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A review by literaryintersections
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
emotional
funny
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Honestly this book is hard to date. I devoured it, never wanted to put it down, but the content, the sexual assaults, the white feminism, the pacing all made it really hard to LOVE it.
I knew there was SA within the first 15% but goodness I didn’t know it was going to be that graphic or horrible to read. There should be a huge CW and it was one of the reasons why I didn’t want to read this. The misogyny and sexism she faces is horrible, and although I’m sure it’s realistic it’s actually hard to read. I also think the cover and marketing made this seem like a romance but it 100% is not - the Romance is there but so minimal and actually really sad because there is partner death. The romance parts are great but it is not a romance by any means. What this book is is a portrait of grief. Just absolute sadness beyond belief.
I would be remiss if I didn’t say that I cried. Some of the parts when she was talking about tv importance of motherhood and what women do, never letting anyone tell you you can’t do something. Putting yourself first, giving yourself a moment. As a mom, that shit was my catnip and I loved it. But I do wish it was more intersectional cuz the one Rosa Parks comment, as if to say “Lizzie can’t be racist!!! She supports the civil rights movement” was lazy imo.
And then there’s 6:30. Which like a talking dog???? Idk. I loved him and also I was like wtf.
The last thing I’ll say is that u have seen some folks say that Elizabeth is autistic but that actually is never stated and idk if the author has said that. I think she read autistic but it doesn’t feel like a story about autism is that makes sense. I’m going to seek out perspectives from autistic reviewers.
I knew there was SA within the first 15% but goodness I didn’t know it was going to be that graphic or horrible to read. There should be a huge CW and it was one of the reasons why I didn’t want to read this. The misogyny and sexism she faces is horrible, and although I’m sure it’s realistic it’s actually hard to read. I also think the cover and marketing made this seem like a romance but it 100% is not - the Romance is there but so minimal and actually really sad because there is partner death. The romance parts are great but it is not a romance by any means. What this book is is a portrait of grief. Just absolute sadness beyond belief.
I would be remiss if I didn’t say that I cried. Some of the parts when she was talking about tv importance of motherhood and what women do, never letting anyone tell you you can’t do something. Putting yourself first, giving yourself a moment. As a mom, that shit was my catnip and I loved it. But I do wish it was more intersectional cuz the one Rosa Parks comment, as if to say “Lizzie can’t be racist!!! She supports the civil rights movement” was lazy imo.
And then there’s 6:30. Which like a talking dog???? Idk. I loved him and also I was like wtf.
The last thing I’ll say is that u have seen some folks say that Elizabeth is autistic but that actually is never stated and idk if the author has said that. I think she read autistic but it doesn’t feel like a story about autism is that makes sense. I’m going to seek out perspectives from autistic reviewers.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Grief, Death, Death of parent, and Sexism