Reviews with content warning for Racism - Lessons in Chemistry

Loved the chemistry cooking lessons, funny and fast-paced writing, main character who is clearly autistic but the writer doesn't know it was also a plus. The proselytizing for atheism, however, knocked off a star for me. It started as here and there but eventually expands to the point where it almost resembles a reverse PureFlix in how simplistic it's "atheism is the one true way and all religious people are either evil or stupid and the only good one is a secret atheist" moral was. I also found the supernaturally intelligent dog to be an odd inclusion.

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serenity_by_jan's review against another edition

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funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted medium-paced

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

2.75

This book is definitely an enjoyable read, though it is a far cry from historical fiction. The only elements that allude to the time period that the story is supposedly set are the occasional description of the physical setting (appliances, television shows, books). Readers must also suspend belief to entertain the protagonist's uncannily identical mannerisms to modern progressive liberals.

The use of tropes and typecasts severely dim the ingenuity of the book. Most of the plot points can be seen from miles away, but they are still entertaining to see unfurl. Though this book touches on topics such as sexual assault, discrimination, and grief, it reads more like a fluffy beach read than an impactful piece.

The protagonist, Elizabeth Zott, has a genius child and an equally genius dog (the latter of which has many needless monologues of his own). Though this book lacks suspense, it does not bore. Instead, as the reader can already predict the main plot points, the book fills in the threads that lead from one event to the next.
Furthermore, most of the male characters are painstakingly one-dimensional: Lazy, stupid, sexist. We are meant to be fond of Calvin Evans, Zott's partner, though the author's means of provoking this from the reader is by making him the only developed male character. This is a pitiful and cheap way to write, and probably the most disappointing theme in the book.

Finally, although this book is ostensibly feminist, the main plot diverges considerably from its empowering tone and settles resolutely in disappointing territory.

At last, in the final chapters of the book, the protagonist, Zott, gets her job back . . . due to her relations with a man. The whole ending to the story revolved around her late partner, Calvin Evans; though his life could have made a good story in and of itself, I read this book to see what happens to Zott, not to her partner. It seems as though the author drags you around, getting you attached to Zott, only to reveal that it was Evans' story all along. Disappointing to say the least, though it didn't completely ruin the book.

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