Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

52 reviews

peachybee53's review against another edition

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funny hopeful inspiring fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

This book is honestly just a bit of fun. It is a highly dramatised reflection on how women are viewed and treated as subservient, incapable & good for only one thing. The protagonist, Elizabeth Zott, is hilarious, determined and gutsy. 

I would advise anyone with a history of sexual assault to tread lightly with this one, but otherwise think the dry humour and darkness balance each other out well. The way Zott & Calvin fell in love gave me 'the ick,' and I thought that Calvin's family storyline and the rushed ending took away from it a bit.

Favourite quotes:

"Courage is the root of change—and change is what we’re chemically designed to do."

"I think [religion] teaches us that nothing is really our fault; that something or someone else is pulling the strings; the ultimately, we're not to blame for the way things are; that to improve things, we should pray. But the truth is, we are very much responsible for the badness in the world. And we have the power to fix it."

"It was her confidence, the certainty of who she was. She sowed it like a seed until it took root in others."

"Having a baby, Elizabeth realized, was a little like living with a visitor from a distant planet. There was a certain amount of give and take as the visitor learned your ways and you learned theirs, but gradually their ways faded and your ways stuck. Which she found regrettable. Because unlike adults, her visitor never tired of even the smallest discovery; always saw the magic in the extraordinary."
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maddalenacesco's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

a woman in stem cooked in this one… heh…
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pdiaz's review against another edition

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emotional informative inspiring reflective fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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brieri's review against another edition

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emotional funny inspiring sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I loved reading this book a lot. Somehow it’s funny, sad, frustrating and hopeful all at the same time. The perspectives of many characters are considered - even the brilliant dog - and you will feel deeply for everyone in the story. I haven’t read anything like this before, I cannot recommend it enough! 
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tehstorm's review against another edition

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hopeful inspiring reflective fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes

4.5

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chrysanthxmum's review against another edition

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emotional inspiring sad medium-paced

3.75

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pearlmijohns's review against another edition

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emotional funny inspiring fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

A fun read though occasionally the very 21st century takes broke my emersion a little. But gotta love an undiagnosed autistic female mc and I had a good time reading it. 
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kllrbls's review against another edition

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dark inspiring sad medium-paced

3.5

I enjoyed the
biological mom
plot, but I wished that it had been revealed in a more show-don’t-tell manner, rather than having everything spelled out in the last few chapters. I also found Elizabeth's use of chemistry jargon to be sooo extra--it's as if she assumed it was all general knowledge. However, still an interesting read. The relationship plot was particularly exciting.
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vanleeuwenjulie22's review against another edition

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  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No

4.25

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reyap30's review against another edition

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emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

 Read this for my company's book club. Fun take on feminism in the 60s. Was able to connect with the characters. I'm not a pet person but this book had me rooting for the dog.

Felt like the commentary on religion didn't need to be addressed. The trauma these characters faced was very downplayed in terms of how these events could shape their choices and personality.

Wished the ending plot point was expanded on but in all, the happy ending was satisfying. 
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