Perfect - Tapa dura

Emily Halban developed anorexia in her final year at school. She went on to university at Oxford where her disease took on a powerful dimension. By her final year she was so debilitated that she had to sit her exams in a separate room where she could be fed continuously. With heartbreaking candour and poignant intimacy, Emily vividly chronicles the complexities and inner struggles of living with anorexia. She traces her disease from its elusive origins, through its darkest moments of deprivation, guilt and self-loathing. As she recounts her journey towards recovery, Emily draws us into her raw experience of anorexia, exposing its secrets and dispelling some of the myths that shroud it. Beautifully written and alive with self-awareness, but never self-pity, "Perfect" is an inspiring read that will offer those battling with this all-consuming disease a glimpse of perspective and hope, and help those on the outside to understand more.

Emily Halban was born in Geneva in 1983 and spent her childhood there before moving to England to study at Oxford University. She graduated in 2004 and moved to London where she now lives. Emily developed anorexia at the age of 16.