Unabridged Audiobook
This book changed my life. It helped find solace through a very hard time in my life and I don’t believe I would have made it through without Liz’s kind words and open heart in sharing her own journey.
this book touched my life at moment I felt so confused and lost...
Helped me recenter my mind when I felt like I was losing touch with who I am.
Makes me long for adventures of my own.
Beautiful and sincere self reflection and positive manner of speaking. The listening felt like talking to a good friend
This book was boring, self-righteous, and incredibly repetitive. I continued reading it just hoping it would get better, that she would not continue to be so self-involved, but it never did.
My favorite part was by far “Eat”. I liked the rest of the book too but there was something about Italy and doing nothing but eating that I could relate on. “Pray” gave me some very nice insights in the benefits of meditation and self help in difficult times, while “Love” bundles together the enjoyment and life lessons of the previous two. The narrator is the author herself and has a very pleasant voice. I enjoyed this book very much.
Nothing quite like the author sharing their own story...I felt like I had a very deep conversation with an old friend...
I love this book more than any other in the world. I re read it throughout many different times in my life. Elizabeth Gilbert’s writing is personable and witty. She is amazing and I love this book. Always have, always will
I did not like the book it was too random, and was to slow.
I love this book, I’m reading it again...amazing author and reader. I strongly recommend it.
By far one of the most amazing books I have come across. Absolutely changed my negativity after a losing a 5 year relationship. Showed me that there are more amazing journeys we will take in this life. And when we least expect it, love can still come around!
Always interesting. I really enjoyed all three parts.
Just love, no words really!
Good book. Engaging.
I greatly enjoyed this 11 disc audiobook. It was fun, educational, and heart warming. I couldn’t wait to hear more. The author’s voice is extremely pleasant to listen to. For pure enjoyment, I recommend this book.
I love love love this book, I cannot forget the first time I read this book, it brought much blessing into my life!!!!!
A few skips here and there. Not a huge fan of the accents she did but overall it was calming to listen to. The author has a soothing voice. The book was pretty good and it was nothing like the movie. The end was a bit rushed but overall I enjoyed the descriptions, the history of the countries she visited and the overall message of the book.
Her description of the pizza da michele basically made me cry, took me straight back in Napoli. The narrative is so nicely written, it made me travel with her, feeling the pain and the joy. Thank you for the amazing journey and for all the people you introduced from your story to us.
Great book. Loved it! Unfortunately a bunch of skips on the disks but still great :)
loved this book and loved that the author narrated it - was nice to hear the actual experiences from the source! a very inspirational book that is great to read after a breakup haha
Not At All Like The Movie!!! Her monotone voice puts me to sleep. I had to turn it off because I was driving and I had to replay it every few minutes because I wasn't paying attention to it. If you have seen the movie, let me tell you Julia Roberts was amazing compared to the book. She made it lively and funny and made me want to read the book. BAD decision. If you haven't see the movie throw the book, tape, audio book away and get the movie!!! I promise you, you will Thank Me!!!
It isn't loud enough to listen to, on any device. Her voice is too soft and monotonous. I also think she reads to fast.
I love this book its so inspirational. I loved it even more than I loved the movie.. .this is one that I restarted to listen to as it finished.
Wonderful wonderful book! 1st time I have ever enjoyed an author narrate their own book. The author was remarkable in her abilities to infuse warmth and humor, heartbreak and angst. I enjoyed this book so much; I bought the hardcover before I was even done with it. I appreciated the author’s honesty she showed in every situation she found herself in even when it wasn’t flattering. This was GREAT book!
Would recommend this book to everyone and anyone! Better than the movie.
This is a must,very enjoyable. The narrate is perfect. Starts out a little slow but then it takes off.
Very interesting and well written. I especially appreciate that the author narrated to give emphasis where she intended. Gave me lots to think about in my own spiritual journey and was engaging.
Loved it! I especially enjoyed her stay at the ashram in India. It's ready by the author and she does an excellent job.
There were times that the story seemed to drag on and on, but I really loved some of the insightful experiences that she shared within her journey. Overall, I would rate highly and for anyone who wants to learn about a journey into learning themselves, I definitely recommend.
Elizabeth Gilbert's memoir was delightful, entertaining and inspirational. Liz went to Italy to learn how to enjoy life again, to India to learn how to pray and meditate and finally to Bali to learn how to love again. I would read this book again.
Yes, Elizabeth Gilbert is narcissistic and privileged... I don't understand readers who write negative reviews about memoirs and say they are narcissistic or one-sided... uh, yeah! It's called a memoir! Of course it's going to be self-centered. Anyway, I found her voice very calming and I felt I learned a lot from this book. It made me reflect on my life. It's very stream-of-consciousness, and I liked that. Beware of the Italy chapters when you're driving home on your evening commute--when she describes the sumptuous food it will make your mouth water and stomach grumble!
Not usually my kind of book but I had to read everything that hits the NYT. I can't stand not knowing what all the hype is about. It wasn't my thing but I can see why so many others have enjoyed it.
It was a great read, enjoyed every minute of it. It makes you think about life and its journey
This book gave me comfort, joy, hope and laughter all at the same time. I loved it so much I went out and brought the audio book just so I can listen to it whenever I feel like life is getting me down. I purchased the audio for my sister on her birthday as I am sure she will love it as well. The writer narrated the book beautifully and I just cannot recommend the book enough.
Loved it. A journey through life. My favorite part was Pray. That surprised me a little. I thought the Ashram section would be boring. But I found I could really relate to her thinking about creating a new "her" that would be silent only to realized that God cherished her and her talents the way they were. And that it was her acceptance of herself as she was was the gift and the goal.
This is an excellent book. It felt like I went on the journey with her. It was interesting to hear about different cultures. She writes a lot about her divorce and recovery from that divorce. As a divorced person myself, it was really helpful to me to walk through the range of emotions and recovery. It helped me deal with some things. Overall, the book is excellent. It really makes you think outside of your own life. It opens your mind a bit.
For anyone who has ever had her heart broken and lived on her own, there's nothing new here. Gilbert also says things about herself even the reader can see are way off. For example, she says that since she's so personable she's ok on her own, her own friend/company, and how lucky she is for that. Then, she says a friend's visiting to tour Venice with her, because apparently someone can't visit Venice alone, not for safety, but because, well, it's Venice! (huh?) She also preceeded her entire trip by getting a vast list of friends of friends so she'd know people there. She likes having people to whine to about how hard the divorce she initiated is and about her breakup with her boyfriend, just to have them say she's wonderful and it's ok to move on. Feels like that's the book - her whining to us so we can tell her she's great, we believe in her, and she's going to be fine. Instead, I want to tell her to quit whining and get over herself. Can you tell I'm not a fan?
A few thoughts worth taking away from the book, but overall, a study in pomposity. Very disappointing.
Could have been a much better book. I tried to overlook her propensity to insult anyone that had politically conservative ideas. Like any goood left leaning elitist she can't help but insult overtly as if she has a duty to correct our "ignorance". Her quips added nothing to the dialogue and generally didn't even relate to the peripheral dialogue. They were obviously inserted as a means of trying to demean the right. They only served to alienate and reinforce the self absorbed, self righteous nature of the book.
YUK! Too boring to continue, after 2 discs I sent it back .
This is a great quest... I was afraid it would be a boring book of "do this" "do that", "you're not whole until you..." But nope. it was a great point of view from a the quest of her life. The cultural knowledge that the author intertwines into the story, really bring some intersting points along the way. I appreciate that she does a few impressions of the people around her. Gives a little depth to the book, that you definitely would not get reading the printed word.
This was the best audiobook ever, and I listen to lots of them! The author reads it as if she is your friend telling of her experience and I believe most women can relate!
I didn't really like the story, so I didn't listen beyond the first disc. I think because it is in the first person and it is very introspective, the writer sounds self-absorbed in an off-putting way (though she probably isn't). The format will probably rub some people the wrong way.
I didn't like this book at all. It just didn't interest me.
I felt she was entirely self absorbed throughout the entire book. After reading the reviews I had expected alot more from this book. After all of the amazing places she stayed and the spiritual journey she was on I felt the book remained very shallow until the end. It's all about me!
Given the high ratings this book has received, I expected a lot more. Having traveled to both Italy and India myself I was hoping to learn more about the wonders of each country; instead she spent all her time in Italy pigging out on food and ignoring the wonderful art and history there. In India she was secluded away in an Ashram praying, so really didn't experience the culture, history, insane roads, dirt and heat. All of this is combined with her constant whining about her divorce and her recent breakup with her boyfriend. I found it tiresome. Her final trip to Bali was a bit more interesting which is why I gave this book three stars rather than two.
I really enjoyed this book. Will look for more of this authors books
Okay, I have to admit that I didn't really read the summary of the book before adding it to my rental list. I was looking for a good Christian book, so you can imagine my surprise when she started out talking about bringing men to her bed. Once I got over this initial shock, I really did enjoy the book. I enjoyed hearing about her spiritual journey and the dynamics of enjoying different cultures. I would have given this book 5 stars, but at times, I found the author to be a bit too whiny and self-indulgent for my taste. However, overall, I would recommend this book to others!
There was a lot of talk about learning the Italian language which was hard to get through. There was also so much on meditation which is something I don't plan on doing in the near future. Even with these parts of the story that I didn't care about, it was an excellant rental. I loved the author telling her story. I really related to her pain when she talked about it and wished she talked more about her pain. It seems that her healing process would've been easier to read if I realated more to her. Still a great read!
This was a wonderful listen. I tried to read this book and then discovered that it was on audio. I preferred to listen to Elizabeth Gilbert tell me her story than to read about it. I felt more like I was a close friend on a good phone call. I wept, I cheered, I sneered and was delighted. If you've ever gone through a bit of aniexty, a life change, depression or a loss, this is the book for you!
I usually stick to fiction but this book was delightful. The author's narration was great, keeps you engaged.
I highly recommend this book. I had no expectations going in and was pleasantly surprised. It is a good mix of comedy, story-telling and therapeutic instruction. There were times when it got a bit too "spiritual" for my taste, but overall I found it to be very helpful mentally and emotionally. It helped put things in perspective in my life at the time I read it. If you are searching for a few answers or for meaning in your daily life, this is definitely a good read.
Oh had I the money I would have loved to do this trip. I could relate nearly every step of the way. I loved it and found it fullfilling
This is a wonderful book, made even better by the author's narration. I hated for it to end. Highly recommended!
I really liked the book while listening to it and appreciated how she painted pictures with words. It was easy to listen to and made me think about my relationship with pleasure, spirituality, and love. She struggled, she did some things right, she could have done some things better - that is life...
I would recommend this book just for the fact that the narrator had such a calming voice. The other reason would be on her story itself. She has such good stories of thing I would never be able to experience. So I thank her for giving me the experience.
this is a must for all women, Loved it!you can actually imagine yourself there, well done.
What a delightful account of someone who has met with disaster and struggled to see the "light at the end of the tunnel". Many of us can relate to this, but few have the courage to leave our comfort zones and travel around the world to find our truth. I highly recommend this book for any women whose life has been upended through trials and tribulations, and yet, still managed to persevere and find peace. Well done!
I loved the book when I first began reading it. The story is engaging, thought provoking, witty and well written. She has a good command of the language and is an excellent story teller. Towards the end of the story I got a little bored with Liz. I began to realize that she was self indulgent and her problems of self worth didn't begin with her failed marriage. Many people experience failed marriages; and plenty experience far worse marriages than Liz. Most do not have the luxury or the resources to take a year off to travel and find themselves or improve themselves. Most have responsibilities to work, family, home or others. I am glad for her that she found self worth on her own, experienced some lovely times and met some wonderful people. I am glad that she was able to improve her sense of self and has found a companion to love. Without meaning to, I am sure, the tone of the book is a touch arrogant. Still, I would recommend it and wish her well.
...I in no way consider the author narcissistic, nor did I while I was consumed in this novel. This book is hands down one of my favorites, ever. I bought the novel so that I could refer to chapters at will and I re-read the book at least once every year. I adore the fact that Lizzy is the author for this particular novel, and it will leave you wanting your own adventure through foreign lands and self-discovery. I highly recommend this novel to anyone who might want some personal insight to their own ways of living. Bring on the Buddhist mantras!
I don't know what I objected to more: the narcisstic self-involvement of the author or the irritating overacting of the narrator. She needs to get involved in something bigger than her heart, stomach, and vagina and just get over herself.
While the author is more than a bit self-absorbed, and sometimes overly detailed, her story is nonetheless compelling and her struggles with depresssion and finding herself are ones which most readers can identify with. I love hearing biographies read by the author and this one does a great job.
I was surprised to find this book really satisfying. The author is somewhat self-absorbed or clueless from time to time but that only serves to make her human. She has a David Sedaris-like quality in the details about her foiables that she reveals (though, alas, she doesn't have Sedaris's humor). Women will particularly enjoy this book. It's great summer listening.