A brilliant, almost chilling description of the author's descent into clinical depression and later, his recovery. While the description is wonderful, my main takeaway from this book is the hope it gives to those who suffer from depression - there is a way out. I also appreciated the way he 'demystified' the idea of inpatient treatment. What is important to realize is that when this book was written, none of the current widely prescribed antidepressants were in existence - Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, etc.