KristyWes

Eat.Pray.Love

This book, by Elizabeth Gilbert, is hard to avoid. I had seen it in bookstores for awhile, but recently it began to incessantly catch my eye each time I entered a store. I thought, “All right, I see you, I see you. I’ll get around to you one day.” Not satisfied, Eat Pray Love stepped it up a notch and sent my friend M. down to NYC for a visit, during which she extolled the many virtues of this tome.

Just in case I didn’t get the hint, Eat Pray Love arranged for me to meet my friend Kelly for coffee immediately following my visit with M. Sitting at our regular table at DTUT, Kelly noticed another patron walk by with a copy of EPL. “I love that book!” she exclaimed, “My friend just returned my copy to me.” And so I gave in to EPL’s shameless self-promotion, borrowed Kelly’s copy, and 100 pages later, have no regrets.

Eat Pray Love tells the enviable tale of Gilbert’s year lived abroad: 4 months in Italy, 4 months in India, and 4 more in Indonesia. She sets out in part to escape the messy stress of a divorce and failed relationship, and in part to seek the peace and spirituality she hasn’t quite been able to grasp in her life thus far. She casts a wide net in her spiritual search, spurred on by varied experiences such as an intimate encounter with God on her bathroom floor (somewhat reminiscent of Anne Lamott’s conversion experience), an emotional response to the teachings of an Indian guru, and a curiosity peaked by an encounter with a wise and prescient Balinese medicine man.

While I’m not sure if I will ultimately agree with Gilbert’s conclusions on spirituality, I am enjoying her writing style (the woman can turn a phrase!), her humorous self-deprecation, and her insightful observations.

Earlier, as I was reading ELP in the lunchroom of my office, a co-worker noticed the book and asked if I liked it. “A friend recommended it to me, and I keep seeing it in bookstores,” she explained. Been there, lady.