Lessons in Chemistry: A Novel

Lessons in Chemistry: A Novel by Bonnie Garmus

Title:  Lessons in Chemistry: A Novel

Author:  Bonnie Garmus

Publisher:  Doubleday / Random House Group
Genre: Women's Fiction
Format:  Kindle
No. of Pages: 394
Date of US Publication:  5 April, 2022
My Rating:  5 Stars

My Thoughts 

This book reminded me to not judge a book by its cover - when I originally saw this one, I didn’t like the cover, and figured it was romantic fluff and wasn’t interested whenever I saw it (in my goodreads, instagram, and facebook reading groups). Shame on me (or, really,  for me), because I could have discovered this amazing book months ago. I loved this novel; it drew me in, broke my heart, put it back together again, made me cry, and made me absolutely love the cast of characters in this wonderful, wonderful story. 

Thoughts while reading - 

• I completely adored Six Thirty right from his entrance into the novel. He’s up there in my favorite fictional dogs list. 

• This reminds me a bit, writing wise, of John Irving’s writing. 

• I will never again decide to not read a book, based on a more cutesy casual cover. 

An absolute recommendation. 

Description

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK • Meet Elizabeth Zott: a “formidable, unapologetic and inspiring” (PARADE) scientist in 1960s California whose career takes a detour when she becomes the unlikely star of a beloved TV cooking show in this novel that is “irresistible, satisfying and full of fuel. It reminds you that change takes time and always requires heat” (The New York Times Book Review).

A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: The New York Times, Washington Post, NPR, Oprah Daily, Newsweek, GoodReads

"A unique heroine ... you'll find yourself wishing she wasn’t fictional." —Seattle Times

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 1960s 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. 

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