Eat Pray Love, by Elizabeth Gilbert
Eat, Pray, Love takes readers on an unforgettable journey across three continents, as author Elizabeth Gilbert searches for healing and meaning after a crushing divorce. This deeply personal memoir resonates with anyone who's ever felt lost and longed for a fresh start.
Gilbert's adventure begins in Italy, where she dives headfirst into the joys of indulgence. You can almost taste the creamy gelato and smell the rich espresso as she describes her culinary explorations. One memorable scene has her savoring a perfect pizza in Naples, declaring it a religious experience.
In India, Gilbert trades pasta for meditation cushions at an ashram. Her struggle to quiet her restless mind is both frustrating and relatable. A breakthrough moment comes during a rooftop meditation, where she finally experiences a profound sense of peace and connection to something greater than herself.
Bali serves as the final act in Gilbert's journey. Here, amid lush rice paddies and colorful temples, she seeks balance between the physical and spiritual. An unexpected romance with a charming Brazilian businessman adds a touch of serendipity to her tale. While some might find the story's arc predictable, Gilbert's honest and often humorous writing style keeps things fresh. She doesn't shy away from her flaws, making her transformation all the more inspiring.
“Still, despite all this, traveling is the great true love of my life. I have always felt, ever since I was sixteen years old and first went to Russia with my saved-up babysitting money, that to travel is worth any cost or sacrifice. I am loyal and constant in my love for travel, as I have not always been loyal and constant in my other loves. I feel about travel the way a happy new mother feels about her impossible, colicky, restless, newborn baby–I just don’t care what it puts me through. Because I adore it. Because it’s mine.”
Interesting Facts & Links:
Elizabeth Gilbert is a talented American novelist and non-fiction writer. She attended New York University, writing a collection of short stories at night that evolved into her first book. Gilbert worked as a contributor for GQ, Spin and the New York Times Magazine and was nominated three times for The National Magazine Award. While she is by far best known for Eat Pray Love, she has published a novel about territorial fishing wars in Maine, a non-fiction book on Eustace Conway, and more recently a best-selling novel called The Signature of All Things, a story about 19th century botanical exploration.
Eat Pray Love is on our list as one of our top travel book recommendations. Click here to see the entire list from Travelreads on the best of the best in travel writing.
Watch the Official EAT PRAY LOVE Trailer in HD
Eat Pray Love made its way to the big screen in 2010, with Julia Roberts bringing the author's soul-searching journey to life. Roberts' star power and the book's existing fanbase helped generate significant buzz for the movie. Want more movie recommendations? Feel free to check out our recent blog on the best travel movies.
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