Lessons in Chemistry

8vo., wonderfully decorative boards in full colour featuring the periodic table in a wraparound design; colourful pictorial endpapers featuring chemistry along with kitchen equipment; together in the matching unclipped pictorial dustwrapper (£14.99 to front flap) featuring a design by Beci Kelly; pp. [ix], 2-390, [ii]; essentially fine, and apparently unread, in the fine dustwrapper. 

First UK edition. This example boldly signed by the author in black felt pen to the title page, along with a green ‘Elizabeth Zott approved’ stamp above. Two newspaper clippings featuring reviews of the book are also loosely inserted. 

The first novel by copywriter and creative director Garmus, who had previously worked in the fields of technology, medicine and education. The plot follows the story of Elizabeth Zott, a chemist working at the male-dominated Hastings Research Institute in the early 1960s. Subject to misogyny at every turn, she finds companionship and love in the form of one colleague - Calvin Evans, who falls for her brilliant mind. Later, as a single mother, she finds controversy again in the form of her cooking show, ‘Supper at Six’, where she encourages women to experiment and learn not only with supermarket ingredients, but with chemical compounds too. “Cooking is chemistry” she tells them, “Chemistry is life. Your ability to change everything - including yourself - starts here.”  

In 2023 the book was adapted into an award-winning series on Apple TV. Garmus’ second novel is due to be published later this year.   

SKU: 1800175