Signature of All Things

SHORTLISTED FOR THE WELLCOME BOOK PRIZELONGLISTED FOR THE BAILEYS WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION'Quite simply one of the best novels I have read in years' - Elizabeth Day, Observer'Charming ... extensively researched, compellingly readable' - Jane Shilling, Daily Telegraph'Sumptuous ... Gilbert's prose is by turns flinty, funny, and incandescent' - New YorkerA captivating story of botany, exploration and desire, by the multimillion copy bestselling author of Eat Pray LoveEverything about life intrigues Alma Whittaker. Her passion for botany leads her far from home, from London to Peru to Tahiti, in pursuit of that rare specimen: knowledge. But as her careful studies draw her deeper into the mysteries of evolution, she meets the man who she will come to love – whose perspective, radically different from her own, will transform the way she understands the world. Radiating with all the heart, soul and earthiness as its unforgettable heroine, The Signature of All Things is a captivating celebration of the workings of this world, and the mechanisms behind all life.'My own 500-pager of choice? Elizabeth Gilbert’s The Signature of All Things ... just read it ... Hugely enjoyable' - Viv Groskop, Observer Books of the Year'The story of Alma Whittaker’s journey of discovery has irresistible momentum' - Helen Dunmore, The Times'Gilbert has written the novel of a lifetime' - O, The Oprah Magazine'Filled with dazzling storytelling' - Susie Boyt, Financial Times

Unlike anything else she has ever written ... Its prose has the elegant sheen of a 19th-century epic, but its concerns – the intersection of science and faith, the feminine struggle for fulfilment – are especially modern, The story of Alma Whittaker’s journey of discovery has irresistible momentum, Ms Gilbert has established herself as a straight-up storyteller who dares us into adventures of worldly discovery, and this novel stands as a winning next act ... A bracing homage to the many natures of genius and the inevitable progress of ideas, in a world that reveals its best truths to the uncommonly patient minds, Charming and compelling ... A big novel in all senses – extensively researched, compellingly readable and with a powerful charm that will surely propel it towards the bestseller lists, Gilbert has written the novel of a lifetime

Elizabeth Gilbert is the number one bestselling author of Eat Pray Love, which has sold over 15 million copies worldwide and been translated into over 46 languages, and several other international bestselling books of fiction and non-fiction. Her story collection Pilgrims was a finalist for the PEN/Hemingway award; The Last American Man was a finalist for both the National Book Award and the National Book Critics Circle Award. Her follow-up memoir to Eat Pray Love, Committed, became an instant number one New York Times bestseller. She has published two novels, Stern Men and The Signature of All Things, which was longlisted for the Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction and shortlisted for the Wellcome Book Prize. She lives in New Jersey. www.elizabethgilbert.com / @GilbertLiz