When we find out the artist who's work we loved may be a monster, how does that affect the art? We grew up on Harry Potter, but now for many the acts of J.K. Rowling towards the trans community has irreparably damaged the enjoyment of her books.

Dederer explores what it means to love the work of a monster, and confronts the parts of her life that caused harm to her and those in her spheres of influence.

The final few chapters really summed it up for me when Dederer talked about an abusive or addicted parent. We may understand that their acts have impacted us negatively, that we shouldn't love them, but when we get down to it, we still do. We can't help but love them.

This was an excellent read.