Middletown residents show muted response to JD Vance's new memoir
Two months after JD Vance's memoir Communion was released, the book ranks second in adult nonfiction at the local library and has sparked limited public discussion in his hometown of Middletown, Ohio.
Since its June 16 launch, JD Vance’s Communion has become the second-most borrowed adult nonfiction work at the MidPointe Library System, with 11 of 20 copies loaned out as of July 27. Councilman Joe Mulligan, who serves on Middletown’s city council and practices Catholicism, admits he has not read the memoir but suggests churches could use its themes for community discussion. Library staff note that the book is absent from the nonfiction new-release display, which instead features Anne Wilson’s Rebel.
Neither the local Republican headquarters nor the town’s independent bookstore have displayed promotional material, and inquiries about events went unanswered. A longtime Catholic priest and a local book-club leader both say few residents have actually read the volume, reflecting a cautious attitude toward Vance’s political profile despite the area’s strong support for the Trump-Vance ticket in 2024.
Why it matters
The story shows how a high-profile political figure’s personal book can generate limited local engagement despite national fame.
In this story
