Having thoroughly enjoyed and been impressed by Elizabeth Gilbert’s wit and story-telling gifts in her previous work, I held my breath wondering what she would do with a historical novel. I can breathe deeply now. The characters spring fully formed from the page, immersed in all the themes of early 19th-century life—poverty, the quest for knowledge (and wealth), art and craftsmanship, sea travel and trade, Calvinism, tropical botany, evolution, the class structure, abolition, and spiritualism. The Signature of All Things (Viking, $28.95) is a gripping, generational saga of parents and daughters; a sweeping, surprising, deeply engrossing, historical adventure and exploration of scientific and personal discovery; but primarily, it is the life of Alma Whittaker, privileged and educated daughter of a former thief and extraordinarily successful self-made businessman, as she becomes his heir and a gifted botanist and explorer in her own right. Unreservedly my favorite book of the year.