Yeah, should bad people be nice to themselves, or do they deserve their self hatred? Does the advice to be kind to yourself assume that you're a good person?

It truly is a very accurate depiction of major depressive disorder like I've never read before. It's a fantastic book, I like everyone should read it. I've actually bought multiple copies over the years to give to friends.

I don't think I read for escape, I just really appreciate art. I love books for storytelling, characters, prose, and the creative freedom. I love that you don’t really need anybody’s input on how you put your story together as an author, besides maybe your editor and publisher, but even then, you have a lot more freedom. A director of a film or TV show has to contend with a crew of thousands, which can be disastrous. I think if you want to tell a good story with rich characters, books will always be the best way to do that. There’s almost no end to the detail and depth you can include, and it’s literally the most affordable way to create art.