I truly struggled with this for the first 4 or 5 hours. It was so depressing. But Ben said it was a great book, so I persevered, and I’m really glad I did. This was not only an extremely well-written novel with a classic Bildungsroman structure, it was a timely message. My coastal elite privileged self has heard of stories like Demon’s, but to experience it so intimately is extremely powerful. It gives me more empathy for people who are probably very far from my political leanings, and I think that’s a good thing. Ben has also recommended I follow this read up with Empire of Pain. I’m sure that will be depressing too, but I want to better understand this opioid epidemic.