Reviews with content warning for Alcoholism - Lessons in Chemistry

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Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

47 reviews

vivboyd98's review against another edition

emotional reflective slow-paced

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

3.75

As others have said, this book takes a while to get into. Overall, it’s a decent book, but I don’t know if I can agree 100% with the amount of hype it got. Elizabeth is a hard character to like, gives a very “white savior complex” kind of vibe. I do love how the book is told from different perspectives & the story gets tied in a nice bow at the end. It was good, but not great.

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vj_thompson's review against another edition

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challenging emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

This book 🥹 I enjoyed this book so much more than I thought I would and wish more people would read it, or at least give it a chance!!

There is a reason this is a five star read. This writing is beautiful, intentional, and meaningful. Each word was written with purpose. Everything in this story; backstory, inner monologue, character, had reason. I LOVED how everything was wrapped up in the end. Of course I cried 😭 Ugh, please read!!

Last thought, Six-thirty is my favorite character. I highlighted so many of his parts. He is a wise dog.

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arrow3002's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad fast-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

4.0

Lessons in Chemistry is a tale of a bad ass woman working against a very prejudice world, and I am absolutely here for it. It was such a fun read, and I really enjoyed the way Bonnie was able to tell Elizabeth's story through all the different chapters of her life. Throughout the book it will occasionally switch to a different character's perspective, and I found myself quite enjoying the change in pace. It added a lot more to the narrative instead of confusing the reader in the guise of character development. The women empowerment, that is the main driving force behind this book, was beautifully done. There were many points where I felt that gender discrimination was handled in a very elegant yet profound way that I don't see often. There is so much in this book that makes it a genuinely great read. I devoured the book in a couple of hours and was left feeling very satisfied with how everything played out in the end. Also, Elizabeth and Calvin’s relationship had my heart absolutely melting, and let’s not forget the absolute legend that is Six Thirty. I fell in love with all the characters and felt such a strong connection with each and every one of them, which is a very hard to accomplish. Despite all the good, there were a couple of personal issues I had with the book that kept it from being a 5 star. I will start of by saying I am bias when it comes to the topic I will be bringing up, and I understand that everyone will have a different opinion, and that is more than totally okay and welcomed. But I felt that there was a strong anti-religion message continued throughout the whole entirety of the story, specifically anti-Catholic. There were a lot of times that I felt like I was being ridiculed for my beliefs and a lot of the stereo types often circulated about the catholic church were very much present in the book. I will not deny that the things that occur in the book definitely do happen and are not right in ANY way. But if you are a person of faith, there is a lot said in the book that you will probably find very hurtful due to the point of view the author is coming from. I am a huge believer in the power behind science and how important it is to the betterment of everyone, but I also hold my religious beliefs at the same importance. I totally believe that you can rely on science AND God at the same time. Again, I understand where the author and the main character is coming from, and in no way invalidating their beliefs or experience. It just took away from the enjoyment I was having with the book so much so that I felt a need to comment on it. If you do not like the book then stop reading it and move on, but it is a point I want to acknowledge for those who are religious and want to read the book. Again, other than my problem with how the church is portrayed, the story is an empowering and inspiring tale of a women in STEM and had me feeling empowered by the end of it. I will definitely suggest this book to anyone who comes to me asking for a fun and witty read that will keep them from wanting to put it down.

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jessidbee's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring fast-paced

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

5.0

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jaxgirl007's review against another edition

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funny inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.75

I pick one word to start my review. The word I picked for 'Lessons in Chemistry' is: indomitable

Merriam Webster defines 'indomitable' as: incapable of being subdued

And, oh boy (or girl?), Elizabeth Zott will not be subdued. At first I struggled with her: sometimes I felt like...why is she SO intent on doing everything her way...this doesn't seem realistic? But I had come around to her way of thinking by the end. Because in most of the scenarios where I was hoping she might back down, she was not being treated respectfully. And I realized that sometimes I was uncomfortable with the fact that she would not accept the discrimination she faced...which often happens when someone is not being treated right. The person being discriminated against should stop complaining so that everyone can go back to be uncomfortable. But to stop the discrimination, you have to accept being uncomfortable so that you can insist that our society does better. I went into this thinking this might be some light chick-lit but instead it had a few very heavy topics with some funny moments interwoven.

The back 100 pages slowed down quite a bit for me, but overall it remains a good year for me so far reading wildly popular books since I did like this one in the end. I am a sucker for irreverant humor and I especially liked Mad...she's such a good egg (and I secretly would love to trace my Family Tree back to Nefertiti).

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kcarney86's review

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emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective sad fast-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

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eule's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.5

This book is an inspiring and brave novel about the fight against misogyny in the 1960s. Elizabeth Zott is a chemist scarred by rape, discrimination, loss, grief and loneliness. Still she advocates for women’s rights (her cooking show based on chemistry) and the truth with confidence and courage to expose the people (men) who wronged her.

Even though I highly respect this work of literature, I have to mention some aspects that I did not quite enjoy.

Firstly, the character perspectives change all the time all of a sudden which can be quite confusing (love Six-Thirty’s pov though).

Secondly, the main plot is revealed right in the beginning (the first couple chapters) which was kind of off-putting.

Furthermore, I perceived Elizabeth as to perfect. She always seems strong and confident and unapproachable.

And lastly, it seems like the book wanted to pursue to many plots. One being the „women’s rights in science and work - plot“, another being the „mystery about Calvin Evans - plot“ and just another one being the „how to be a family - plot“. It just seems like the novel should include every possible trope.

To conclude, I recommend this book as an educational and revolutionary novel about the rise of feminism.

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