The Signature of All Things: A Novel Paperback – June 24, 2014

With all the flotsam and jetsam that floats by each day, it is heartening to read a book that engages, entertains and edifies one's view on life, all at the same time. Such is "The Signature of All Things" by Elizabeth Gilbert. As you might recall, she became famous for her memoir, "Eat, Pray, Love" which sold 10 million copies, was made into a movie starring Julia Roberts and which has made her rich enough to begin rebuilding (including buying houses for friends) a small town in New Jersey where she lives with a husband whom she married to ensure he could stay in the U.S.A. on a green card. You might think that would be enough to handle in the past few years, along with setting up a shop of imported wares like Buddhas and other Asian things that her husband manages.But no, apparently, that's not been enough to occupy her time/life. With the publication of "The Signature of All Things," Elizabeth Gilbert reveals that she has been busy researching 18th and 19th century botanical history, including the commerce of ocean trade between the West and obscure locations yielding up medicinal plants and potions that ebbed and flowed with plagues, fevers, malaria and other illnesses that could not be treated otherwise than with exotic potions and herbs. She has constructed a tale (that's the only word for it) of a family, and especially a heroine named Alma Whittaker who is not pretty but is very intelligent, feisty and hard-working who perseveres through a life of disappointments and wishes that go unfulfilled in unwinsome ways. That this story is told in a narrative fashion ("telling" rather than "showing" through dialogue) is a huge relief because stories matter and I'm so glad to be able to simply read for pleasure without having to deal with all the annoying current artificial fads in writing/publishing.That being said, another bonus in the writing is that for me, at least, the narrator's voice sounds awfully familiar to that of Jane Austen. In fact, I enjoyed reading this book much more than some Jane Austen's novels because the humor and wit come easy, comes often and is awe-inspiring in its light touch. So, it even kind of out-Austens Jane, but seems so effortless that it's not a contest, just fun.To be honest, I read a lot and am one of those readers who, unless engaged and interested, do not suffer books (or fools) gladly. This is the first book in a long time that I marveled at while laughing out loud. I also appreciated the more sobering discussions about the relationships of all things, (never mind the signature as explained in the novel,) and the spirited attitude of the heroine. I can't wait to read it again, more slowly this time, and savor the writing of someone who has already won the writing lottery with "Eat, Pray, Love," a book that I wanted to throw across the room numerous times except for the "Pray" section. Now, against some odds, she has succeeded in writing literature. No wonder Elizabeth Gilbert is smiling in the photos that accompany the book. She's done what many of us want to accomplish in our lives: to be original in our creativity, to persevere until it is finished and to be published. I wish I had come up with something like this. But it's more than enough pleasure for me just to hold this volume in my hands and to know I can read it more than once and enjoy it more fully after an astonishing first time through. What a gift!

I resisted reading this book for months after I'd first heard about it. I was so worried that I would be bored to death by the botanical observations. I have to admit that descriptions of the natural world just put me to sleep. However, Alma Whittaker is the saving grace here. There is something about her character which made me root for her all the way through. The book swept me away. I read it in about three to four days and nearly half of it in one session. Gilbert uses a suspenseful tone to this work. I, for one, found the book hard to put down at times.The most boring section of the book for me was at the beginning when Gilbert introduces Alma's father, Henry, and goes into great detail about his importing and exporting. If I hadn't read some reviews and known that the book was going to get better, I might have given up early on. I enjoy reading about family life and romantic life so when I learned about Alma and her thorny relationships within the family, her romantic desires, and her great love for the natural world (by the way, the descriptions of moss weren't nearly as boring as I'd thought they would be) I was swept away. There are enough plot twists to keep a reader interested.This book is by no means traditional in concept. Many 19-century stories are far more predictable--a young woman, burdened by Victorian principles, is able to find her way, meet the perfect man, and live happily ever after. Although Gilbert's story reads like a fairy tale sometimes especially in Tahiti where the natives make for a very exciting, suspenseful (and sometimes rather hilarious) read, this is no cookie-cutter romance. It's a tragedy with a great deal of hope in it. Alma is a plucky woman. She doesn't let the circumstances of her life get her down for long.Some people hated the sexual content, but the fact that Alma discovers the joys of solitary sexual pleasure as a teenager, in my mind, just makes the story more interesting and more human. When she writes about a sexual act with another person, I thought that Gilbert managed to write in both a tasteful and sensual manner.Just as the beginning of the story was slow-moving for me, some portions of the final chapters became a bit tiresome. Some reviewers got tired of Tahiti. Tahiti was quite drawn out, but I would say that at least 80% of it was interesting to me. She really captures the mood of a primitive way of life. I felt as though I were right there with Alma in her hovel, learning to live as the natives did.The entire book was a pleasant surprise. I did drift off to sleep occasionally while reading it, but it kept me up one night long past my bedtime. It's a big story. It wouldn't have done anything for me as a teenager or young adult craving satisfying romantic connections, but as an older lady with a larger perspective on life and love, I found it to be a fascinating story.Gilbert knows how to write. Her sentences are interesting without being long-winded and pretentious. Her English is both understandable and elegant. Way to go, Elizabeth Gilbert! I read Eat Pray Love and enjoyed it, but your fictional work really swept me away.