Bogan Elegy: A Survivor’s Guide to Escaping Suburban Poverty

Now that he’s Donald Trump’s VP pick, I’ve been thinking about J.D. Vance’s memoir, Hillbilly Elegy, and my own similar journey from family dysfunction to becoming a relatively healthy human being.

I’m no hillbilly, but I grew up in the land of the “bogans,” an Aussie term for working- and welfare-class Australians in not so charming locations characterized by high crime rates, substance addiction, and unemployment.

My early childhood and teenage years were spent on the outskirts of Brisbane, Australia, in a suburb called “Goodna,” which is the local indigenous word for “Dung.” I literally grew up in the land of crap. A fitting name for what was a crappy childhood