The Mailman

My Wild Ride Delivering the Mail in Appalachia and Finally Finding Home

De: Stephen Starring Grant

Narrado por: Stephen Starring Grant

An exuberant, hilarious, and profound memoir by a mailman in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, who found that working for the post office saved his life, taught him who he was, gave him purpose, and educated him deeply about a country he loves but had lost touch with.

Steve Grant was laid off in March of 2020. He was fifty and had cancer, so he needed health insurance, fast. Which is how he found himself a rural letter carrier in Appalachia, back in his old hometown.

Suddenly, he was the guy with the goods, delivering dog food and respirators and lube and heirloom tomato seeds and Lord of the Rings replica swords. He transported chicken feed to grandmothers living alone in the mountains and forded a creek with a refrigerator on his back. But while he carried the mail, he also carried a whole lot more than just the mail, including a family legacy of rage and the anxiety of having lost his identity along with his corporate job.

And yet, slowly, surrounded by a ragtag but devoted band of letter carriers, working this different kind of job, Grant found himself becoming a different kind of person. He became a lifeline for lonely people, providing fleeting moments of human contact and the assurance that our government still cares. He embraced the thrill of tackling new challenges, the pride of contributing to something greater than himself, the joy of camaraderie, and the purpose found in working hard for his family and doing a small, good thing for his community. He even kindled a newfound faith.

A brash and loving portrait of an all-American institution, Mailman offers a deeply felt portrait of both rural America and the dedicated (and eccentric) letter carriers who keep our lives running smoothly day to day. One hell of a raconteur, Steve Grant has written an irreverent, heartfelt, and often hilarious tribute to the simple heroism of daily service, the dignity and struggle of blue-collar work, the challenge and pleasure of coming home again after twenty-five years away, and the delight of going the extra mile for your neighbors, every day.

Reseñas de la Crítica

“A love letter to the Blue Ridge Mountains, a participant observer’s ethnography of a rural post office, an indictment of government austerity, and a witness statement attesting to the remarkable and at times ruthless efficiency of one of our oldest federal bureaucracies. Not least, Mailman is a lament for the decline of service as an American ideal....[Grant] proves to be a compelling and empathetic guide, observing his country and its citizens, not just himself, with open and unjaded eyes.”
—The Atlantic

“A love song to America’s least understood treasure. I will never take my mail carrier for granted again.”
—David Von Drehle, New York Times bestselling author of The Book of Charlie

“An entertaining and illuminating read….Grant is a great storyteller and a wonderful writer — lyrical, descriptive and honest. He’s fervent in his belief that the U.S. Postal Service is necessary, impartial and downright patriotic.”
—Laurie Hertzel, The Washington Post

“Mailman pulses with humor and the beauty of simple, everyday courage. In the heart of a small mountain town, Steve Grant’s route as a rural mail carrier becomes a journey of personal redemption, of finding purpose and dignity.”
—Jonathan Safran Foer, New York Times bestselling author of Everything is Illuminated

“Warm and oddly patriotic....this unpolished but perceptive book kept me turning the pages....Grant’s book has a rough authority. A working-class hero is something to be.”
—Dwight Garner, The New York Times

“People like to make fun of the Postal Service for being late with deliveries. Well, this book could not be more timely. I needed this reminder that Americans can commit to the greater good, that public servants can be heroes, and that our crazy-quilt culture is a strength, not a weakness. Thank you, Mr. Mailman.”
—AJ Jacobs, New York Times bestselling author of The Year of Living Constitutionally

"Mailman takes readers on a wild ride... as Grant pulls back the curtain on the U.S. Postal Service, revealing its foibles and idiosyncrasies alongside its stalwart heart."
—Southern Review of Books

“If you’ve ever fantasized about ditching your corporate job for a quieter life in the country, Mailman could be the memoir for you…. Grant’s honesty and humor… have me hooked.”
—Garden & Gun

“A charming book that’s guaranteed to make you think differently about the USPS.”
— Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"A coming-of-age (at middle age) story... Mailman more than delivers."
— Booklist (starred review)

Great listen! Interesting on many levels

Grant covers a lot of ground (no pun intended) in his memoir. He skillfully weaves...oh, just about everything...into a cohesive memoir that is ostensibly about his year of being a mailman on a rural route.

If you ever wondered about the inner workings and history of the Post Office, there's enough here to keep a reader happy. Also enough to keep a memoir reader happy. The memoir portion hits all the usual subjects (love, loss, place, alienation, politics, funny stories, heartwarming stories, religion, health, mental health, etc.).

There was the perfect amount of everything.

Well written and well performed.

A re-newed appreciation of our mail service men & women

I laughed, I cried, but most of all I loved riding along & delivering the mail with Steve. His memoir reminds me of how life takes us on journeys that bring us back to the basics of family, community and our own personal spirituality.

EXCEPTIONAL

This memoir covers far more ground than I thought it would. From the nuts and bolts and complexities of how mail is delivered to guns, dogs, America, history, love, redemption, religious ecstasy and more, I was never bored. It gave me a feeling of deep satisfaction. I “read” the audiobook, which is narrated by the author who does an outstanding job. I couldn’t stop talking about this book and now my husband is reading it while I re-listen to it so we can talk about it. Thank and respect your mail carriers! It’s one tough job.

More than a Covid story

Best description of what it takes to be a rural letter carrier. Funny, poignant, thoughtful. A truly engaging book. Love books like this which are enriched by being read by the author.

Fantastic narrative from the heart of Appalachia that will challenge preconceived notions.

From the outset, I love more than anything, that the person to tell this thoughtful story about the USPS, is Appalachian. “Appalachia” has been a victim of hick-sploitation, represented by caricatures of slovenly, stupid people (J.D.Vance comes to mind). This author extinguishes the notion that a drawl is a defining trait, antithetical to intelligence or thoughtfulness or kindness.

This authentic narrative set mainly during the pandemic really brings to life the area half my family comes from and where I grew up in my earliest years (nearby Rockbridge County, for reference). The descriptors transported me to the hollow I grew up in and the Maury River flowing behind our house. Coming from a family that also lived in Western VA (and later Ohio), and vacationed in WV, I’m so pleased with the unapologetic way the realities of those experiences are shared here.

As someone who worked in the same field for more than a decade and throughout the pandemic, I can tell these stories about the challenges and dangers of delivery during that time are real and toned down, if anything.

The book is full of humorous anecdotes, and poignant reflections on universal struggles in the U.S.

Note: I surmise the only reason this book is rated lower than a 5 is because of the cult followers that can’t resolve the challenges to their own assumptions that because Appalachians carry, they should automatically be a member of your cult.