Reviews tagging 'Abandonment'

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

234 reviews

bookswithlauren's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Homophobia, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Vomit, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Abandonment

iordanmoore's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful inspiring sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This book was entertaining, funny, and heartbreaking (sometimes all at once). Elizabeth Zott is one of my new favorite female characters. Would highly recommend to anyone who loves smart and good writing.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Car accident, Pregnancy, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Alcoholism, Self harm, Suicide, Religious bigotry, and Abandonment

ksilvio's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny informative inspiring medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Vomit, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

thisiswhy_wecanthavenicethings's review against another edition

emotional inspiring lighthearted sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

I enjoyed reading this book, and I liked the challenges presented and seeing Elizabeth’s character development. Everything seemed to wrap up too perfectly by the end, and some of the points I didn’t necessarily agree with. I also felt there were a bit too many subplots but I really enjoyed the connections made. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny and Sexual assault

Moderate: Abandonment

Minor: Suicide

quartz96's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Suicide, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Abandonment

spootilious's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

 

 

Read: July 17th, 2024
 Title: Lessons in Chemistry 
 Author: Bonnie Garmus 

Genre:  Historical Fiction 

Rating: 2/5
 Review: 

I have been contemplating how to review this for a few hours now. It’s difficult because I really enjoyed reading the book. It made me smile, cringe, and cry; though I think the ‘Laugh out Loud’ reviews are a bit farfetched. In fact, this novel wasn’t just heavy, it hit like a freight train (pun intended). 

I suppose my biggest conflict is that I really really like the message of the novel and the focus on social injustices. 

The issue then becomes all the things I didn’t like about the novel. 

The work was written well enough but Garmus switch so drastically from one injustice to another that I felt as if I were getting whiplash. She moved back and fourth so much that I don’t think any one subject got as much attention as it deserved. The one focused on the most being Women Empowerment but it felt more like anti-men than pro-women… That being said, I am the type of woman that will ALWAYS choose the bear. Still, I think it would be nice to see a feminist store that builds its own ladder rather than using the destroyed men as stepping stones to empowerment… Cuz in the end it means we still need them… even if in a negative way. 

I found the dialog to often be condescending as well. Almost as if Garmus was throwing in ever intelligent sound word she could find. It felt forced. People of high intelligence can sound as brilliant as their IQ without sounding like a robot. 

The unapologetic and vulgar nature of the atrocities throughout the book is both disturbing and refreshing. I’ve mentioned it in a rare review but I have to admire an author who can simply write a horrific act without defending or explaining it, it makes it hit harder. 

That being said… There was a lot… and jumping from it to a ‘funny’ quip or one liner made the whole thing feel off putting… 

 

Overall I really enjoyed the read, just not the way it was written. I would recommend this to individuals who enjoy heavy reads/sad reads, drama, historical fiction that borders on fantasy, or a strong feminist tone. 

 

TBH I loved the show though. Very well done. 

QUOTES:
 “The librarian is the most important educator in school. What she doesn’t know, she can find out. This is not an opinion; it’s a fact.” 

“Imagine if all men took women seriously. Education would change. The workforce would revolutionize. Marriage counsellors would go out of business.” 

“Courage is the root of change—and change is what we’re chemically designed to do.” 

“Sometimes I think," she said slowly, "that if a man were to spend a day being a woman in America, he wouldn't make it past noon.” 

 

 

TW: Rape, Adultery, Religious bigotry, Racism, Feminism, Sexism, Animal harm, parental death, death of a child, death of a parent, pedophilia, sexual assault, sexual harassment, bombs, death threats, car accidents, suicide, domestic abuse, vomit, abandonment, mentions of abortion, alcoholism, drug use, blood, body shaming, bullying, child abuse, toxic relationships, stalking, slurs, gaslighting, grief, fatphobia, emotional abuse, classism, alcohol, animal cruelty, pregnancy, miscarriage, infidelity, emotional abuse, medical content. 

 

 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Child death, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, and Classism

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Hate crime, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, and Classism

rowlyreads's review against another edition

emotional funny informative inspiring fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Death, Suicide, Grief, and Abandonment

Minor: Car accident

cmcahill's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

July 2024. Leading the discussion of this book with the UUCUC Feminist Book Group

Elizabeth Zott, a scientist working in the 50's is surrounded by people who are threatened by her beauty, intelligence, but mostly threatened by the fact that she doesn't listen to the nay-sayers. I don't want to put in any spoilers, but I can say that her life doesn't go in directions she expected. Some folks might find the story a bit didactic, but having worked in a lab for several years, Elizabeth's story sadly rang true to my experience in the 1980s. 

This was actually my second reading. Read it last year with the Reading Between the Wines book group.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Grief, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Abandonment

clovetra's review against another edition

funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

you know how you can easily tell if i’m not gonna like a book? if it takes me 2 months to finish a 386 page book. i do not get the hype around this book. 

i mean i didn’t hate this!!! it was a perfectly fine book. nothing more than that for me honestly.

i could kind of feel for elizabeth? like yes relatable feminism type of beat. but idk man the book felt so monotone the entire time because she herself is so monotone! i mean i love a bad bitch who likes chemistry but idk she felt incredibly one dimensional. like why did the fucking dog interest me more than the main character. anyways shout out six-thirty he’s a real one.

well what else is there to say? the plot just seemed to read like a biography & ended at a super odd place imo. like the way this book was formatted i was here thinking it would end with mad becoming a chemist or elizabeth dying or something and then it just…. stopped randomly. like why was that point chosen to end the story?? but honestly i wouldn’t have cared if it kept going because i actually didn’t give a shit about any character except the dog. THE DOG!

idk based on the hype this book has & the fact it has its own tv show…. i expected More. this was a really odd book. but i mean i finished it. i had a decent time. i like the overall message & the chemistry themes. other than that tho…… this is not for me. honestly it felt like a waste of time. i mean not every book needs a “message”, but when i don’t give a flying fart about ur characters ANNNDDD ur book said nothing new. yawn 

ok the argument can be made this book is about found family. but for what this book was most of the time, it did not succeed in satisfying me. 

i feel like im being demonic in writing this review but i promise im only this scathing when its a popular book sorry i’d self combust if i was this mean to a book with <100,000 reviews. but luckily this book is popular so i don’t feel bad for dunking on it! 

i think the reason im so “disappointed” in this book is because of its hype. it’s a perfectly tolerable book, with what i will admit to be some funny dialogue, but the plot felt all over the place, was uninteresting, and imo never actually interested me. i’m so serious i only picked up this book just so i could finish it. for a while i was a tad invested in mad, but at some point i think i stopped caring & just wanted to finish it because i own this book (i mean not after today you best believe im donating this sorry my shelf space is for all time faves). 

anyways i will say this book DID excite me for my next neuroscience class next semester LETS GOOOO

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, Grief, and Death of parent

Moderate: Pregnancy and Abandonment

Minor: Child death, Suicide, Toxic relationship, and Murder

derynjoy's review against another edition

emotional hopeful lighthearted reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

0.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Death, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Car accident, Pregnancy, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Suicide, Vomit, Death of parent, and Abandonment

Minor: Child death and Cursing