Big Magic: How to Live a Creative Life, and Let Go of Your Fear (Paperback)

If a more likable writer than Gilbert is currently in print, I haven't found him or her ... Gilbert's prose is fuelled by a mix of intelligence, wit and colloquial exuberance that is close to irresistible, and makes the reader only too glad to join the posse of friends and devotees who have the pleasure of listening in * Jennifer Egan, New York Times Book Review *
A writer of incandescent talent * Annie Proulx *
Gilbert dares us into adventures of worldly discovery * Barbara Kingsolver, New York Times Book Review *
Sumptuous ... Gilbert's prose is by turns flinty, funny, and incandescent * New Yorker *
Readers prepared to enter Gilbert Time will be rewarded: she is an unflaggingly curious writer, prone to delightful touches * Lucy Atkins, Sunday Times *
Smart but unpretentious, funny, warm, and generous ... By the end of one of her books, you feel as if she is your friend, too * San Francisco Chronicle *
Charming ... Her tone is relentlessly endearing. It's like talking to your hippy-est friend, the one who never turns up at the right bar but always makes you feel great once she's got there ... Some great stuff about the power of ideas themselves, about how utterly useless emotions such as fear are when trying to do anything creative, and why we all have a right to live creatively * The Debrief *
Gilbert writes about enchantment and wonder, but her feet are always firmly on the ground ...Eminently practical ... Witty and self-aware, she never urges her readers to just follow their dreams or to believe that they can't fail, or any of the usual platitudes often thrown at people with creative ambitions ... It's all very refreshing ... In almost every section of Big Magic I found something that rang perfectly true to my situation, something that helped me to view my work and creative stumbling blocks in a new and more productive way ... Whether you're worried about getting started, burning out, making money, failing or even succeeding, there is something in this book that will speak to you * Irish Times *
Gilbert offers powerful insights into the mysterious nature of creativity, and she delivers the vibrant message that we can all find, and create, magic * Veggie *
Doing that [Turning fear into a positive force in your life] starts simply by acknowledging that having fear isn't the same as letting it control you. In her book Big Magic, Elizabeth Gilbert describes this brilliantly, explaining that living life healthily alongside fear is like taking it on a road trip * Top Sante Health and Beauty *
I was feeling fragile about quite a few exciting projects that were up in the air. This book, which is all about creativity, helped me recognise anxiety is just part of the creative process, which made me much more accepting of the way I was feeling. Elizabeth Gilbert is the author of Eat, Pray, Love - she's so open and makes me laugh. I buy this for loved ones and recommend it to clients and students who I think will find it inspiring -- Eve Menezes Cunningham * Fit & Well *
Absurdly comforting * Mslexia *