^ Fisher, Barbara (February 19, 2006)."Pilgrim wants it all in Italy, India, Indonesia". "Summer Reading: Should you read the best-selling memoir Eat, Pray, Love?". "Eat, Pray, Loathe: Latest Self-Help Best Seller Proves Faith Is Blind". ^ Callahan, Maureen (December 23, 2007).^ Fleming, Michael (October 10, 2006).
"Mother and Mega-Star, Happily Balanced". ^ "Five Questions for Richard Jenkins" Archived May 1, 2010, at the Wayback Machine.^ a b Lichtenstein, Grace (February 12, 2006).^ a b Egan, Jennifer (February 26, 2006)."Committed: A skeptic makes peace with marriage". ^ Callahan, Maureen (January 3, 2010).In early 2010, the feminist magazine Bitch published a critical review and social commentary called "Eat, Pray, Spend." Authors Joshunda Sanders and Diana Barnes-Brown wrote that " Eat, Pray, Love is not the first book of its kind, but it is a perfect example of the genre of priv-lit: literature or media whose expressed goal is one of spiritual, existential, or philosophical enlightenment contingent upon women's hard work, commitment, and patience, but whose actual barriers to entry are primarily financial." The genre, they argued, positions women as inherently and deeply flawed and offers "no real solutions for the astronomically high tariffs-both financial and social-that exclude all but the most fortunate among us from participating." See also Barbara Fisher of The Boston Globe also praised Gilbert's writing, stating that "she describes with intense visual, palpable detail.
Gilbert's journey is well worth taking." Don Lattin of the San Francisco Chronicle agreed with Egan that the story was weakest while she was in India and questioned the complete veracity of the book. She agreed with Egan as well that Gilbert seems to have an unlimited amount of luck, saying, "Her good fortune seems limitless" and asking "Is it possible for one person to be this lucky?" Įntertainment Weekly 's Jessica Shaw said that "despite a few cringe-worthy turns . Lori Leibovich of Salon agreed with several other reviewers about the strength of Gilbert's storytelling. Lev Grossman of Time, however, praised the spiritual aspect of the book, stating that "to read about her struggles with a 182-verse Sanskrit chant, or her (successful) attempt to meditate while being feasted on by mosquitoes, is to come about as close as you can to enlightenment-by-proxy." He did, however, agree with Roiphe that her writing occasionally seems to be "trying too hard to be liked one feels the belabored mechanism of her jokes." furtive" but that "it is a transcendently great beach book." The Washington Post 's Grace Lichtenstein stated that "the only thing wrong with this readable, funny memoir of a magazine writer's yearlong travels across the world in search of pleasure and balance is that it seems so much like a Jennifer Aniston movie."
However, she described the journey as too fake: "too willed, too self-conscious." She stated that given the apparent artificiality of the journey, her "affection for Eat, Pray, Love is. Katie Roiphe of Slate agreed with Egan about the strength of Gilbert's writing. Oprah Winfrey enjoyed the book, and devoted two episodes of The Oprah Winfrey Show to it. She was more interested in "the awkward, unresolved stuff she must have chosen to leave out," noting that Gilbert omits the "confusion and unfinished business of real life" and that "we know how the story ends pretty much from the beginning." Jennifer Egan of The New York Times described Gilbert's prose as "fueled by a mix of intelligence, wit and colloquial exuberance that is close to irresistible" but said that the book "drags" in the middle. Brad Pitt and Dede Gardner of Plan B, Pitt's production company, produced the film. The film also stars Javier Bardem, James Franco, Richard Jenkins, and Billy Crudup. American actress Julia Roberts starred in the film Ryan Murphy directed it. Columbia Pictures purchased film rights for the memoir and has produced a film version under the same title.