Elizabeth Gilbert at The Strand

I was lucky enough to see Elizabeth (Liz) Gilbert on her very first stop on her book tour for her new memoir, All the Way to the River. I was also lucky enough to have read the book on Netgalley before the talk as well. The book signing/talk took place at Cooper Union in New York City, which was a much bigger venue than the Strand’s Rare Book Room, where they usually hold their events.

I traveled down to the City alone, and met three other women who were also attending the talk who I sat near. The books were already signed by Liz and there were so many people there, so none of the books were personalized. She basically talked the whole time, and then took questions from the audience who lined up behind a microphone.

I am so happy that I was able to see Elizabeth Gilbert do her talk. The book is about her relationship with her best friend turned lover, Rayya Elias, and their codependent relationship with each other, their drug and love addictions, as well as Rayya’s ultimate death due to pancreatic and liver cancer. It wasn’t an easy read, but definitely worth it, I think, and a very important addition to Gilbert’s story.