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The Signature of All Things
- A Novel
- Narrated by: Juliet Stevenson
- Length: 21 hrs and 43 mins
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The Signature of All Things
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Publisher's Summary
A glorious, sweeping novel of desire, ambition, and the thirst for knowledge, from the number-one New York Times best-selling author of Eat, Pray, Love and Committed
In The Signature of All Things, Elizabeth Gilbert returns to fiction, inserting her inimitable voice into an enthralling story of love, adventure, and discovery. Spanning much of the 18th and 19th centuries, the novel follows the fortunes of the extraordinary Whittaker family as led by the enterprising Henry Whittaker - a poor-born Englishman who makes a great fortune in the South American quinine trade, eventually becoming the richest man in Philadelphia.
Born in 1800, Henry's brilliant daughter, Alma (who inherits both her father's money and his mind), ultimately becomes a botanist of considerable gifts herself. As Alma's research takes her deeper into the mysteries of evolution, she falls in love with a man named Ambrose Pike who makes incomparable paintings of orchids and who draws her in the exact opposite direction - into the realm of the spiritual, the divine, and the magical. Alma is a clear-minded scientist; Ambrose a utopian artist - but what unites this unlikely couple is a desperate need to understand the workings of this world and the mechanisms behind all life.
Exquisitely researched and told at a galloping pace, The Signature of All Things soars across the globe - from London to Peru to Philadelphia to Tahiti to Amsterdam, and beyond. Along the way, the story is peopled with unforgettable characters: missionaries, abolitionists, adventurers, astronomers, sea captains, geniuses, and the quite mad. But most memorable of all, it is the story of Alma Whittaker, who - born in the Age of Enlightenment, but living well into the Industrial Revolution - bears witness to that extraordinary moment in human history when all the old assumptions about science, religion, commerce, and class were exploding into dangerous new ideas. Written in the bold, questing spirit of that singular time, Gilbert's wise, deep, and spellbinding tale is certain to capture the hearts and minds of listeners.
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 56
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What the critics say
“Gilbert's triumphant return to fiction is matched by Juliet Stevenson's lyrical reading. Both author and narrator capture the listener from the novel's opening words.” (AudioFile)
"A rip-roaring tale...unlike anything Gilbert has ever written.... Its prose has the elegant sheen of a nineteenth-century epic, but its concerns...are essentially modern." (The New York Times Magazine)
"With this novel about a young, nineteenth-century Philadelphia woman who becomes a world-renowned botanist, Gilbert shows herself to be a writer at the height of her powers." (O, The Oprah Magazine, "Our Favorite Reads of the Year")
"The most ambitious and purely imaginative work in Gilbert’s 20-year career: a deeply researched and vividly rendered historical novel about a 19th century female botanist.” (The Wall Street Journal)
What listeners say about The Signature of All Things
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Natasha
- 2020-03-27
Not my usual type of read, but I loved it
I normally find stories like this a little slow and keep waiting for something to actually happen. I'm not sure if it was the writing, narration, or the characters in this book, but I thoroughly enjoyed the whole thing. I will look for more from this author in the future!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Joanna Loney
- 2021-05-25
Better Every Time You Read It
This novel is about so much more than an awesome story. I feel I will experience my world deeper. Where do I come from and what is important? I got more out of reading this the second time around.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Kolby Walters
- 2022-11-04
beautiful
I loved everything about this book, it was warm, intelligent and made its way into my heart.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Kathy Adams
- 2023-07-04
Perfect Read
I was looking for something adventurous and different with a sense of humour thrown in. This story did not disappoint. I thoroughly enjoyed every minute and couldn’t wait to get back to it at the end of the day.
The narrator’s voice is soothing, expressive, easy to listen to, what a treat!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Bev Holdgate
- 2018-02-25
Beautiful story
So very well written. A story that imparted knowledge at the same time as entertained. Alma character came alive and I really cared about her. She made me laugh at times which I love in a novel. Very enjoyable
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Polson5
- 2018-12-15
Good story
very interesting book... found it a bit long winded at times. I enjoyed it though.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Twas a hit!
- 2020-11-29
lovely, meaningful, thought provoking
its odd, because while i didn't like the main character, I respected her. I enjoyed that the narration is not like I think in a lot of ways, but the character comes to many of the same conclusions about big philisophical questions. I enjoyed the descriptions in the narration, the voices that were consistent in the reading of this audible and the sequences of events.
some events were admittedly predictable and a few, not at all.
above all, it was interesting to listen to a different perspective of love and connection to the divine, to different disciplinary methods on children than I may have considered, and many other thoughts on subjects.
I loved listening to a story about an enpowered woman who learns to not need to assert her power over others, to appreciate life as it is and to gently question things.
overall, beautifully written, well told!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- SusanQQ
- 2020-10-06
Loved this book
This book contained so many wonderful characters with curious minds. The writing was beautiful, the narration was enthralling. Thoroughly enjoyed.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Rosanne
- 2023-11-06
Elizabeth Gilbert takes us on a journey of a lifetime
Juliet Stevenson reveals the characters of Elizabeth Gilbert in the most devastatingly beautiful manner. I’m so grateful to have been taken on this journey with Alma Whitaker and all the memorable people with whom she shared her life.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Stéfanie Lepage
- 2022-09-26
profondément marquée
si vous croyez que la nature est à la fois science et spiritualité MAIS que vous n'appréciez pas les livres trop scientifiques, trop ésotériques, ou trop psychopop, vous êtes à la bonne place. Vous aimerez ce roman bien écrit, qui explore ces dualités à travers des personnages et une histoire magnifique. J'en ressors avec un bien-être profond.
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