Lessons in Chemistry

My friend Kate bought this book at the airport for her trip to Edmonton and handed it on to me when she was done. I devoured it the day after she headed home.

That a scientist had to resort to becoming a television cooking instructor to make a living in the early 1960s should hurt everyone’s heart a little. That she can affect change in so many incremental ways on everyone she connects to is glorious. I was smitten with the Asperger-ry couple and delighted with the overlay of feminist themes onto a time frame that my mother had to… show more.

This book is absolutely worth the hype. The main character, Elizabeth Zott, won my heart by the way she endures the trials of 1960s American sexism, never gives up, and never betrays her moral compass. A triumphant story—I could not put this book down, which was a problem because I was under a big deadline at the time. (Don’t tell my manager.)

I was instantly hooked. This book is pure delight. We follow the twists and turns of Elizabeth Zott’s life in the fifties to the seventies in the USA.

It unfolds against a background of misogyny and female stereotyping. Talented scientist Elizabeth is disregarded by male colleagues. There are plenty of real-life examples of discrimination against women in science, e.g., Rosalind Franklin and Joselyn Bell Burnell. Cookery is indeed chemistry. When Elizabeth presents a cookery show that treats cookery as chemistry, she connects to an eager audience.

How we cook with love matters, and the chemistry of relationships is strong in… show more.

This book was recommended to me by a friend. OMG, I loved, loved, loved the audio. Though in a hurry to get home, at crucial moments, I found myself driving around the block a number of times, my need for the end of the chapter far exceeding the worry of wasting gas. 

But oh, fascinating Elizabeth Zot is so worth it! 

An outwardly tough cookie who earned her way through the school of hard knocks to start a women’s movement, simply be taken seriously as a scientist in a man’s world. I was rooting for her every step of the… show more.

I loved this book; I think because my mother is in the generation of women this book is about. Like the main character, my mother was smart and multitalented, with a lot to offer. But she came of age, got married, and had kids before women’s lib, and her life choices were greatly circumscribed. When she was dissatisfied with her life, the doctors prescribed valium.

I hope with this intro I’m not making the book sound depressing because it definitely is not. It’s a lot of fun. The main character faces all of these same obstacles but heroically overcomes them.… show more.

This book contained everything I love in a novel: a sympathetic and unforgettable hero and a story that’s funny, original, and often surprising.

Elizabeth Zott is a beautiful woman and a gifted scientist, and I could feel her frustration as she tried to compete in the male-dominated professional world of the early 1960s. I cheered her on when she met her soulmate, fellow researcher Calvin, and abandoned her lonely existence.

When Elizabeth later ended up hosting a popular TV cooking show, where she taught her female fans how to break out of the stereotypical housewife rut to become modern women,… show more.

A historical novel about the 1950s that is infused with contemporary feminist principles, this popular book’s plot takes surprising twists and turns in describing the admirable personal life and career of a woman chemist who struggles to overcome assault, discrimination, and misogyny.

Her experiences in the workforce ring true for anyone who has confronted the idiocies of prejudice and bureaucracy. I particularly enjoyed the many amusing perceptions about human flaws and failings that are shared by the characters and the narrator. I helped start a book club to discuss this book.

I immediately fell in love with Bonnie Garmus’s protagonist, Elizabeth Zott, the fearless, fantastic, and atypically charming chemist who rails against the patriarchy by being brilliant at her job and steamrolling norms and stereotypes in everything she does.

Despite being a work of fiction, I loved this book for its compelling narrative that illustrates beyond a doubt how difficult it has traditionally been for women to reach their full economic and professional potential in the labor market and beyond.  

I hold this book close to my heart. Its unique blend of science, humor, and human resilience left an indelible mark on me.

The book's masterful balance between romance and tragedy offered an escape, pulling me into a whirlwind of laughter and tears. It wasn't just a read; it was a profound exploration that mirrored my own experiences of resilience.

This book, with its deeply touching narrative, has become a cherished part of my personal library.

I did not expect this book to be a road trip book. But my wife said she wanted to listen to it, so we did on a long drive to and from Colorado. I was wrong. Who would have guessed that a debut novel about a chemist who becomes a 1960s star of a television cooking show would be so captivating?

Garmus does a wonderful job of making two science geeks really human and likable. It also brought a new realization of what it must have been like for women in the era in which I grew up. Her story… show more.