Eat, Pray, Love

I know, I know, I'm the last person in the universe to have read this book. I finished it a while back, but sorry to say, just now getting back to commenting on it. I had heard good things about it from several of my friends(and, now that I think about it, they were all either in the midst of a divorce or recently divorced). Although not in this circumstance, I must admit I found myself longing for faraway places where I could reinvent myself, especially when the kids were particularly "challenging" ! To me this book was like reading three different short novels, and I found myself reacting to each a bit differently. The beginning and Italian chapters were quite amusing at times. I found it a bit harder to get through the India middle chapters. I found myself wishing she'd hurry up and get on to the next country already! All the meditating and self-indulgence was getting a bit tiresome. Toward the end of this section and on into Bali, my attention was caught up again in the personalities and adventures of this new stage of Liz's journey. In general I liked it, but wasn't crazy about it,and, yes, I'm aware that many people are! I am looking forward to seeing how it transfers to the big screen with Julia Roberts and that cute guy from Vicki Cristina Barcelona.

Like so many others, I'm sure, I was very curious about what had become of all the people Liz had met on her journey and so went to her website, www.elizabethgilbert.com ,only to discover sadly that Richard of Texas, the colorful character she met while in India, just recently passed away in Austin. Richard was by far the most interesting part of the India chapters for me.

“People think a soul mate is your perfect fit, and that’s what everyone wants. But a true soul mate is a mirror, the person who shows you everything that is holding you back, the person who brings you to your own attention so you can change your life. A true soul mate is probably the most important person you will ever meet, because they tear down your walls and smack you awake. But live with a soul mate forever? Nah. Too painful. Soul mates, they come into your life just to reveal another layer of yourself to you, and then they leave. And thank God for it.”

3 stars because I liked it, but didn't love it and not sure everyone would. Plus there were times I had to push myself to keep reading.