Lessons in Chemistry: A Novel

Group enjoyed the read and good discussion on sexism and struggle as a women to be heard in work place .

After reading several thoughtful negative reviews I had decided Lessons in Chemistry was probably not for me. Then my book club chose it as our October pick so I decided to go ahead and read it for myself. I have to say as a Christian it saddens me that this book is so popular with it’s clear message that atheists are the smart ones and anyone who believes in God is at best naive and at worst corrupt or just plain stupid. The ever present atheist themes aside I found the novel overall mildly amusing and enjoyed Elizabeth and Calvin’s sweet romance. The story itself demonstrated well how women in science were not taken seriously in that time period. I did think Elizabeth’s constant feminist lectures a bit unnecessary.

Book #62: Abby & Ro both nominated, discussed via Zoom!

I’ve had this one on my TBR for a little bit and after getting it in a BOTM box and the tv show airing on Apple TV, I decided i needed to finally crack it open. And I am so glad I did! I truly enjoyed this story. I am definitely partial to romances and fantasies but I always really enjoy good historical fiction. Reason being is they are entertaining while also telling a piece of history and they are always so important to hear in my opinion. In this one we are shown a time when woman were seen only for their ability to have children and to take care of the house and kids. They weren’t given remotely the same rights as men and for those that were independent, strong and smart, they were abused for it. Elizabeth zott’s story was a riveting one and one I definitely recommend reading. I thought the whole plot was entertaining and I’m very excited to see how it was adapted for tv. My only flaw was the sporadic perspectives. I understood the purpose but it did make it a little difficult to follow at times but otherwise, I loved it!

I loved how dedicated this character was to her profession, and I hope science can be available to every person who is interested and motivated to discover.