It doesn't matter if you relished or reviled Eat, Pray, Love. With this novel about a young 19th-century Philadelphia woman who becomes a world-renowned botanist, Gilbert shows herself to be a writer at the height of her powers. Surprisingly, it turns out moss is a riveting subject. (Yes, it’s 512 pages, but the botany-based story is so engrossing you’ll be done by Saturday—not Sunday.)
