"To recover from a divorce and a crushing depression, Gilbert shed her belongings, quit her job, and undertook a yearlong journey around the world alone. Her aim was to visit three cultures that have traditionally done one thing very well in order to examine that aspect of her own nature. In Italy she studied the art of pleasure, in India devotion, and in Indonesia, balance. This articulate, moving and funny memoir is about what can happen when you claim responsibility for your own contentment. 352 pp."