Anyone else excited to see Eat, Pray, Love? This girl right here is.
I will be honest with you... I am total literature snob.
I liked the book Eat, Pray, Love for entertainment's sake but I sure didn't love it. Yes, I love to read corny chicklit much like I love to read just about any magazine I can get my hands on, but I have such a hard time digesting and taking seriously poorly written books. I thought Eat, Pray, Love was one such book.
The premise was interesting to me. I am a self-confessed romantic, have traveled through India and Southeast Asia and have always dreamed of going to Italy. I consider myself a bit of a yogi and have also um, had a life long love affair with pasta and wine, soo.... you get the point. Add shopping, art and my husband to the book and you've pretty much got me tied up in a bow. 's descriptions of places and food were great but I found the general tone of the book to be whiny and self-righteous and to be honest, most of her deep thoughts all seemed fairly obvious. (If you haven't read it but are interested, here's an excerpt).
That being said, some of my all-time favorite movies are books that I literally threw across the room because I could not believe the author was not only published but also a best-selling writer (I'm looking at you Nicholas Sparks). Maybe its the green eyed monster in me, maybe I am just a literature snob because I was an English minor, but whatever it is... if I have a hard time with the writing in a book but am still entertained by it, chances are it will be an awesome movie.
Also on that list is Water for Elephants. Have you guys read that one? I would recommend. I really couldn't get into it at first but it gets better about halfway through and, um, hello! Robert Pattinson is starring in the movie version that is currently being filmed. :)
Anyone else excited to see luscious Italy, India and Indonesia on the silver screen this weekend?
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13 comments:
i saw the screening earlier this week and really enjoyed it. the "eat" and "pray" parts were definitely my favorite! i read the book awhile ago and didn't remember some details so i think that not having everything in the movie didn't bother me ass it would some people. ENJOY!
I can't wait to see i! I loved the book and Julia is my fave, so awesome combo!
XO
Lenore
my mom and i had the exact same reaction to the book...i couldn't even finish it...and i ALWAYS finish a book, even if it sucks! so that tells you how much i couldnt stand it. totally agree with the whiny-ness, bad writing, and obvious cliche topics...
and the movie looks awesome. funny how that works, right???
I completely agree with you and Aimee and her Mom. It totally makes me cringe and want to change the channel to see the previews... but did I read it? Yes.
Did I have a pretty good time reading it? Yes.
I just finished another chick lit summer fun read called "Time Off For Good Behavior" by Lani Diane Rich. I was literally laughing out loud through a great deal of the quick read. Lots of fun!!! Didn't take itself too seriously and had interesting insights without being so self-righteous and arrogant.
Will I see the movie anyway?
You betcha, I'm a good consuming American doing my bit to keep the economy going.
oh my gosh i am right there with you. while i liked the book well enough, it is not one i would feel the urge to read again (and i am a chronic re-reader of things i love) maybe it was all the hype surrounding it but i was slightly disappointed - will definitely still see the movie though :)
Very excited to see the movie. I thought the book was whiny and self-righteous in places, but overall I really loved the story. But I totally know what you mean: I was an English major and have an MFA in Creative Writing, and I jump up on my high horse REAL quick when I spot terrible writing! (Worst two offenders of late: the Twilight books and The Five People You Meet in Heaven). Oh man. I had to read the latter for a book club, and I could barely choke through it.
I think I just consider reading great novels as a totally different experience than reading chicklit and/or Twilight esque nonsense. Enjoyable, addicting, soothing, terrible writing. :)
Glad I found your blog--I am your newest follower!
sounds like a lot of yall had the same reaction as me, glad I'm not the only book snob out there :)
hope you all have beautiful weekends, ours is starting off rainy and stormy and that is just fine by me!!!
Wow. Hadn't read it, but I couldn't even get through the excerpt. Boring. I did read and loved Water for Elephants. And, Italy, ah, Italy, I did so LOVE Italy. But a lot of the men in Italy were short.
i'm reading water for elephants soon, so excited :)
haha, shells, a LOT of men are short everywhere! you are so funny.
So glad you shared your thoughts about Eat Pray Love. I was thinking of picking it up for an airplane reading, but wasn't too thrilled about the reviews. The premise of the book sounds very interesting since I am from Southeast Asia. But one critic's comment that the book is "the worst in Western fetishization of Eastern thought and culture, assured in its answers to existential dilemmas that have confounded intellects greater than hers," really left a bad impression. I am still curious about the movie. Let me know if you like it!
WOW that is one intense quote but pretty spot on. The movie was... pretty. Of course Julia was gorgeous and the scenery was stunning and the food looked amazing. Beyond that, it was entertaining but a bit shallow/hollow much like the book only even faster and lighter. Don't know if that helps or just confuses but hey, Im no critic ;)
I ended up reading the book...haha. I couldn't resist my curiosity. So far I feel ambivalent about it. On the one hand, I relate to her a lot, on the other, it reads more like a personal blog than a book...? Haha. I haven't seen the movie, but I look forward to it. I'm a sucker for good imagery.
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