Lessons in Chemistry

Lessons in Chemistry is not normally the sort of work I would ever consider reading, given its garish cover and endorsement from popular publications describing it as ‘uplifting’ and ‘feel-good’. However, just as its likable heroine Elizabeth Zott succeeds in changing societal perceptions about a woman's role in 1960s America, so it is good to challenge one's own preconceived ideas. Lessons in Chemistry is eminently readable and it is hard for the reader not to root for Zott. Most people like outsiders or underdogs, particularly if their actions are rooted in (often Darwinian) logic. Such an approach to doing things is eminently more appealing than a fall back to the notion that we do it like this because it's always been done this way. Think of it as the dialectic between tradition and rational innovation. Zott's approach to cooking - as a form of science - also appealed. Where I felt Lessons in Chemistry was let down, though, was in its lack of balance. I understand the motion of Garmus to craft a bestseller, but I would personally have liked more food science and less mawkishness. Zott's ‘knowledgeable’ dog, the irritatingly named Six-Thirty, was particularly off-putting. Garmus does make a good case for strong women living their dream and defying convention in order to do so. Lessons in Chemistry will sell, but I would be unlikely specifically to reread or recommend: six out of ten.

By Bonnie Garmus