The concept of a "guilty pleasure" is kind of weird, if you think about it.
If you enjoyed reading a book, why does it matter that some narrow subset of humanity doesn't like it? Critics are supposed to be good at judging on two criteria:
1. Will the average person enjoy this?
2. Is it actually good?
Why does it matter to me whether a book is "actually good" or not? One reason is that it's a status marker to like books that are "actually good" and not just popular.
Maybe all that "actually good" really means is that high status people like it.
But in my opinion, true high status comes from setting the bar, not following it. Stop trying to chase status by following the tastes of high-status people. Instead, just enjoy what you enjoy without apology and without guilt.
If you enjoyed reading a book, why does it matter that some narrow subset of humanity doesn't like it? Critics are supposed to be good at judging on two criteria:
1. Will the average person enjoy this?
2. Is it actually good?
Why does it matter to me whether a book is "actually good" or not? One reason is that it's a status marker to like books that are "actually good" and not just popular.
Maybe all that "actually good" really means is that high status people like it.
But in my opinion, true high status comes from setting the bar, not following it. Stop trying to chase status by following the tastes of high-status people. Instead, just enjoy what you enjoy without apology and without guilt.