Lessons in Chemistry

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 scientist who falls in love with her mind. True chemistry results — but like science, life is unpredictable. A few years later Elizabeth Zott finds herself not only a single mother but the reluctant star of a cooking show called Supper at Six, where her unusual approach to cooking proves revolutionary. Bonnie Garmus's irresistible wit makes this a novel about a woman before her time — and the world that couldn't quite keep up. Rating: 4.5/5 stars.