Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus has been a big hit. This 2022 debut, following chemist Elizabeth Zott in the 1960s as she finds herself hosting a TV cooking show, has sold more than six million copies worldwide and has been translated into 42 languages. Praised for its wry, infectious humor and feminist voice, the novel is the recipient of a Goodreads Choice Award, was voted a BookBrowse Best Book of the Year by our subscribers and remains a popular book club pick beloved by readers. It's even been adapted into a TV series starring Brie Larson. But if you've already read it and loved it, where do you go from here? What are some books like Lessons in Chemistry, with a similar atmosphere or story? Below, we share our read-alikes for Garmus's novel, which we think would be perfect for you if you're a fan. We hope you enjoy them!
You can also check out other BookBrowse read-alikes (picked by our team, never by algorithm) available for more than 4,500 contemporary books and 3,500 authors. Head over now to easily find relevant recommendations based on the last great book you devoured, or a favorite writer.
A playful, witty, and resonant novel in which a single mother and her two teen daughters engage in a wild scientific experiment and discover themselves in the process, from the award-winning writer of
Sons and Daughters of Ease and Plenty.
A winsome sister duo is at the heart of this unusual and timely story; the book prioritizes the points of view of teenagers Eve and Vera, who are 15 and 12 when the book opens and 17 and 14 by the end. One year before, the girls' evolutionary anthropologist father, Sal, died in a car accident. Their mother, Jane, is a graduate student in paleobiology, and as a single mother has to try that much harder to be taken seriously in her field. The sisters' banter is a highlight of the novel: "'I feel like deranged Girl Scouts,' Eve said. 'What patch will we earn today?' 'The Extinct Animal Resuscitation Patch?' Vera suggested." Ironically, this fabulist-leaning novel is best when it is most realist, documenting struggles with bereavement, sexism and parenting teenagers. (Rebecca Foster)
From the Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist who broke the story, the inspiring account of the sixteen female scientists who forced MIT to publicly admit it had been discriminating against its female faculty for years—sparking a nationwide reckoning with the pervasive sexism in science.
As debates about "wokeness" roil college campuses, it's important to remember that every action towards equality has engendered an equally strong reaction against it. Just like a law of physics, this push and pull has played out over decades, including at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). There, it took years not just to resolve gender discrimination issues, but even for discrimination in the faculty to be accepted as an actual problem. (Rose Rankin)
A dramatic and inspiring novel based on the true story of the Jane Collective and the brave women who fought for our right to choose, from the
USA Today bestselling author of
The Paris Bookseller.
The book shows how dangerous, demeaning and expensive an experience abortions were, and how these people made it a safe, supportive, informed process (Ruthie A). The reader has a clear sense of how intricate the secret network was, of the pressures on it and of the need for it (Judith G). The impact of the lack of resources for people of color and other marginalized people before Roe is overwhelming. Although we still have a very long way to go and are unfortunately backtracking, we have come a long way. The description of women's roles during that time period is spot on. It's important information for all of us and a well-written book (Jane M).
A smart, thoughtful, and timely exploration of two sisters' lives from the 1950s to the present as they struggle to find their places - and be true to themselves - in a rapidly evolving world. Mrs. Everything is an ambitious, richly textured journey through history - and herstory - as these two sisters navigate a changing America over the course of their lives.
Mrs. Everything spans six decades of an American family. We meet the Kaufman sisters Josette "Jo" and Elizabeth "Bethie" in 1951 Detroit. The girls grow up during an era where civil rights and women's roles will be challenged and transformed. Their mom Sarah, however, is not liberated. She's intolerant of any behavior that doesn't conform with tradition; she has difficulty making ends meet, especially after her husband dies unexpectedly. As Jo and Bethie come of age, the sisters struggle to form healthy bonds, find their own voices, and move beyond a strict upbringing. Book groups: gather those vintage gelatin dessert recipes and hunker down for astonishing discussions. This novel holds power to crack through decades of silence, family secrets, and hidden aspects of self. (Karen Lewis)
A compulsively readable and touching novel about misplaced genius and a mother and daughter's role in an absurd world.
Long before the precocious Bee was born with a heart defect (and after five miscarriages), Bernadette and her genius husband, Elgie, lived in sunny Los Angeles where Bernadette was an up-and-coming architect. One of the pioneers of the green building movement, Bernadette stood out as a lone successful woman in a field dominated by men. She was even recognized as a MacArthur genius. Then things suddenly went terribly awry. Until we see where the story takes her, we get to delight in Bernadette's marvelous tone. On the one hand, she can skewer the shoddy architecture of Seattle homes. At the same time, she can also explain why the great Seattle artist Dale Chihuly is just too much for her to handle. Fellow curmudgeons, who, like Bernadette, don't suffer fools gladly, will just love her. The rest will find her pleasantly amusing. (Poornima Apte)
