Me On: Eat, Pray, Love

This is not a book review. The main reason is because I've never read the book. Never have and never will. Eat, Pray, Love is not my thing. I won't mince words with you, my faithful blog readers, I think everything about Eat, Pray, Love is obnoxious.

I realize it's grossly unfair to characterize something as obnoxious when I haven't even read it. What can I say, I'm judging a book by it's cover. Actually, I'm not, because I kind of like the cover and I kind of like the title. It sings to me. But, I've talked to people who have read it and I've read articles on it and I can conclude that this book sounds like crap.

Now there's a movie based on the book, which also looks like crap. I mean, come on, a woman goes on this awesome journey to re-discover life through eating and praying and loving. Awesome. Sounds like it's better than Under the Tuscan Sun (ed. note, I'm being sarcastic).

My biggest problem with the book is that the author was able to take this awesome year-long vacation because of an advance that she was given by her publisher. That advance was for the writing of a book based on a woman's journey to re-discover life through eating and praying and loving. So, she pitched a book before she even had the experiences and then got a year-long vacation to Italy, India and Bali completely paid for. It sounds disingenuous, no? It would be one thing if she took the journey and then wanted to write about her experiences, but to go on a journey with the intention (and the obligation) to write a book makes it all seem contrived.

I've also read excerpts and it's way too flowery and over the top for me. I guess I don't understand how you can be eating pizza and all of a sudden realize some amazing and spiritual thing about life, love and destiny. Call me when you're eating Filet Mignon dipped in gold and then we'll talk. Pizza is delicious, but it's not spiritual. Not even Neapolitan pizza.

So, Elizabeth Gilbert, I don't buy into the hype. I will never think anything of this book other than that it's obnoxious and self-righteous. Not even Oprah can sell me on this one. And as I said, now there's a movie to ignore. But ignore it I will. Not even Julia Roberts can sell this swill to me.