First of all, I will say that I ended up liking the book much better than I anticipated after the first 50ish pages. In the beginning, the author seemed shockingly self-centered and insensitive to those around her, but slowly I understood that that actually was the point. I don’t find her inspiring, but her travel stories are mildly interesting and I enjoyed hearing about the characters she encounters in all three countries.

just finished reading the 2nd part last night, and i can’t decide if i like some of the little philosophies in the book or find the author whiney and self-absorbed. a true drama mama if there is one. but some of the stuff inside’s still pretty cool, like those dealing with religion and all that.

This book was breezily and digestibly written, but was at times excruciating to read. Our narrator is a pathological narcissist who seems to need constant validation and makes overly dramatic mountains out of the molehills of her bourgeois angst. Throughout the books, she tries to play off her grating flakiness as lovable quirk and paints very two-dimensional pictures of the “friends” she makes on her journey, who seem to only exist to validate and encourage our self-absorbed heroine.

I couldn’t help but think the whole time I was reading this book that a month of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy would have done infinitely more good for the author than her year of navel-gazing in exotic locales, but then, that doesn’t get you a fat book advance and a spot on Oprah.

This book had me making a bowl of pasta for myself at 7am…. Not because I was hungry, but because I wanted to concentrate on the experience of enjoying it!

I haven’t finished it yet, but I’ve already made a change in my own life because of this book! She mentions a friend a friend who, every time they travel, exclaims “This place is beautiful! I have to come back!” And the author reminds her that she is already there, so why not enjoy it now?

I was in NYC for the first time for work last week. I dreamed about all the things I’d like to do, but didn’t have time for because of all-day meetings. Instead of hoping we’d come back, or planning another trip, I changed my return ticket and stayed the weekend… because I was already there; why not make the most of it?

I suppose I find this book inspiring :)

Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman’s Search for Everything Across Italy, India, and Indonesia (Unabridged) (Audio) by Elizabeth Gilbert

Elizabeth Gilbert needed a year to get back her equilibrium after a messy divorce. Since she’d gotten some answers to life’s questions from her guru, she decided to spend a third of that year in India at her guru’s ashram. A few years earlier, Gilbert had been to Bali writing a magazine article about spa vacations. While she was there, she connected with a healer who expressed his wish that she come back to help him with his English in trade for teaching her his way to meditate. He also prophesied that she would find love there in Indonesia. She definitely needed to spend a third of her sabbatical year in Indonesia. The years of depression leading up to Gilbert’s divorce, left her feeling physically depleted. She had been taking language lessons in Italian and decided that her remaining third of a year would be spent indulging in the beautiful language and tasty food of Italy.

It is remarkable how little time it can take to get your groove back when you practice mindful relaxation and acceptance of abundance. After a year of focusing on “I” (Italy, Indonesia, and India) Gilbert found she was able to rejoin the community of “we.”

I loved the author’s narration of her exploits and relationships through this year of wonder. I vicariously experienced her large meals, resplendent journeys and supportive friends and family and felt like I’d taken my own sabbatical from real life while listening to this astounding audiobook. I highly recommend “Eat, Pray, Love” to anyone needing to take a break.

Normally I don’t think of reading non-fiction. I’m not really sure why I picked this book up from the shelf except that I liked the cover and the title appealed. Once I realized that I had already read the better part of 50 pages standing captured by Elizabeth (she refers to herself as “Liz”) Gilbert’s captivating story I figured I had better buy it.

I loved this book for the fact that it was intentionally divided into 108 chapters in 3 sections, I loved it for the wonderful stories woven into the search Liz made for herself and I loved seeing some hard truths about myself in the pages.

Oh – and the food stories are enough to make you hungry.

good story, gives a fun perspective on Italy, India, and Bali.. fun easy read