"Lessons in Chemistry" by Bonnie Garmus by https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023 USO OVBC - Feel free to use this space before/during/after our virtual meeting. Add your responses. Create your own posts (favorite quotes, book themes, additional topics, links, questions, etc.). en-us 2023-04-12 14:11:16 UTC 2025-10-17 03:14:59 UTC hello@padlet.com https://padlet.net/icons/png/2697.png Lessons in Chemistry cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551695200 Bonnie Garmus - Author Website]]> 2023-04-12 14:16:27 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551695200 Bonnie Garmus: Bio cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551698576 2023-04-12 14:18:34 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551698576 cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551698680 2023-04-12 14:18:39 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551698680 cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551698813 Instagram]]> 2023-04-12 14:18:44 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551698813 Character Descriptions cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551726931 2023-04-12 14:37:25 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551726931 Book Summary cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551728135 2023-04-12 14:38:17 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551728135 Discussion Questions cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551731390 2023-04-12 14:40:18 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551731390 DQs (cont.) cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551732480 2023-04-12 14:41:01 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551732480 What is your overall impression of Elizabeth as a protagonist? Why was chemistry the right career choice for her? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551748805 2023-04-12 14:53:01 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551748805 She enters a male-dominated field and it’s a constant uphill battle. Have you ever worked in a field like that and/or been in a similar situation? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551749142 2023-04-12 14:53:16 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551749142 How did her unusual upbringing and violent relationship with her parents impact how she approached relationships as an adult? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551749488 2023-04-12 14:53:32 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551749488 What did you think about the eventual romance between Elizabeth and Calvin? Why were they a good fit, aka, full of ‘true chemistry’? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551749746 2023-04-12 14:53:44 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551749746 Calvin proposes but Elizabeth says no. What was behind her reasoning for turning down the proposal? Do you agree or disagree with her? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551750112 2023-04-12 14:54:00 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551750112 Why do you suspect the author decided to include the viewpoint of their dog, Six-Thirty? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551750392 2023-04-12 14:54:12 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551750392 Let’s talk about Calvin’s death and how that changed everything for Elizabeth. cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551750613 2023-04-12 14:54:23 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551750613 When Elizabeth finds out she is pregnant, she is devastated. She never planned to become a mother and with Calvin’s death, she’s now all alone to raise their child. In what ways did motherhood surprise Elizabeth? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551750870 2023-04-12 14:54:35 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551750870 The story features a great supporting cast from the neighbor Harriet (who eventually becomes like an extended family member) to Elizabeth’s producer Walter (who becomes her best friend). Who was your favorite supporting character and why? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551751143 2023-04-12 14:54:48 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551751143 Elizabeth Zott had no formal education, and yet she was able to self-educate, thanks to her library card. With the advent of technology, the library almost seems outdated, though many would argue that the library is more important than ever. Do you think libraries are important? If so, why? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551751347 2023-04-12 14:54:59 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551751347 Why did Elizabeth agree to host the cooking show? Why did the show resonate with women across the country? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551751600 2023-04-12 14:55:10 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551751600 Why does Elizabeth always wear a pencil in her hair? Is it a weapon or is it a symbol of strength? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551751778 2023-04-12 14:55:19 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551751778 What are your thoughts about the revelation that Calvin’s real life mother was the one behind the funds to Elizabeth’s scientific research? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551752068 2023-04-12 14:55:33 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551752068 What did you think about the ending overall? What happens next for Elizabeth? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551752407 2023-04-12 14:55:46 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551752407 Did you feel like you learned any lessons or anything else from reading the novel? Do you have any favorite passages or scenes you would like to discuss? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551752659 2023-04-12 14:55:55 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551752659 The late 1950s into the early 1960s was supposedly a halcyon time in American history. But was it? The war was over and men returned home to take back the jobs women had done in their absence. As a result, women were pushed into more subservient roles. What influencesplayed a part in encouraging women to accept their place as only in the home? And why, in today’s world, when women are in the workforce in record numbers, are they still doing most of the housework and child-raising? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551752947 2023-04-12 14:56:09 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551752947 Elizabeth refuses to accept limits placed on her by society and insists that others also ignore those limits. How do each of those characters ultimately rise to that challenge? And in what ways have you or others been limited by societal norms? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551753236 2023-04-12 14:56:22 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551753236 In the book, rowing is a metaphor on how Elizabeth sees a better society: that no one person in the boat is more important than the other. Have you ever participated in anything—work, sports, community efforts—where everyone must “row as one” in order to succeed? What are the hurdles people must overcome in order to reach the point where “it all feels easy”? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551753544 2023-04-12 14:56:36 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551753544 Six-Thirty is amazed by not only how often humans lie to each other, but how poorly they communicate overall. He struggles to understand the word “smart,” finding its very definition unintelligent. What does “smart” actually mean to you? Have you ever thought about what your pet might be trying to teach you? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551753789 2023-04-12 14:56:45 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551753789 The dictionary first defines faith as “the complete trust or confidence in someone or something” and “a belief in religious doctrine” second. Madeline draws this same distinction—that faith isn’t based on religion. Knowing this, what role does religion play in the book? What is a Humanist? What does the science of psychology tell us about the human’s desire to believe in something greater than themselves? And why do Elizabeth, Calvin, and Wakely all believe that personal responsibility—faith in one’s self—is more important? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551754156 2023-04-12 14:57:04 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551754156 The book includes male characters who are sympathetic to Elizabeth’s plight, and yet, with the exception of Calvin and Dr. Mason, have trouble standing up for women or other minorities in the workplace. Why do good-hearted people have trouble speaking up? And what are the consequences of not speaking up? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551754607 2023-04-12 14:57:24 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551754607 Elizabeth is sometimes depressed by the circumstances in her life. Not coincidentally, her show airs in the “Afternoon Depression Zone.” And yet she’s never a victim. How does she continually pick herself up? What fuels her resilience? And why, after she’s reached stardom, is she more miserable than ever? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551754924 2023-04-12 14:57:39 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551754924 Harriet Sloane is an inveterate magazine reader. How do magazines and media shape our culture? And what did Harriet mean when she first told Elizabeth to “recommit”? Is there some dream of yours that you wish you would recommit to? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551755180 2023-04-12 14:57:49 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551755180 Friendship and family are interconnected themes in the book. Can friendships sometimes provide family better than family itself? Walter isn’t Amanda’s biological father, but he loves her fully and is the most present person in her life. On the other hand, Avery Parker still loves the son she never knew. How do you define family? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551755479 2023-04-12 14:58:03 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551755479 Madeline fills her family tree with Sojourner Truth, Amelia Earhart, and Nefertiti to point out that all humans are related. But if humans are 99.9 percent the same, why do we treat each other so differently? cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551755686 2023-04-12 14:58:14 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551755686 Book Trailer cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551844407 2023-04-12 16:04:49 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551844407 Apple TV+ “Lessons in Chemistry” cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551847836 2023-04-12 16:07:31 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551847836 April 2022: Good Morning America - Book Club Pick cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551962519 2023-04-12 17:43:39 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2551962519 Book quote p. 26 "Don't work the system. Outsmart it." cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552823290 2023-04-13 08:43:06 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552823290 p.38 "People like my father preach love but are filled with hate. Anyone who threatens their narrow beliefs cannot be tolerated." cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552823941 2023-04-13 08:43:58 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552823941 p. 39 "We spent most of our time at the library. It became our sanctuary--the only thing we could count on from town to town." cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552824185 2023-04-13 08:44:16 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552824185 p. 210 "I'd never planned to be a parent," he told Elizabeth. "But here I am, a devoted father. Life's a mystery, isn't it? People who try and plan it inevitably end up disappointed." cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552824475 2023-04-13 08:44:39 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552824475 p. 231 "The librarian is the most important educator in school. What she doesn't know, she can find out. This is not an opinion; it's a fact." cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552824695 2023-04-13 08:44:55 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552824695 p. 259-260 "Stability and structure. Chemistry is inseparable from life--by its very definition, chemistry is life. But like your pie, life requires a strong base. In your home, you are that base. It is an enormous responsibility, the most undervalued job in the world that, nonetheless, holds everything together." cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552825082 2023-04-13 08:45:20 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552825082 p. 260 "There isn't a woman in the world who is just a housewife." cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552827033 2023-04-13 08:47:18 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552827033 p. 331 "I fell in love with Calvin.. because he was intelligent and kind, but also because he was the very first man to take me seriously. Imagine if all men took women seriously. Education would change. The workforce would revolutionize. Marriage counselors would go out of business. Do you see my point?" cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552827273 2023-04-13 08:47:36 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552827273 p. 331 "That's why I wanted to use Supper at Six to teach chemistry. Because when women understand chemistry, they begin to understand how things work... I'm referring to atoms and molecules, Roth. The real rules that govern the physical world. When women understand these basic concepts, they can begin to see the false limits that have been created for them." cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552827805 2023-04-13 08:48:09 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552827805 p. 331 "I mean by artificial cultural and religious policies that put men in the highly unnatural role of single-sex leadership. Even a basic understanding of chemistry reveals the danger of such a lopsided approach." cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552827992 2023-04-13 08:48:21 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552827992 p. 331 "I think it lets us off the hook. I think it teaches us that nothing is really our fault; that something or someone else is pulling the strings; that 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." cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552828295 2023-04-13 08:48:44 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552828295 p. 331-332 "I'm speaking of fixing us, Mr. Roth--our mistakes. Nature works on a higher intellectual plane. We can learn more, we can go further, but to accomplish this, we must throw open the doors. Too many brilliant minds are kept from scientific research thanks to ignorant biases like gender and race. It infuriates me and it should infuriate you. Science has big problems to solve: famine, disease, extinction. And those who purposefully close the door to others using self-serving, outdated cultural notions are not only dishonest, they're knowingly lazy." cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552829649 2023-04-13 08:50:15 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552829649 p. 338 "I make brownies on my bad days, I'm not going to pretend that sucrose is an essential ingredient required for our well-being, but I personally feel better when I eat it. Now let's get started." cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552829970 2023-04-13 08:50:38 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552829970 p. 340 "Family is far more than biology." cev4uso https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552830227 2023-04-13 08:50:49 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552830227 https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552969057 2023-04-13 11:40:12 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2552969057 ovbc2024q1 https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2841401666 2024-01-08 12:38:01 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2841401666 ovbc2024q1 https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2842657192 2024-01-09 10:33:47 UTC https://padlet.com/cev4uso/USOOVBC_April2023/wish/2842657192