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.

©2025 Stephen Starring Grant (P)2025 Simon & Schuster Audio

Reseñas de la Crítica

“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

“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

“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

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.

What an adventure?

Vehicles without heating or cooling. vehicles made from the aluminum construction used for the unheated B-17 bombers in World War II. This type of vehicle is a furnace in the summer and freezing in the winter.
What an adventure.
Combining all the different streams of Mail and large 70 pound packages with abysmal rural road conditions was a shocking change for the author who had a white collar job.
I like how he described how his wife and daughters were pursuing interesting, intellectual, and artistic pursuits that would not float their expensive lifestyle. Or the future college tuition, unless he returned to his previous career.
The only irritating thing that did not cause too much disruption was his worshipful discussion of President Obama and the author’s Democratic party, straighten beliefs.

A Powerful, Honest, and Deeply Relatable Story

I may be a little biased, as I was fortunate enough to be a character in this—but even setting that aside, I was genuinely moved by the experience of listening to it. The writing is sharp, vivid, and so easy to follow. It paints a raw, honest picture of what it's like to work at the post office—the long hours, the emotional toll, the quiet victories, and the resilience required just to keep going.

I laughed, I cried, I got angry, and most importantly—I felt seen. It’s rare to find a story that validates your lived experiences in such a real and unflinching way. This isn’t just a book about mail—it’s about people, pressure, dignity, and the unspoken weight so many of us carry while doing the work that keeps the world moving.

To the author: thank you for telling the truth so beautifully. You’ve given voice to something many of us live but rarely see written. This book is a gift.

If you get shot, get back up and try again.

First, ever since going all-in on @Mary Karr's Liars Club, Cherry, & Lit, I'm a sucker for memoirs.

Second, ever since @Strunk & White's Elements of Style, and @King's On Writing I'm a sucker for straight-shooting prose that omits needless words (Please read @McMurtry's Lonesome Dove if you haven't already).

Third, ever since my Audible library grew to nearly 350 titles, rivaling the shelves 'round the house, I'm a sucker for any title the author reads his ownself.

Fourth, ever since my layoff from a ten-year post B-school career at 38, I'm a sucker for stories about midlife reinvention.

Fifth, I have extraordinary admiration for authors who manage to publish op-eds in the WSJ, including recently @Aaron Renn and now @Stephen Starring Grant.

Sixth, my college-age kids loved this on a roadtrip.

Seventh, as somewhat-removed hillbilly stock (my maternal grandfather is Scotch-Irish from Western NC. My paternal great-great-grandfather settled amongst Tarheel transplants in Darrington, WA, and I live in central NC), stories like Grant's, Vance's, and Rob Henderson's have a lot of resonance with me.

Therefore - Run, don't walk, to your Audible app, download The Mailman, and enjoy Mr. Grant's walk on the Appalachian side of life. This past week, Grant's work prompted a new connection with Dominic, our regular letter carrier, and delivery of cold beverages to Dominic on a 93 degree day, which I believe was a mutual blessing. Thank you, Stephen, for sharing your story. I wish you all the best with your future endeavors.

Really compelling read!

I had to purchase this audible after reading the WSJ article written by Stephen. I found the book to be part endearing, part funny, and it was such a good read + journey where I came away with a deeper appreciation for the USPS and Stephen's hustle to provide for his family amid some real challenges. I love a good comeback story.

Mundane

The author reads like he is angry and unhappy. The real stories are in his co-workers who had been on the job longer.

Foul language

I was looking forward to listening to this book, the story is compelling. The author seems to be knowledgeable of the English language, therefore I don't understand why does he have to express so much vulgarity. He tells about having 2 daughters, I can't imagine asking my daughters to listen to so much foul language. Still, I would enjoy to know more about his journey, just without vulgarity. Hopefully one day he will publish a cleaner version of his book.