BOOK REVIEW | LESSONS IN CHEMISTRY BY BONNIE GARMUS

Feminism | Dark Humor | Resilience | 1960’s | Heartwarming

From the Cover

Chemist Elizabeth Zott is not your average woman. In fact, Elizabeth Zott would be the first to point out that there is no such thing as an average woman. But it’s the early 1960’s and her all-male team at Hastings Research Institute takes a very unscientific view of equality. Except for one: Calvin Evans, the lonely, brilliant, Nobel Prize— nominated grudge holder who falls in love with—of all things—her mind. True chemistry results.

Like science, though, life is unpredictable. Which is why a few years later Elizabeth Zott finds herself not only a single mother but also the reluctant star of America’s most beloved cooking show, Supper at Six. Elizabeth’s unusual approach to cooking (“combine one tablespoon of acetic acid with a pinch of sodium chloride”) proves revolutionary. Because as it turns out, Elizabeth Zott isn’t just teaching women to cook. She’s daring to change the status quo.

Laugh-out-loud funny, shrewdly observant, and studded with a dazzling cast of supporting characters, Lessons in Chemistry is as original and vibrant as it’s protagonist.

Bookish Thoughts

I LOVED this book. I cannot stress that enough. I’ve seen other women carrying this book— at my daughter’s orthodontist, at the coffee shop, and even contemplating it in the bookstore. Despite my dislike of small talk, I am compelled to tell them how good it is. As they smile, I say, “No, really. That is an excellent book. You will love it.”

I’m paying it forward. My sister did the same for me— texted me and said, “You have to read this book. I’m won’t tell you a thing about it because I don’t want to rob you of one ounce of your enjoyment but trust me.”

At first, I was turned off by the cover. I worried I was getting into some kind of empty but enjoyable romance novel (not my taste). Perhaps the editors did this on purpose. The protagonist in the book is constantly fighting to be seen for her intelligence and accomplishments rather than her easy-on-the-eyes packaging. In a way, the cover of this book does the same thing. It masks the truly meaningful, smart, important ideas inside. And in doing so, you are forced to overcome your bias and knee-jerk reaction— dismissing this book as nothing but fluff.

Deeper Dive: Three Things I LOVED about Lessons in Chemistry

First: Six-Thirty, the dog, the hero: At the end of the cover blurb, the idea is introduced that Elizabeth is supported by a dazzling array of supporting characters. This is the greatest understatement of all times. While I adore Elizabeth, the other characters in this book (even the villains) make the novel sing. And at the very top of a fully developed heap is SIX-THIRTY, Elizabeth’s faithful canine companion. Six-Thirty is in many, if not most of, the scenes, and he is perhaps the most fantastic canine literary character of all time. Six-Thirty has a rich inner life, deep thoughts, unfailing devotion, a strong sense of purpose, wry wit, fears, hopes, and dreams. The fact that I will never meet Six-Thirty in real life is a crushing blow. I would choose a walk in the woods with Six-Thirty over a romp with Mr. Darcy any day, and that is saying something, my friends.

Elizabeth talks to Six-Thirty has if he is a person. She teaches him hundreds (thousands?) of words, and he understands all of the human conversation happening around him. Here’s one of my favorite examples of Elizabeth treating Six-Thirty like the sentient being that he is.

“Library?” Elizabeth asked Six-Thirty. “I’m thinking you might enjoy Moby Dick. It’s a story about how humans continually underestimate other life-forms. At their peril.”

I have thought about this scene with Six-Thirty visiting a lost loved one at a graveyard many times since reading it. It is the definition of poignant.

“This is how he communicated with humans on the other side. Maybe it worked, maybe it didn’t. He used the same technique with the creature growing inside Elizabeth. Hello, Creature, he transmitted as he pressed his ear to Elizabeth’s belly. It’s me, Six-Thirty. I’m the dog.

Whenever he initiated contact, he always reintroduced himself. From his own lessons, he knew that repetition was important. The key was not to overdue the repetition—not to make it so tiresome that it had the inverse effect and caused the student to forget. That was called boredom. According to Elizabeth, boredom was what was wrong with education today.

Creature, he’d communicated last week, Six-Thirty here. He waited for a response. Sometimes the creature extended a small fist, which he found thrilling; other times he heard it singing. But yesterday he’d finally broken the news—”

Second: Men Who Understand a Woman’s Worth: While there are MANY examples of horrible and unfortunately realistically written misogyny in this novel, there are also some shiny examples of feminist men. I am HERE for these wonderful characters. For example, Dr. Mason, Elizabeth’s obstetrician. In this scene, Calvin tries maneuvering Elizabeth onto an all-male crew team.

“A woman in a men’s eight?” Dr. Mason had said, readjusting his cap over his crew cut. He’s been a Marine and hated it. But he’d kept the hairstyle.

“She’s good,” Calvin said. “Very tough.”

Mason nodded. These days he was an obstetrician. He already knew how tough women could be.

Third: The Number of Times I Actually LOL’d: There are so many themes in this book that I spoke to me. Feminism, Belief in Yourself When the World Tells You Otherwise, Babies… Not Cute, Just Horrible, Women Supporting Women, Women Knocking Off Other Women’s Crowns, Cooking Well and Eating Well, Soul Mates, Women and Men CAN Be Friends… the list goes on, and on. However, the real gift I received from this book was the chuckles, snorts, and bwah-ha-ha’s that spontaneously erupted from me while reading it. Most of my sticky notes are on pages that I also wrote: So funny, hilarious, and laughed so hard!

This was one of my biggest chuckles. It happens after Elizabeth realizes a problem with the name on her baby’s birth certificate.

The only problem was getting Mad’s name changed to Madeline required a trip to city hall, and once there a form demanded a marriage certificate and several other details Elizabeth wasn’t very excited to share. “You know what?” Elizabeth said, meeting Six-Thirty on the stairs outside the building. “We’ll just keep this between ourselves. She’s legally Mad, but we’ll just call her Madeline and no one witll be the wiser.”

Legally Mad, Six-Thirty thought. What could possibly go wrong?

Too funny! Like my sister, I don’t want to steal an ounce of your enjoyment of reading this wonderful book, so I won’t share any more quotes. I just wanted you to have a taste, so you’d rush out and get this book for yourself!

No, seriously. Go now. Order this book. And after you’ve read it, tell someone else that they MUST!

XOXO,

Mariah