Author Archives: Adella S.

Lessons in Chemistry By: Bonnie Garmus

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Lessons in Chemistry is set in the early 1960s and follows Elizabeth Zott, a female chemist who fought against great odds to obtain her degree and position. Zott works at the Hastings Research Institute, where she meets Calvin Evans, a Nobel Prize-nominated chemist. Their relationship cultivates quickly, and their rivalry with the rest of the staff continues to grow.

Years later, Zott is a single mother after a tragic accident. After meeting a parent of one of her daughter’s friends, Zott receives an offer to be the host of a nationally broadcasted cooking show called “Supper at Six.” Although hesitant at first, Zott in need of a job accepts, hoping that this could give her the credibility she needs to reenter the chemistry world. Her approach to cooking regarding her chemistry background intrigues viewers, and the show quickly becomes a hit. Zott soon becomes a national icon, inspiring women to do more than be housewives, breaking stereotypes for women on TV often fighting against her producer and even the head of the studio.

I enjoyed this book because it displays a unique perspective on women in STEM-based fields in the 1960s. This tale of feminism during this period is almost an untouched topic, so this book feels like something very new and exciting for those who enjoy tales of feminism. It also greatly addresses the risks to women and the adversity they had to overcome to become successful or even respected in their field. It being a historical fiction novel was ultimately one of the reasons I picked it up. If you’re not interested in reading all 390 pages, there is also a new series on Apple TV that is based on this book. That I feel was a decent interpretation of the book, as many typically fail in this realm.

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus is available to check out from the Mission Viejo Library. It is also available to download for free from Libby.

The First Ladies By: Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray

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The First Ladies tells the story of two strong women in the 1900s: Mary McLeod Bethune and Eleanor Roosevelt. Mary born to formerly enslaved parents believed in the importance of education, as a result, she established a school for African American girls in Florida. In addition, she marches as an activist and educator and soon she grows into a celebrity and draws the attention of Eleanor Roosevelt. Drawn together by belief in the power of education, civil rights, and women’s rights. They begin to fight for change together after Franklin Delano Roosevelt is elected as president of the U.S. Beginning a campaign of equality and justice these two women find themselves closer than ever. Eleanor quickly begins to formulate her own agenda away from her husband’s after discovering he has been having an affair. Quickly being considered a controversial First Lady due to her outspokenness for the issues she believes in. In response to her actions, she begins to receive death threats from those opposing her views.

I really like this book it combines drama and historical fiction which are two of my favorite genres. I also like how it really focused on how unique the friendship between these two women was, I thought it added a lot of depth. Another thing that I felt was very creative in this book was the switching of point of view, which gave a clear view of what the main characters were feeling and thinking. I also liked the fact that it was a fictionalized account of the real-life friendship between these two women. I have also read another of the author’s books, The Personal Librarian which was also really good so if you end up reading this one you should check it out.

Thank you for reading and Happy Reading!

The First Ladies by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray is available to check out from the Mission Viejo Library. It is also available to download for free from Libby.

Resistance By: Jennifer A. Nielsen

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Resistance portrays Chaya Lindner, a Jewish teenager who lives in Nazi-occupied Poland during World War 2. When her younger sister is taken to a death camp and her brother mysteriously disappears Chaya is left all alone with her parents. To survive Chaya’s parents send her into the countryside all alone with no resources. Chaya goes to the house of old friends who live outside the ghetto system, they then recruit her to be a courier who smuggles food in and people out of the ghettos.

Chaya, inspired to do more, joins a resistance cell that raids Nazi supplies. After a few missions, something goes horribly wrong and many of her friends and colleagues are arrested or killed. Unsure where to go, Chaya enlists Esther, a cell member. They begin their journey to the Warsaw Ghetto for an even larger uprising than ever before.

I really like this book and have periodically reread it many times. I find the characters inspiring and thought the storyline kept me hooked and intrigued the entire read. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys historical fiction, more specifically World War 2. Also, anyone who enjoys books with deep friendships and very emotional and heartfelt moments.

Resistance by Jennifer Nielsen is available to check out from the Mission Viejo Library.

Code Name Verity By: Elizabeth Wein

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Code Name Verity (Anniversary Edition ...

The story begins in 1943 amid World War 2 when a British spy named Julie is captured by the Gestapo in Nazi-occupied France. Taken to an old Parisian hotel transformed into a prison for war criminals, Julie is tortured and emotionally manipulated by the leader of the Gestapo, Hauptsturmfuhrer von Linden. She is then forced to turn on the Allies by sharing information with the Germans and is given 2 weeks to write down all of the information she has or she will be executed.

Julie unfortunately doesn’t have much information to provide. During wartime, they only share the information necessary to complete their mission, so there isn’t any major breach if someone is captured. So she begins to tell the story of Maddie, a friend from before being captured. Maddie was a pilot trained by one of Britain’s only female pilots before the war began. She began working in a radar tower for an airstrip controlled by the Allies. This is where she meets Julie, and they begin a long-lasting friendship.

Maddie soon gets recruited to fly transports and ferrying planes across allied countries. This separates her and Julie for almost 2 years. They mostly communicate through letters but they occasionally get to see each other. They are united when Maddie transports Julie to Nazi-occupied France. But over the flight, they are shot at, and their engines get hit. Maddie instructs Julie to bail out on a parachute She does leaving Maddie behind on a burning plane, not knowing what happened to her.

I overall really liked this book. I thought there were very enticing twists to the storyline and I found that having female main characters was especially inspiring, due to most historical fiction novels having male main characters. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys historical fiction. As well as anyone who likes a book with a lot of twists and turns.

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein is available to check out from the Mission Viejo Library. It is also available to download for free from Libby.

All The Light We Cannot See By: Anthony Doerr

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Anthony Doerr All the Light We Cannot ...

This novel is told from the perspective of two young children during World War II. The first is Marie-Laurie, a blind girl from the center of Paris near the Museum of Natural History, where her father works. The other Werner Pfennig an orphan, from a mining town in Germany who learned how to build and fix technical instruments by tinkering with a broken radio that he found.

When Marie-Laurie was twelve, the Nazi Regime began to occupy Paris, she and her father fleed to Saint-Malo and met her reclusive great-uncle, Etienne. The Museum of Natural History was rumored to own a diamond called the Sea of Flames, under the threat of occupation the museum director created 4 copies of the diamond. He then distributed these to 3 employees and hid one in the museum, but none knew if they had the real diamond. Soon after arriving in Saint-Malo Marie-Laurie’s father is called back to Paris and is arrested by Germans.

As the Nazi Regime, took power over Germany Werner’s talents for technology attracted certain local attention, and at fourteen was recruited to a specialized training program. He sees it as an opportunity to grow and get out of the orphanage that he’s lived in his entire life but his sister worries that he will be corrupted by Nazi propaganda. After 2 years of training at his technical school, he’s documents are falsified to make him seem like eighteen so that he’s able to fight on the front. After 2 years of rising through the ranks, Werner is assigned to Saint-Malo looking for radios, used by the resistance to broadcast their messages.

Marie-Laurie’s uncle begins engaging with in resistance work with the other French townspeople, but he’s agoraphobic so he’s unable to leave the house without intense anxiety. So Marie-Laurie works with her uncle by gathering messages from the resistance for him to transmit from his radio tower in his attic. Werner and Marie-Laurie’s lives begin to further intertwine.

I liked this book, I thought it had a good mix of suspense and historical fiction. I also really liked that one of the main characters has a disability, that is rarely seen in historical fiction. I think if you like historical fiction and has blind representation then this book is for you.

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr is available to check out from the Mission Viejo Library. It is also available to download for free from Libby.

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

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The Secret History

I recently saw the movie, The Goldfinch, and when I learned it was based on a book I knew I had to read it. After researching the book I realized that the author, Donna Tartt had another book called The Secret History, so I decided to read both of them.

Set in New England, at Hampden College, a transfer student Richard Papen is the protagonist coming from an average middle-class household, Richard is thrown into a world of classic literature and wealthy individuals. Richard joins an exclusive class with only five other members studying classic literature. He believes that to connect with his classmates, he needs to disguise himself as wealthy. He succeeds, and the six of them begin to grow close. Richard soon discovers that this eccentric group of misfits he’s joined has more secrets than what meets the eye.

I liked this book I think that the characters and storyline were well-developed. These characters all have unique characteristics that make them seem real to the reader. I thought that Tartt’s use of Richard’s observant nature to establish the setting and characters was ingenious. The twists create an incredible amount of suspense throughout the second half of the novel. Another thing that I liked about this novel was the realistic nature of the main characters when I was reading, I felt that I connected with the characters and understood their point of view and overall nature. I also enjoyed the overall vibe of the story it felt like a “dark academia” and eclectic type of novel.

I would recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys realistic fiction or likes classical literature. Although it does have some dark undertones and is quite lengthy, it is a fun read with lots of twists. I would also recommend Donna Tartt’s other book, The Goldfinch, which has some similar themes that The Secret History reflects.

The Secret History by Donna Tartt is available to check out from the Mission Viejo Library. It is also available to download for free from Libby.