Eat, Pray, LovED IT!: Tica's Review

SPOILER ALERT: You might not want to read past the excerpts if you plan on reading the book.

I am so sad to report that I've gotten to the end of the journey with Liz and Eat, Pray, Love. I didn't want the traveling to end! The book is hands-down on my Top 5 list of books I've read this year. In a nutshell, the book is about a divorced 30-something year old woman on a spiritual journey to renew herself by seeking pleasure in Italy, devotion in India and balance in Bali. I wasn't hooked from page one, per se, but when I really got into it (around bead 30) it was a story I could not put down. Gilbert, as Mr. Jackson mentioned to me in conversation, has an exceptional command of the English language and her writing as down-right enviable, she has her humorous moments, and brilliant metaphors. I can't really say enough about how I enjoyed this book. Gilbert's memoir has a perfect blend of informational details without reading too textbooky (new word), shares personal ideas without seeming too pushy and her growth process flows so naturally through her writing. After reading this book, I am inspired to meditate and have quiet time daily, to "practice discipline" when I'm eating instead of wolfing my food in two breaths, and to never have regrets about love.

Here are some teaser excerpts in case you need more reasons to pick up the book:

Italy- "Today, I was sitting on a park bench when a tiny old woman in a black dress came over, roosted down beside and started bossing me around about something. I shook my head, muted and confused. I apologized, saying in a very nice Italian "I'm sorry, but I don't speak Italian," and she looked like she would've smacked me with a wooden spoon, if she'd had one."

India- "Like most humanoids, I am burdened with what the Buddhists call the "monkey mind"-- the thoughts that swing from limb to limb, stopping only to scratch themselves, spit and howl. From the distant past to the unknowable future, my mind swings wildly through time, touching on dozens of ideas a minute, unharnessed and undisciplined....You are after all, what you think. Your emotions are the slaves to your thoughts, and you are the slave to your emotions."

Bali (Indonesia)- "...this is how I ended up participating in the blessing of a baby who had reached the age of six months, and who was now ready to touch the earth for the first time. The Balinese don't let their children touch the ground for the first six months of life, because newborn babies are considered to be gods sent straight from heaven, and you wouldn't let a god crawl around on the floor with all the toenail clippings and cigarette butts. So Balinese babies are carried for the first six months, revered as minor deities."

I can't even say which country was my favorite, in the end I learned to appreciate that it was all a process- and you couldn't have Bali without India, and India without Italy...and so I appreciate all 3 parts just the same. I was full (in my belly), after Liz's four months in Italy. I did find it kind of hard getting through India with all the internal conflict she was trying to sort. Bali was the most fun in terms of the characters she encountered (and I loved all the insider info on the culture). I was oh-so-very-anxious to see how the house situation with Wayan was going to work out. I'm glad Liz handled that. I don't know how inclined I feel to read the sequel Committed, which chronicles her life after with new lover Felipe. I think I still want some time to savor all the new things I've learned after eating, praying and loving... something I want to joyously indulge in daily.

-Tica