I have been discussing this novel with my fellow classmates all week. So I decided that I should share it with the rest of you as well. Eat, Pray, Love, was one of those inspirational novels that doesn’t come around as often as I would like.
This memoir chronicles the story of Elizabeth Gilbert’s marriage, divorce and her travels around the world, trying to find herself. She spends four months in Italy, eating and enjoying life (“Eat”). She spent three months in India, finding her spirituality (“Pray”). She ends the year in Bali, Indonesia, looking for “balance” of the two and found love (“Love”) in the form of a handsome and charming Brazilian factory owner. 
I absolutely loved this novel. I felt inspired myself! Not only to the cliché that you are the only one to makes your own happiness, and if you are unhappy you are the one to fix it. But how Elizabeth traveled the world, learning Italian and submerging herself into the Italian culture, living in an ashram in India, and sleeping in a wooden hut on the beach on the coast of Bali, and her accounts of her experiences, makes you want to follow in her footsteps. I went to Italy on my honeymoon, and I traveled to all the cities Gilbert herself had been, and I can see why she would want to stay there. It was absolutely breath-taking.
Usually I do not recommend seeing the movie, if there is a book instead. But to really capture the beauty of the landscapes and scenery that Elizabeth encounters on her journey, I would definitely suggest watching the movie–but not till after you’ve read this incredible tale.
Below are some of my favourite quotes from the book. I chose them because they represent a central theme in Eat, Pray, Love; this theme of chaos.
“Maybe my life hasn’t been so chaotic. It’s just the world that is and the only real trap is getting attached to any of it. Ruin is a gift. Ruin is the road to transformation”.
Il dolce far niente. (Il bel far niente). Literally, “the sweet, or beautiful, (act of) doing nothing.”
The people Liz meets throughout her travels explain to her that the North American culture revolves around chaos, and that we do not know how to enjoy “doing nothing”. I learned in my travels in Europe (especially in Paris), people loved to sit alone or with friends and just do nothing. We took a boat cruise along the Seine River in Paris, and for miles and miles you see hundreds and people lining the river, with their blankets, picnic baskets, wine and baguettes, just enjoy life, and the beauty that is Paris. It looked so peaceful and I became jealous. I am always in a rush to get from one task to the next, never stopping to enjoy life. I read about life instead of experiencing–which I am not saying is a bad thing. I love to read, and travelling is quite expense, so I believe reading about others voyages inspires me and I learn from their experiences. But I am trying to teach myself to slow down, and take in all life has to offer, and to stop rushing through it. Before I know it, it will be all over.
I don’t want to give away too much, but I felt that this is a great read because it helps to show that there is so much more out there then we realize. I could go on and on.. But hopefully you will pick up this novel and find out all the wonders this book has in store for yourself. Enjoy!!
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