This book took me the longest time to finish this year—a whole three whole weeks. I don’t know, maybe it was just a reading slump, but this book was worth it. All 386 pages were worth it.
The book tells the story of Elizabeth Zott, a chemist in the 1960s. Imagine being a chemist when women were expected to stay at home and couldn’t stand up for themselves. Those were such interesting times, and this book illustrated that.
Many parts of this book made me wonder if many of today’s women would have survived if we had lived in the 1960s. It made me appreciate the efforts of the women who fought for the opportunities that we have now as women. Without those efforts, we wouldn’t be able to enjoy what we do now, such as working, speaking up for ourselves, and having equal rights. There is still more work to be done, but we have come a long way, and I am grateful for that.
This was a story about chemistry in the real world and in love—Elizabeth and Calvin’s love was like real chemistry, the chemistry between two people.
I love how the author has included some bits of her personal life in the book. I also appreciate the research that went into being factual about real chemistry.
The book made me think about the power of the media, especially back then. People believed everything they read in newspapers, heard on the radio and saw on television. I wonder how true this still is in the age of exploding technologies and social media. Who sets the agenda, and why?
I really loved this book. I will live by this quote: “Courage is the root of change, and change is what we’re chemically designed to do.”
Here are some more of my favourite quotes from the book:
“I have been begging my entire life, I’m sick of it.”
“Some things need to stay in the past because the past is the only place they made sense.”
“It is not your imagination. Most people are awful.”
And, oh, I really loved Six Thirty. It made me think about my dog, JT, who is at my parents’ home. I miss him. Why is he there and not with me? That’s a story for another day.
Madeline was a sweetheart and so was Harriet.
An easy 5* book!
Read this if:
- You enjoy science fiction.
- Love food and would like to learn its chemistry
- Women who are certain about who they are.
Happy reading. Until next time,
Jane 🙂