Psychotherapy is not just an abstract concept and cannot be described without reference to real human beings. So this book is also a story about people; in particular, two men who knew trauma, loneliness, and sometimes, despair. They dealt with their pain in some of the ways that people do: drinking, anger, disparaging others, and withdrawal from all but the safest of people. This, but for one element, would be a story of tragedy. The element that redeems the story was their use of their pain, uncertainty, and loneliness to help other suffering people.