What to Read After Lessons in Chemistry

Lessons in Chemistry is the inspiring and at times humorous story of Elizabeth Zott, a brilliant scientist in a man’s world – we're in the 1950s and 60s – who becomes a TV cooking presenter. The book became a popular favourite, winning a number of book awards before it was televised as a mini-series.

If this book was a top read for you, maybe you’ve been struggling to find another novel that is equally engrossing. Here’s a few that include quirky characters, or witty and heart-warming storylines that have a similar feel to the Bonnie Garmus novel. Happy reading!

In Toni Jordan’s novel, Prettier If She Smiled More, we have Kylie, whose meticulously ordered life is thrown into a spin when the pharmacy she works at is sold to a huge corporation. The same day she discovers her boyfriend is cheating on her, and then her mother breaks her ankle and needs live-in care. This all happens before Wednesday, and by the end of the week nothing in her life will be the same. A hilarious story involving new beginnings, family dynamics and a miniature Pomeranian.

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman introduces another unforgettable character, telling the story of a woman who seems to have it all together on the outside, through a carefully ordered routine. But maybe Eleanor isn’t all that fine at all. An act of kindness and suddenly change is in the air for Eleanor. But this will involve a reckoning with the events of her past if she wants to build a brighter future.

There aren’t many job openings for senior mathematicians. Which is why Germaine Johnson in Katherine Collette’s novel The Helpline winds up working on the Senior Citizens Helpline for the local council. A feud with the local golf club and a plan by the mayor to shut out the troublemakers at the senior citizens centre force Germaine to choose a side. A sharply observed and witty comedy.

Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata is the story of Keiko, the girl everyone at school thought a little odd - she could never quite get the hang of social mores, never knew the right thing to say. When she takes a job at a nearby convenience store, she suddenly has a behaviour model to follow, and learns how to fit in. But now there are new social pressures – to get a better job, or worse, a husband. She hatches a drastic plot to keep everyone, and herself, happy.

Vinegar Girl by Anne Tyler is a modern take on the Shakespearean play, The Taming of the Shrew. Kate Battista has a tricky personality, but also smarts, even if she’s stuck at home caring for her uppity teenage sister and eccentric scientist father. When his research assistant, Pyotr, is about to lose his green card, Kate's father dreams up a plan to help him stay in the country – if only he can convince his daughter to accept Pyotr’s hand in marriage. Readers should note there’s no “taming” in this charming romantic comedy.

Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano follows the story of William Waters, from a childhood in an affluent but loveless home to his escape through basketball and college and into the family of the Padavanos. Julia Padavano appreciates William’s quiet seriousness and William likes being a part of a lively family, until his past comes back to upset their carefully planned future together. There’s more than a hint of Little Women in this heart-warming contemporary novel.

Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt follows three characters who might just be the answer to one another’s problems: Tova, who still misses her son who vanished decades ago when he was just eighteen; Cameron, who’s looking for his father and hoping for a windfall; and Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus – also remarkably bright - who lives at the aquarium that Tova cleans. An engaging and original read about family and friendship.

Small Pleasures by Clare Chambers is set in 1950s England, in a town where Jean Swinney writes the women’s pages for a local newspaper, living a small life with her difficult mother. A feature article on a woman claiming to have had a daughter from a “virgin birth” sets events in motion that will open Jean’s life up to new friendships and possibly even a chance at happiness. But at what cost? Another novel about a woman’s struggle in a man’s world told with warmth and wit.

Don Tillman, a professor of genetics, has never been on a second date. He designs a sixteen-page questionnaire to help him find the perfect partner. This woman is certainly not Rosie, who asks him to help her with a DNA problem. This is the Rosie project and somehow, the two projects become one and the same. The Rosie Project by Greame Simsion is the hilarious first book of three following the life and love life of a socially gauche man.

Florence is the quirky elderly character who is struggling to remember three things about her best friend in Three Things About Elsie by Joanna Cannon. She lives in the Cherry Tree retirement complex, and has never done anything remarkable in her life, but maybe now is her moment. If she can only remember who that new arrival at Cherry Tree really is. A poignant and at times wry story with an unforgettable, if sometimes forgetful, main character.

It’s not easy dating the man who has dated every other woman in Boyne City. Jane finds out the hard way in Early Morning Riser by Katherine Heiny. It doesn’t help that Duncan’s ex-wife still has him mowing her lawn. Duncan just finds it hard to say no. A car accident changes everything and it seems Jane will never have Duncan to herself, but maybe there’s another way to happiness. A warm-hearted, feel-good read.

Posted by JAM

23 May 2024

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