This Book Annoyed Me Immensely

This Book Annoyed Me Immensely, February 6, 2007
By S। Gans "BobbieG"

This review is from: Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia (Hardcover)Desperate for something good to read after finishing 'Notes on a Scandal' (one of the best books I've read in a long time, possibly ever), I picked up this pile of twaddle in the local book store. I should have realized that the author would have about as much insight into depression, loneliness and feelings of alienation as a clam. You can't feel sorry for the author because she seems to have brought on her malaise almost entirely on herself.. Oh, that's OK honey, you take the house and the apartment that I paid for because I feel "guilty" about leaving you... Please! Is she deliberately trying to set the Women's Lib movement back 100 years?? This attitude is all very touchy feely, 'Yes, I'll take all the guilt and blame for something that isn't entirely my fault because society dictates that I'm supposed to be the submissive gender', but hardly a practical way to live in the REAL WORLD, which the author clearly has no clue about doing. She really has no reason to be depressed given the luck at being able to afford to travel to places most people dream about visiting once in their life, and all expenses paid! Not surprisingly, she really doesn't sound very depressed, we all cried and felt anxious after 9/11..Most women have battled with loneliness and depression, but most are forced to continue in their lives looking after families or children, or just struggling to keep a roof over their head. I bet, if you gave most of these women an all expenses paid trip to Italy they would start to feel better, without the help of a nasty cocktail of antidepressents like she was taking (I counted four different kinds, yikes!).
In short, this book is not funny, or insightful, or challenging. Mostly it's just a series of obvious to the point of being cliched observations about breaking up and traveling in a foreign country. I honestly looked for more depth but it simply wasn't there. Please go eat some more gelato, and please, don't write any "voyage of self discovery books" again. Well, do, if there is a market for this stuff, but I'm personally amazed that any self respecting modern female would find this book anything but insulting.