Today and tomorrow I am coming to you with probably the longest, most overdue book report of ever since I read both of the books I'm suggesting as good summer reads about 365 days ago. :)
The first book I read last summer was Committed by Elizabeth Gilbert (yes, the same author of Eat Pray Love). Much like my recent movie night with 112 Weddings, I have a yearning to understand how someone finally decides on who gets to be "the one" they want to marry, and even if they feel they've found "the one"...why they need to marry, and how can the marriage succeed. If you have the same yearning, or have been wondering the same bunch of things, this book will be a good read for you.
It's chock full of great writing, and fabulous introspection (some of which can be found here), but I never felt like it came to a conclusion. I don't know that it needed to, but it would have been nice for it to have wrapped up all that introspection in some way or another. I guess Gilbert's way to wrap it up was to say she married Felipe, and it feels right. Good for her. ...but what about the rest of us that have yet to find a Felipe and still don't know what we feel about marriage? I guess read the next book.
My favorite part of the book was when Gilbert sites from a book that sites from philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer about the essential dilemma of modern human intimacy. She writes in her book:
"Schopenhauer believed that humans, in their love relationships, were like porcupines out on a cold winter night. In order to keep from freezing, the animals huddle close together. But as soon as they are near enough to provide critical warmth, they get poked by each other's quills. Reflexively, to stop the pain and irritation of too much closeness, the porcupines separate. But once they separate, they become cold again. the chill sends them back toward each other once more, only to be impaled all over again by each other's quills. So they retreat again. And then approach again. Endlessly."
What a true dilemma! ...and I am ever in search of how to deal. ♥ Good read. Happy Tuesday!
