A novel lesson in 1960s chemistry

Abstract

Lessons in chemistry are lessons in life In Bonnie Garmus ’s debut novel Lessons in Chemistry , protagonist Elizabeth Zott makes an observation about studying chemistry that many Newscripts readers can appreciate: “Because when women understand chemistry, they begin to understand how things work.” Zott’s remark isn’t just about science. She is referring to her own life experiences as a woman trying to do chemistry during a particularly sexist time—the early 1960s. “I wanted to tell her story, about a woman trying to be taken seriously in that time frame,” Garmus says. After being forced out of both her lab and her chemistry career, Zott reluctantly agrees to host a TV cooking show. The show ends up a huge hit, and Zott uses her platform to not just teach the mainly female audience about chemistry but also how traditional gender roles are holding women back. Garmus tells Newscripts that she