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.
Reviews
'It's what I'm giving all my girl friends' Julia Roberts 'Every woman should read it' Elle Macpherson 'I adore it' Sophie Dahl 'I loved it ... I could understand her wanting to write the book and her desire to heal' Meg Ryan
About the Author
Elizabeth Gilbert is the author of a short story collection, Pilgrims (a finalist for the Pen/Hemmingway Award), a novel, Stern Men and a book of non fiction, The Last American Man (nominated for the National Book Award and a New York Times Notable Book for 2002). She is a writer-at-large for American GQ where she has received two National Magazine Award nominations for feature writing. Elizabeth Gilbert lives in Philadelphia.
Prizes
The New York Times' bestseller - No 1 in the New York Times paperback non-fiction bestseller list; No 1 in Los Angeles, Boston and on Booksense; No 3 in San Francisco and Denver; No 7 in Washington Over half a million copies are now in print in the USA A combination of Battersea Park Road to Enlightenment, Driving over Lemons and The Girl's Guide to Hunting and Fishing. Also for fans of Allison Pearson
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Reviews
– Customer review on 10/12/2007
Oh, how wonderful! I laughed out loud, cried, and nodded my head over and over throughout this story of a woman's pilgrimage to find herself. She writes so well. This is a great read for anyone who loves to travel, loves to eat, wants to know God, or is having a crisis of anykind in their lives. I didn't want it to end! Great stuff.
A riviting read, story of a woman who after a very nasty divorce has to find a way to repair herself, first to eat and on to italy for a few months to indulge the senses and revive both her body and spirit, then to india to pray and meditate and repair her physical self, now she is ready to love and love through every pore of her being an emotional read that will have you laughing, crying and sympathsing all at once.
I fought reading this book for about a year, with everyone telling me I 'should'. I finally packed it away on a recent holiday, and what a total joy it was. I devoured this book like a chocoholic would devour the perfect chocolate cake. I loved the style, the humour, and yet also truly empathised with her struggles, and challenges. I was warned I would want to pack up my life and go back-packing around the world, and indeed one day I may. But most importantly, it reminded me to listen to myself, to trust my own inner voice, and to give that voice room to be heard. Splendid, that is the only word I can think of to sum it up. Simply Splendid.
I LOVED this book and so did my husband, and his friend he lent it to, and my Mum... such a beautiful story, keeps getting better until the end.. it is just so wonderful.. I couldn't put it down. Definitely read this book. Buy it so you can share it with friends
This is the very first non-fiction book that I have kept reading all the way through. It surprised and delighted me, and, though this sounds very naff, changed the way I think.
I'm perplexed as to the fuss surrounding this book. It was ok. I found it to be a long-winded story about one woman's self-indulgent, self-discovery. The author droned on and on and on. It wasn't an entertaining read or enlightening for that matter. I think the author is one of those irritating women where everything is a drama and it is all happening to them and no-one else. The rest of us get on with it and she just wants the focus centred on her!
This is the most self-indulgent rubbish written by a whinging American woman trying to 'find herself' for what seems like ever in various spots on the planet.
Perhaps she just needed to go and do some charity work for the truly needy in the world and stop obsessing with her own feelings and love life for two minutes.
I really wanted to like the book - I payed good money for it. Honestly, though, I just couldn't stand another page of her whining, so I stopped reading it toward the end when I realised she was just going to drone on and on in the same vein about herself.
I really don't care if she ever 'found herself' or whatever.
Life is too short to give these people space on a bookshelf.
Let's hope the movie makes it into a better story with a character you can care about.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I felt like the author was speaking to me and at times about me as I followed her journey of discovery. I would recommend this book to anyone who feels they are at a crossroad and not sure which path to take because for me it is reaffirming to know that your life is your own and your journey should lead where you want to go for your own happiness.
A great starting point if you're looking for some inspiration in your own life. One woman's view on pleasure, passion and spirituality and you'll keep thinking about it long after you've finished reading.
But don't worry, if you're just after a great read you won't be disappointed. Funny, moving and easy to relate to.
This is the best book I have read for a long time, one that was reluctantly put down and couldn't wait to get back to it to continue the journey with her. Very deep, very thought provoking, very real. The author lays herself bare, warts and all or should I say , thoughts and all and it was refreshing and insightful. One of the rare books that you read and realise it has had a profound effect on you. Life changing !
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