It’s a shame, considering Gilbert’s other overshadowed works have much to praise about. Committed (2012), the follow-up to Eat, Pray, Love, was a candid and witty page-turner on the institution of marriage. Her collection of short stories (Pilgrims, 1997) was a finalist for the PEN/Hemingway award and her first novel (Stern Men, 2000), was a New York Times Notable Book. So, Gilbert has proven that she can do a convincing balancing act between fiction and non-fiction.

The Signature of All Things, Elizabeth Gilbert, Bloomsbury, '599. Available at leading bookstores.