At the end of her bestselling memoir Eat Pray Love Elizabeth Gilbert fell in love with Felipe
- a Brazilian-born man of Australian citizenship who'd been living in Indonesia when they met. Resettling in America the couple swore eternal fidelity to each other but also swore to never ever under any circumstances get legally married. (Both survivors of difficult divorces. Enough said.) But providence intervened one day in the form of the U.S. government who
- after unexpectedly detaining Felipe at an American border crossing
- gave the couple a choice: they could either get married or Felipe would never be allowed to enter the country again. Having been effectively sentenced to wed Gilbert tackled her fears of marriage by delving completely into this topic trying with all her might to discover (through historical research interviews & much personal reflection) what this stubbornly enduring old institution actually is. The result is Committed
- a witty & intelligent contemplation of marriage that debunks myths unthreads fears & suggests that sometimes even the most romantic of souls must trade in her amorous fantasies for the humbling responsibility of adulthood. Gilbert's memoir
- destined to become a cherished handbook for any thinking person hovering on the verge of marriage
- is ultimately a clear-eyed celebration of love with all the complexity & consequence that real love in the real world actually entails.