son of Donald Bowman and Bev Vance. His sister, Lindsay, was born when his mother was nineteen years old. His father left his mother, a nurse, and started a new family. Vance's mother struggled with a heroin and opioid addiction throughout his childhood. He was raised primarily by his grandparents.

Education
Vance was educated at Middletown High School, a public high school in his home town. After graduating from high school, he enlisted in the United States Marine Corps and served in Iraq. Vance later graduated from Ohio State University, a public university in Columbus, Ohio. While he was at Ohio State, he worked for Republican state senator Bob Schuler.

After Ohio State, Vance attended Yale Law School. During his first year at Yale, his mentor and professor, Amy Chua convinced him to write his memoir.

Life and career
After law school, Vance worked as the principal in a venture capital firm owned by Peter Thiel, known as Mithril Capital Management LLC. In December 2016, Vance indicated that he plans to move to Ohio to start a nonprofit and potentially run for office and work on drug addiction. The non-profit is called Our Ohio Renewal.

In January 2017, Vance became a CNN Contributor. In April 2017, Ron Howard signed on to direct a movie based on Hillbilly Elegy.

After considering a bid for U.S. Senate as a Republican, Vance decided in September 2017 not to run.

Personal life
Vance is married to one of his former law school classmates, Usha, an Indian-American woman who is a law clerk to Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts. The couple has one son, Ewan, born on 4 June, 2017.