Review by _pauline - Lessons in Chemistry

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_pauline 's review for:

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

4.75

emotional funny sad medium-paced

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

This is one of those books that will never sound as good when you try to explain them as they are when you’re reading them. I was told this is about a woman who hosts a science-y cooking show & fights for equality; I could tell you it’s also about a dog and religion and men in positions of power and found family and grief. It’s also really funny, and heartbreakingly sad. But none of that really does it justice.

So it’s not at all what I expected but so much better (once I got past the first 75-100 pages, which is why it’s not a 5 star book for me). I loved the characters, especially Six-Thirty.

I was so relieved that Six-Thirty didn’t die at the end, only to find out that Friday (the inspiration behind him) is dead and the author‘s other dog, 99, died 2 weeks ago?

😭

2 of the many parts I underlined:

Six-Thirty sensed her death wish, and because of it, had been on suicide watch all week. The only problem was, he wanted to die himself. Worse, he suspected she was in the same position— that despite her own deathly desires, she felt beholden to keep him alive. What a mess devotion was.

I think [religion] lets us off the hook. I think it teaches us that nothing is really our fault; that something or someone else is pulling the strings; that ultimately, we're not to blame for the way things are; that to improve things, we should pray. But the truth is, we are very much responsible for the badness in the world.

Content Warnings