Lessons in Chemistry: A Novel
[{'review_meta': 'Reviewed in the United States on May 2, 2022', 'review_star': 'a-icon a-icon-star a-star-5 review-rating', 'review_body': 'Thank you, Bonnie Garmus.\nAs a 69 year old woman inventor in the field of chemical extraction, every page of your book was a love letter of support, of being seen. Thank you for putting your life into telling this story—mine, and so many many many other women’s.'}, {'review_meta': 'Reviewed in the United States on April 28, 2022', 'review_star': 'a-icon a-icon-star a-star-5 review-rating', 'review_body': 'I rarely ever review books. I’m not sure why my opinion of a book would have any meaning for someone else. I prefer thrillers or a good mystery. But I loved this book. At points I laughed out loud. Unheard of. I want a sequel. I want to know where everything goes from here. Women of a certain age will relate. Read and enjoy.'}, {'review_meta': 'Reviewed in the United States on April 29, 2022', 'review_star': 'a-icon a-icon-star a-star-5 review-rating', 'review_body': "I really laughed during some portions of this book, but it also brought back memories of a woman entering a man's profession in the 60's. In my case it was Economics. I was called in to the Department Head and asked if I baked pies. Upon graduation, I applied for a city job I was told that I would be the inspector of every construction toilet on the inspection site. This seems ridiculous now, but I totally understood what Elizabeth went through. Well written and a very quick read. Ann B."}, {'review_meta': 'Reviewed in the United States on April 12, 2022', 'review_star': 'a-icon a-icon-star a-star-2 review-rating', 'review_body': "I was lured by the great reviews and I am still scratching my head about that. Maybe this book was supposed to be a farce and I just missed the joke. The book is completely one-dimensional with not a single nuanced character. The heroes are brilliant. The villains are evil. The protagonist is brilliant AND beautiful with a zero social IQ, which we are supposed to find believable. The 4-year-old is not just precocious, but reads Norman Mailer. And don't even get me started on the dog. Like I said, maybe I just didn't get the joke."}, {'review_meta': 'Reviewed in the United States on April 10, 2022', 'review_star': 'a-icon a-icon-star a-star-5 review-rating', 'review_body': "I haven't enjoyed a book this much in years, and I read A LOT! It's witty, clever, thought-provoking and so original. A protagonist you root for right from the first page. Though there are significant bumps on the road, the main character's logic, goodness, honesty and humanity shine through. All this and many laugh out loud moments as well. Don't miss this!"}, {'review_meta': 'Reviewed in the United States on May 2, 2022', 'review_star': 'a-icon a-icon-star a-star-5 review-rating', 'review_body': 'A brilliant woman barging into the “boys’ only” club of science in the 1950’s. A funny, poignant commentary on disrupting societal assumptions through the medium of afternoon TV. A precocious daughter, a hell-yes down to earth neighbor, a Fairy Godmother,and a few good men create a new style of family and crash through the glass ceiling.'}, {'review_meta': 'Reviewed in the United States on April 14, 2022', 'review_star': 'a-icon a-icon-star a-star-2 review-rating', 'review_body': "What a disappointment! I gave this book two stars rather than one because I didn't finish it. After reading all the rave reviews I decided that maybe it would have earned another star if I had slogged through to the end.\n\nThe portion I read reminded me of the screwball comedies of the 1930s and 1940s. In these movies, think of Bringing Up Baby (1938) as an example, there are numerous farcical situations that point to social problems, gendered roles, or whatever. In these stories the aim is for the oddities to create a comedy and some romantic humor.\n\nWhereas the characters in this book are as farcical as those in the screwballs, the book wasn't funny. The characters and the plot all felt too artificial and contrived. If the author was trying to be humorous, she failed with this reader. It all fell flat.\n\nToo bad, integrating the feminist ideas in the book with the scientific interface between chemistry and cooking seemed like it would create a strikingly compelling foundation for a story."}, {'review_meta': 'Reviewed in the United States on April 15, 2022', 'review_star': 'a-icon a-icon-star a-star-5 review-rating', 'review_body': 'Simply wonderful, laugh out loud like it says in the blurb, just a very welcome comic novel. It features a dog named Six Thirty (for the time he was found homeless), a chemist whose ambitions are thwarted at every turn in this story set in the Fifties (with Sinatra on the turn table) but remains true to her self and eventually prevails.'}, {'review_meta': 'Reviewed in the United States on May 11, 2022', 'review_star': 'a-icon a-icon-star a-star-5 review-rating', 'review_body': "I feel like Bonnie garmus wrote this book for me. I am in my early 70's and lived through these years. The author painted a picture of the times that young women would have a hard time believing. And included lots of laugh out loud moments.\nNow finding another book to follow is going to be a challenge."}, {'review_meta': 'Reviewed in the United States on April 19, 2022', 'review_star': 'a-icon a-icon-star a-star-5 review-rating', 'review_body': 'Elizabeth Zott is the perfect quirky, determined character that you long to know. The story was beautifully laid out with humor, excellent characters, and depth. Enjoyed every minute of it.'}]