Obsessed

Title: Obsessed
Author: Ted Dekker
Genre: Fiction/Suspense

Obsessed as defined by the MSN Encarta dictionary is to never stop thinking about something. Ted Dekker has expounded this definition in the 382 pages that make up the story of Obsessed.

The story takes place in 1973 and opens in Los Angeles, California. Stephen Friedman seems like an ordinary man, a realtor by trade. Born in a Poland concentration camp in 1944, his past makes him a target for a former Nazi serial killer. Stephen Friedman, living comfortably in L.A., has no idea his very life will be on stake, for an obsession of an all-consuming fortune.

Because his adoptive family reared Stephen in Russia, he had no clue surrounding the circumstances of his birth mother. One day a Jewish antique dealer comes across a piece of information that may link Stephen to Rachel Spritzer, his possible birth mother. Stephen also learns that if this information is true, he will be heir to a very large inheritance- he could inherit the Stones of David. The very stones that David picked out of a river bank and used in his defense against the giant Goliath.

The story goes back and forth between present day (1973) and the concentration camp (1944). In the labor camp, we meet 2 extraordinary women, Ruth and Martha, who will go to any length to keep their newborn children alive. In Los Angeles, we watch Stephen going to any length in finding the treasure his mother hid 30 years prior. He becomes so obsessed with this mission; the reader thinks he is utterly ridiculous. In fact, I was frustrated a few times in reading this thinking this man is totally crazy.

During the course of reading this book, I actually thought to myself: This book is crazy. I’m not sure why it’s considered Christian fiction. Stephen is just an insane man to be doing these things. What am I getting out of this book? Then as I finished the book (mind you it’s 4:30am), I was utterly amazed. Dekker tied up the loose ends together and then I finally understood the story. This was not just a story about a man obsessing about an inheritance; it’s a question. How far would I go to satisfy my deepest obsession? This book was actually a modern day parable that paralleled Jesus’ story in Matthew about a man who found a treasure buried in a field. The man in Jesus’ story sold everything he had to buy the field, and had great joy once he obtained the field and the treasure hidden within.

It made me wonder if I had an obsession, something that I would go through great lengths to seek out, even if it meant risking my life. This work was probably the most powerful fiction reading I have ever read.