The book, was borne out of a decision, by the author, to take a year out, after a very acrimonious divorce and heartbreaking love affair. The plan was to spend three months in each of her chosen destinations, Italy where she learned how eat; she ate with wild abandonment, anything and everything and at anytime of the day or night. India, where she learned how to Pray, how to quiet, her mind and listen to her inner voice and Indonesia, where she learned how to love, and I will let you read the book to find out the end to that story.
The reason why I love this book and why I would and have recommended it to many of my friends, in fact I purchased many as stocking fillers this year, is not only because the author writes with such honesty and incredible humor; there a many laugh out loud moments in this book; but normally, an autobiographical book of this nature is because someone has suffered a life of abuse and degradation, but this is about a normal situation. Whilst it is devastating, and heartbreaking at the time it is happening, you feel as if your world is falling apart and that you will never feel normal again and that you are alone, but it is something, in some form or another, we have all been through and will probably go through again.
It is about normal, you can fit yourself in Elizabeth's world and because you can see and feel through her pain, you can also see and feel yourself through her recovery and self discovery.
A quote from the book that really struck me, was at a point where during her stay in Rome, she was doing really well but then she had a bit of wobble and she was sat on her apartment floor trying to talk herself through it. She recalled a time when she got into a elevator, in New York, as she turned to face the front she thought she saw someone she knew and was about to step forward and say hello when she realized it was a mirror and that person she recognized was herself, in her hour of need on her bathroom floor she wrote, "just remember at one time you recognized yourself as a friend". This resonated with me, woman can be the most special friends to others but rarely to themselves.
The other thing, I love about this book, is through her self discovery, she suffers the same problems as everyone else. I rejoice in the fact that she struggles to meditate, because I really did believe that I was the only person who could not quiet their mind, and I was surrounded by all these other people who could sit crossed legged, shush their thoughts and reach Nivarna, but as a result of reading Elizabeth's fight to reach her inner self she has given me renewed motivation to reach mine and not to give up after two minutes because my mind keeps reminding me I forgot to put the dishwasher on and I still have not picked up that bit of fluff from the floor that I have been looking at for days.
This book is a must for anyone who is on a journey of self discovery, and even if you are not and you want a good read with many laughs and few tears then this is the book.
I have given you some links to the book, and to please my friends in the UK who always feel left out, the US Amazon option is on the left hand side of this blog and UK option is below.
USClick on the links on the left hand side of the page.
