Redneckonomics
Unconventional Success by Takin' the Beatin' Path
A work of God-first pragmatism, the self-help text Redneckonomics links divine partnership with practical accountability, fusing salvation theology with business coaching.
Irreverent and authentic, Aaron B. Chapman’s self-help book Redneckonomics shares a Christian-inflected philosophy of self-definition and hard work.
Love it or hate it, by its own estimation, this book blends rural plain-speaking, evangelical certainty, and entrepreneurial self-help recommendations. It positions economic and personal success as acts of faith and self-discipline, encouraging people to say what they mean, do what they say, follow through, work hard, and not bluff or whine. Its phrasing is blunt, and its conviction bespeaks God-first pragmatism, linking divine partnership with practical accountability and fusing salvation theology with business coaching.
Colloquial contractions run throughout the prose, including “sumbitches,” “cuz,” and dropped g‘s. Such earthiness is constant if distracting—a deliberate vernacular style that is theatrical and self-aware. Moral instructions weave with personal anecdotes, too, as with the story of a near-fatal motorcycle accident and Chapman’s reflections on his father’s chainsaw. The former incident, which entailed head trauma and memory loss, is used to encourage patience and perseverance and to speak on the limits of self-pity; the latter leads into a meditation on the mind’s capacity to shape outcomes.
Amid all the bravado, moments of vulnerability slip through. Reflections on conformity, faith, and self-presentation expose Chapman’s awareness of possible internal contradictions. Behind their rugged, successful personas, the book suggests, many who seem sure of themselves are, in fact, fragmented. Forging one’s path and sticking to it requires disciplined authenticity, it says, working toward success that is not just financial but spiritual. It encourages people to define the parameters of such success for themselves and to stop performing for other people’s expectations.
Still, the book’s tone is too combative to be generally persuasive. It includes multiple warnings that read like dares to put the book down if its language offends or its message doesn’t resonate. The repeated phrase “ass whoopin’” reinforces this posture that self-discipline hurts before it heals. Another of the book’s repeated mantras is that personal success or failure is the individual’s responsibility—an overfamiliar adage that reflects its personal code, which also speaks to integrity, consistency, and commitment.
The book’s repetition of ideas is conscious and unapologetic, but also an impediment to its general delivery. It is frequent with its calls to act, reminders to quit complaining, and reiterations of the necessity of faith. Nods to Chapman’s other work also proliferate, as do sales-pitch invitations to small-group retreats in the Ozark Mountains. A letter-to-self exercise projecting five years ahead is the book’s lone practical exercise, with Chapman’s own letter included as an example. Elsewhere, a single quote from an external source (Jordan Peterson) is used to gesture to other contemporary self-help discourses.
The homey and enthusiastic self-help book Redneckonomics champions personal responsibility, a strong work ethic, and faith.
Reviewed by
pine breaks
Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book and paid a small fee to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. Foreword Reviews and Clarion Reviews make no guarantee that the publisher will receive a positive review. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
