The Girls by Lori Lansens

The Girls: A Novel

This is the story of Siamese twins who are joined at the head. They are abandoned at birth by their mother and raised by the nurse who helped deliver them. The girls write alternating chapters telling their life story. While I enjoyed read this book immensely, it is a work of fiction. I would have preferred to read a true story of Siamese twins. 

The book was well written and every page was a delight to read, most people in the book club enjoyed reading it, one person found it just a little too unreal.

Committed by Elizabeth Gilbert

Committed: A Love Story

This is the sequel to Eat, Pray, Love. At the end of the first book Liz finds her true love, but is determined not to marry him, as they have both been through pretty painful divorces. But it is soon pointed out to them by a Homeland Security official that if they want to live together in the US, they need to marry. So begins their exile until the paperwork is though and they can get married.

The book is the story of their journey, but during their wait Elizabeth Gilbert researches the history and traditions attached to marriage. This history I found fascinating, and learned lots of things I didn't otherwise know. She studies marriage in other cultures and traditions and why there are so few divorces in some cultures and so many in others. 

She discusses the intersection between church, state and marriage. When one must get involved and when another. Then she debates her own prejudices toward marriage - the institution and also the wedding day. 

You can guess the end of the book, they do finally get married. To me the best part of the book was the description of this rather unusual wedding, people who were only getting married so they could spend the rest of their lives together. But then, isn't that the purpose of marriage?

This is the cover of the earlier version of the book

Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia

The book is the story of one woman's search, in three different countries, to find herself. First she goes to Italy, then to India and then to Indonesia. The book is in three equal sections, one for each country. As a result I found it a little disjoint, almost being three different stories. But by the end of the book I was enjoying it.

In the middle section she goes to an Ashran in India to pursue her spiritual journey and discovers her strengths and weaknesses. In the final part she is mixing with the locals as well as learning meditation from the local spiritual man. 

I found the book informative and insightful. It is a bestseller, but personally not one of my favorite books.

But I loved this talk by Elizabeth Gilbert on TED http://www.ted.com/talks/elizabeth_gilbert_on_genius.html 

And here's the movie, with Julia Roberts, which I found very true to the book

Eat Pray Love