If wisdom could be traded like currency, author Elizabeth Gilbert would be a wealthier woman by far, though it s likely her fabulous memoir, Eat Pray Love, racked up a few bucks during its stay on the New York Times bestseller list. What Gilbert imparts in her story--basically, bracing self-knowledge acquired during a year of travel following a bitter divorce and a shattered rebound romance--is at once astounding yet totally obvious. As Gilbert would attest, albeit more eloquently, the most important stuff in life is pretty much under our noses, but we occasionally have to shake ourselves senseless in order to see it (enlisting a guru and a medicine man are highly recommended). Take this simple but devastating observation posited while Gilbert was on the final leg of a global tour. I have a history of making decisions very quickly about men. I have always fallen in love fast and without measuring risks. I have a tendency not only to see the best in everyone, but to assume that everyon...

#one big snore (2010-01-27) It took me a while to actually get into this book, then I found her Italian experience interesting, probably because I m Italian, but once she landed in India, I had a hard time reading all that crap!! and it just went on and on and on. . . Need I say more, I did not finish the book.

#Self-indulgent pulp for the affluent and self-absorbed (2010-01-10) I looked forward to reading this book but couldn t get through Eat, let alone Pray and Love. I tossed it aside in disgust. I vehemently disliked the protagonist and couldn t care one whit about her self-indulgent journey. The message I got from the pages I managed to read was when times get tough, take a year off, travel the world and focus only on your self, as though the average person has that kind of luxury or would really even want to do that. This book sums up, for me, what s wrong with modern North Ameri...

#Wonderful and inspiring novel! (2009-12-21) I still have a few chapters to go in this book but I m already in love with it. There are so many quotes from here that make you stop and think about your own life. It is a fairly easy read, with Gilbert adding humour at all the right moments. It makes you want to take time off and reconnect with yourself. A perfect book for anyone who is looking for self-discovery. Great read!

#I didn t get it. (2009-09-06) I know millions of women got a lot out of this book, but I just couldn t find anything enlightening in it. The author was also paid in advance to have the spiritual experience she writes about, which made me doubt its sincerity. I did enjoy the food descriptions in the eat part, though. The best book of this genre is Gift From the Sea by Ann Morrow Lindbergh.

#A great inspiration (2009-08-11) This book has been a great inspiration for me. I mean, everybody travels nowadays, but it s not much about her travels, but about her personnal journey. This woman had a lot of courage dealing with her demons, and she is exposing all of it with a lighthearted humor which is very soothing and entertaining. I recommend it to everybody but espescially those with some demons of their own to deal with. In the meantime, this book is a good way to get introduced to other cultures.