Austin Area Reading Circle
Reader's Guide
September 2008
Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia
Elizabeth Gilbert
At the age of thirty-one, Gilbert moved with her husband to the suburbs of New York and began trying to get pregnant, only to realize that she wanted neither a child nor a husband. Three years later, after a protracted divorce, she embarked on a yearlong trip of recovery, with three main stops: Rome, for pleasure (mostly gustatory, with a special emphasis on gelato); an ashram outside of Mumbai, for spiritual searching; and Bali, for "balancing."...
- Do you think Gilbert's choice to structure her book on the beads of the japa mala helped or hurt the story?
- Which of the three sections held your interest most? least? Why do you think that?
- Be prepared to share a favorite passage.
- How does her approach to things spiritual differ from your own? What resonates with your own path?
- Besides Richard of Texas, who was your favorite character in each section?
- Have you ever been passionate about something unlikely—like Gilbert was about learning Italian?
The Story Circle Network is a national not-for-profit membership organization made up of women who want to explore their lives and their souls by exploring their personal stories. If you would like to learn more about the Network and its activities, please sign up for our free email newsletters!
