Helpful Score: 123
Didn't like it. Gilbert struck me throughout the book as someone who looks in the mirror, is completely enamoured with what she sees, and then writes 300+ blase pages about it. This book is literally all about herself - and I do understand that this is an autobiography - but she just goes on and on and on about how she's feeling or her weight problems or her love life and it does grow tiresome after about 100 pages. The fact that this book is a NY Times bestseller is what kept me reading, but I ultimately gave up. Lovely cover though.
Helpful Score: 109
I didn't like it and gave up reading it halfway through India; I skimmed the rest of the book and was glad I didn't spend more time reading it. I don't easily stop reading books, I'll tough it out to the bitter end, but I couldn't with this book. I found the author to be entitled, whiney, and she didn't seem to be enlightened by any of the wonderful opportunities laid at her feet. She added every challenge to her collection of woe and misery as more proof her life is so difficult, and she has every right to be ungrateful and complain. A paid trip to Italy? "Oh, so horrible that I don't have a lover to share it with, because I LEFT HIM." A paid trip to India? "Oh, meditation makes me cranky." I just couldn't tolerate it and gave up.
Eat Pray Love? How about, "Traveled the world paid for by my publisher and had to write some drivel that seemed profound to justify the expense account, and then my publisher felt bad that they spent so much money for me to have no fun and marketed the hell out of this book to make back their money."
I don't get why this is a best-seller, other than the ferocious marketing.
Eat Pray Love? How about, "Traveled the world paid for by my publisher and had to write some drivel that seemed profound to justify the expense account, and then my publisher felt bad that they spent so much money for me to have no fun and marketed the hell out of this book to make back their money."
I don't get why this is a best-seller, other than the ferocious marketing.
Helpful Score: 88
I have to say that I did not even finish reading this book. I have been a voracious reader all my life and I can only think of 3 books that I have not finished in 37 years and this would be one of them. I got this book based on all the great reviews I saw, but found myself completely bored out of my skull with trying to read this.
Helpful Score: 60
This was a very annoying book. It's all about a womans self indulgent journey to find happiness while she writes about it and gets paid to do it. Not a bad deal for her, but annoying to me.
Helpful Score: 59
"Eat Pray Love" by Elizabeth Gilbert is "one woman's search for everything across Italy, India, and Indonesia".
It came highly recommended to me. I love travel. I love reading about other people's experiences while traveling. I really enjoy reading about everywhere, places I've been and places I haven't been. But, I really dislike reading about someone who complains about their live. This is what I call the "poor me" syndrome. And let me tell you, this book's got that.
Gilbert's "poor me" went on for most of the book. It was so infiltrated that I almost couldn't finish it. But, I had to. Why? Because I really wanted to hear what it was like in Bali, not because I cared about any of the characters. Well, that's not true. There was an old man in Bali who I cared about.
If you're going to whine and complain about how bad your life is, don't make me read about it for over 300 pages. One or two would do.
The good part of the book? Hearing about Italy and Indonesia. But I still don't really recommend that you put yourself through it.
It came highly recommended to me. I love travel. I love reading about other people's experiences while traveling. I really enjoy reading about everywhere, places I've been and places I haven't been. But, I really dislike reading about someone who complains about their live. This is what I call the "poor me" syndrome. And let me tell you, this book's got that.
Gilbert's "poor me" went on for most of the book. It was so infiltrated that I almost couldn't finish it. But, I had to. Why? Because I really wanted to hear what it was like in Bali, not because I cared about any of the characters. Well, that's not true. There was an old man in Bali who I cared about.
If you're going to whine and complain about how bad your life is, don't make me read about it for over 300 pages. One or two would do.
The good part of the book? Hearing about Italy and Indonesia. But I still don't really recommend that you put yourself through it.
