Books allure you, they might destroy you, expose you, awaken you, and stir deep-seated emotions—this is what Sarah Chihaya believes. Anyone who loves books understands these strange encounters that turn your world upside down. Sarah calls these books: "life destroyers."

Her destructive book was Toni Morrison's "The Bluest Eye," which became a talisman for her during her teenage years. She believes each of us has their destructive book.

Sarah's entire life revolved around books: she read to find an escape, an identity, and rules to help her live. She became a literary critic and taught literature at a prestigious university. Then, suddenly, she collapsed, was hospitalized, and the world became an unreadable blank page. When she tried to rise again, she faced the terrifying question: Can we really rewrite the stories that control our lives?

Book Obsession is a captivating memoir, sometimes painful, sometimes humorous, about collapse and survival, narrated through books. From Anne of Green Gables to Possession, and from Time Machine Tale to The Last Samurai, Sarah Chihaya explores her identity, her relationship with depression, and the strange and impactful ways books resist those who love them too much.