'Eat, Pray Love' is a journey around the world, a quest for spiritual enlightenment and a story for anyone who has battled with divorce, depression and heartbreak.
It's 3 a.m. and Elizabeth Gilbert is sobbing on the bathroom floor. She's in her thirties, she has a husband, a house, they're trying for a baby - and she doesn't want any of it. A bitter divorce and a turbulent love affair later, she emerges battered and bewildered and realises it is time to pursue her own journey in search of three things she has been missing: pleasure, devotion and balance. So she travels to Rome, where she learns Italian from handsome, brown-eyed identical twins and gains twenty-five pounds, an ashram in India, where she finds that enlightenment entails getting up in the middle of the night to scrub the temple floor, and Bali where a toothless medicine man of indeterminate age offers her a new path to peace: simply sit still and smile. And slowly happiness begins to creep up on her.
Eat, Pray, LOVE
'Eat Pray Love' is the tale of a woman trying to heal herself from a severe emotional and spiritual crisis. Firstly travelling to Italy for pleasure, then on to India for prayer, and then finally to Bali in order to find balance. A wonderful light read filled with humour, grace and honesty. Reviewed by 30ti
QBD, 18/08/2014
eat pray love
Eat, Pray, Love is an enjoyable enough story of physical and emotional travel. Elizabeth Gilbert describes difficult feelings with great competence and relays her experiences with a good dose of wit. The book is also neatly structured, divided up into three parts to cover each of the author's destinations: Italy, India and Indonesia. Unless you are really mean, you won't be able to help feeling happy for this woman who went through a horrible time before picking herself up and willing herself to find something better.
The quibble with this book is that the narrative drive suffers from having the outcome of Elizabeth's journey as common knowledge thanks to her exposure on the Oprah Winfrey show. Perhaps the (excessive) hype surrounding this book works against it, giving readers expectations of something that will be hugely inspirational, eternally uplifting and life-changing. Short answer; it's not. In the end, Eat, Pray, Love is simply a deeply personal story belonging to one person only. It's not a journey to be replicated. It's not a step-by-step guide to finding yourself . It's not a map for the emotionally lost. Yes, some readers may find comfort in seeing their own feelings and circumstances mirrored in the words of the author, but this book is no more likely to bring on an epiphany than any other well-written story.
Taken for what it is (a story, not some sort of girl power bible) there is much to enjoy in the journey that the author takes. Even though she went through hell (and she is pretty honest about the depression she suffered) it is still easy to envy Elizabeth Gilbert. To be able to absolve yourself of responsibility and spend a year travelling is simply an impossibility for most people contemplating it. Four months eating and aimlessly wandering around Italy? Come on! That's not fair!
Guest, 07/12/2009
Eat, Pray, Love
Eat, Pray, Love takes you on an amazing journey which places you in the heart of Elizabeth Gilbert. A realistic, passionate and mesmerising experience that captivates it reader til the very end. An inspirational novel that I have recommended to all of my friends!! A great read for all including travellers (or wannabes), singles, couples, or just someone looking for a great, uplifting read.
Briony, 12/12/2008
Eat Pray Love
This book has more than earnt its title of a best seller in 2008. It is a very honest, well written memoir of Elizabeth Gilberts year long pursuit of passion, balance and wisdom after a difficult divorce whilst travelling around the globe. The book could easily appeal to a wide range of readers, will leave you panting for a sequel and remembering the authors name for a long time aferwards.
Lauren E, 11/12/2008
