Lessons in Chemistry
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus Book Review
*Spoiler Warning for the entire novel
I’ve been on such a pleasant book binge lately!
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus is the latest book I’ve read in an attempt to explore more adult literature. I’ve really found myself enjoying realistic and upmarket fiction lately and Lessons in Chemistry is certainly no exception.
The novel revolves around chemist Elizabeth Zott, unusual for a woman in early 1960’s America. It starts with a prologue-esque chapter detailing Elizabeth’s life as a university student and why her Master’s in chemistry got derailed.
From there, Elizabeth meets the eccentric and brilliant Calvin Evans—rowing fan and scientist extraordinaire.
Calvin is quick to find that Elizabeth has both beauty and brains. They fall deeply in love thereafter. Their romance is short, but passionate, ending in tragedy with Elizabeth in mourning and pregnant after Calvin’s unexpected passing.
The remainder of the book details Elizabeth blossoming as a mother, unexpectedly becoming the host of a TV cooking show with a methodical spin, and her slow and agonizing climb to better herself and her education in a world that wants to keep women firmly in the kitchen and out of the laboratory.
This book as a whole I really enjoyed. The characters were interesting and I got invested in Elizabeth’s story—her fight against sexism and gender inequality was as heartbreaking as it was inspiring, especially in the field of science.
One of the best characters was Elizabeth’s dog, Six-Thirty, a notable character in his own right that added to the story more than I ever could have envisioned.
I really only have three flaws with this story. One, Elizabeth spends the rest of the novel lamenting on how much she loved Calvin and how beautiful and profound their relationship was. Such an important part of the story should have been longer. I felt like I just got to know Elizabeth and Calvin together when Calvin suddenly dies, leaving Elizabeth alone.
I understand that the story revolves around Elizabeth and Elizabeth only, not on her romance, but I still felt like their chapters together were too short for me to feel any kind of sadness for Elizabeth.
When Calvin died I was surprised, but not upset—a crucial difference. It made me less sympathetic towards Elizabeth because I never had the time to grow attached to them as a couple, something that I could have done with a little more time.
Additionally, our last scene with Calvin shows him intentionally going behind Elizabeth’s back to help her out at work—something she explicitly asks him not to do over and over again.
While a kind gesture, it was misplaced and then bam! He dies. Calvin and Elizabeth needed more pages together to create the emotional attachment Garmus was trying to achieve.
The pacing of Lessons in Chemistry in general was off. The beginning with Calvin and Elizabeth’s love story was too short, the middle was way way too…well, middling and long with not much changing, and then the ending was so quick it was like a blow to the face.
The middle needed to be cut down in order to give the beginning relationship and the ending epiphanies room to breathe and exist.
Second, this book will make you believe that men are the most vile living things on the planet. They are all satirically evil and predatory. Almost every man Elizabeth encounters is a jealous piece-of-crap with the fragilest of egos and a high percentage of being a sexual abuser.
While I don’t think men as a whole were very forgiving, kind, or understanding in 1950's-1960's America, the sheer amount of despicable men was almost unbelievable to me.
There are…two men in the whole story that are sort of decent? And even then, not really, as one is a lying priest and the other is a cowardly fool who watches terrible things unfold around him and does nothing to stop it.
I get that Bonnie Garmus was trying to make a point, but the point was too hamfisted and brought me out of the story on several occasions.
Third, Elizabeth is very progressive for this time (desires working in a STEM field, doesn’t want children, never wants to get married, etc) in an implausible sense.
Elizabeth Zott has the mindset of a woman in 2025, not 1955. Not that any woman couldn’t have thought those things, but Elizabeth feels so strongly about these modern values and refuses to accept any kind of help, even though one of her main characteristics is being logical.
You would think a highly logical woman would accept help when needed in order to improve her own life versus hanging onto her own ego.
Despite my complaints, I still really liked Lessons in Chemistry. The flaws were there, but the story was enjoyable, fun, and galvanizing in a way that made reading it a positive experience. My favorite part (other than the POV’s from Six-Thirty) was Elizabeth treating her cooking show like a scientific procedure.
This was such a cool and fascinating way to subvert the idea that women only belong in the kitchen that I found both clever and entertaining. I wish the show existed in real life!
Recommendation: Not the most amazing novel you will ever read, but having a main female character’s focus be on herself and her love of science over the love of a man was a breath of fresh air that I won’t be forgetting any time soon. If you like clever women, cleverer plot points, and even cleverer dogs, then you will fall in love with this story like I did.
Score: 7/10
