A review by gemloukay
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

Spoilers ahead! Elizabeth Zott is a chemist struggling in the sexist world of 1950s/60s. She is beautiful and intelligent and won’t accept that she can’t have what the men in her life have.  When she falls for fellow chemist Calvin Evans and subsequently falls pregnant out of wedlock (despite him asking to marry her she refuses), she is further shunned by society. Unfortunately Calvin dies in an accident and she takes a job teaching the nation to cook (since cooking is chemistry after all!), which makes her a nationally acclaimed tv personality.  Their dog, Six Thirty, is a personality in himself and blames himself for Calvin’s death, so watches out for Elizabeth and her daughter Mad. I loved his inner monologue and how he was a character that had real thoughts but couldn’t voice any if them! 

The book deals with sexism, particularly the struggle for women to be seen as equals in science, alongside grief, the struggles of motherhood and the need for women to support each other both then and now. If you don’t like releasing about feminism, you’ll hate it. Thankfully for me I was brought up by strong women and men who supported them, so I found it to be an inspiring read. Some of the science was a bit simplistic for a supposedly brilliant chemist but then, unlike the women in this story, I was lucky enough to be able to study it at university so maybe I’m a bit more educated in the subject than most! An inspiring story and a brilliant debut novel. 
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