Lessons in Chemistry

After a few weeks of reading books about the body and nutrition, I thought that I would read something lighter. The book pictured on the left - or rather, its Hebrew translation - caught my eye in the bookshop situated in the local mall when I was there yesterday. I admit that I very much wondered how a book about chemistry could be a New York Times bestseller - but then, some of the nutrition books also have this statement.

I couldn't put this book down once I started reading it (that's an old simile - these days I almost never read a printed book); it fitted me like a glove. This book reminded me - in many aspects - of John Irving and 'The world according to Garp': there is so much invention, so many unusual people, intelligent animals (Irving has his bears and author Garmus has a dog who knows at least 492 words) and much physical activity (rowing, as in a boat, not 'rowing' as in an argument). It was also - at times - very funny, and caused me twice to laugh out loud. 

The real themes of the book are the oppression of women in the 1950s/early 60s, and the power of self-efficacy. The protagonist of the book, Elizabeth Zott, is full of self-confidence and self-efficacy, and she manages to transfer these characteristics to countless women via a television programme that is supposedly about cooking and is more like lessons in chemistry, but is also about self-confidence.

There is some chemistry, but it's presented in an amusing manner (at least, to someone who understands it prior to reading the book), e.g. “There,” [Elizabeth] said, tipping the pan to the camera again. “What do we have now? A mixture, which is a combination of two or more pure substances in which each substance retains its individual chemical properties. In the case of our chicken pot pie, notice how your carrots, peas, onions, and celery are mixed yet remain separate entities. Think about that. A successful chicken pot pie is like a society that functions at a highly efficient level. Call it Sweden. Here every vegetable has its place. No single bit of produce demands to be more important than another. And when you throw in the additional spices—garlic, thyme, pepper, and sodium chloride—you’ve created a flavor that not only enhances each substance’s texture but balances the acidity. Result? Subsidized childcare. Although I’m sure Sweden has its problems, too. Skin cancer at the very least.” 

“Now pour your version of Sweden,” Elizabeth was saying, “into the starch, lipid, and protein molecule configuration you rolled out earlier—your piecrust—the one whose chemical bonds were enabled using the water molecule, H₂O, and through which you created the perfect marriage of stability and structure.” She paused, her now-floured hands pointing at a piecrust filled with vegetables and chicken. “Stability and structure,” she repeated, looking out at the studio audience. “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.” [Chapter 29]

There's another part that compares the three types of chemical bond - ionic, covalent and hydrogen bond - to relations in life. 

As Hugh Grant's character in 'Notting Hill' said, classic.

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