- Published: 10 October 2023
- ISBN: 9781804993477
- Imprint: Penguin
- Format: Paperback
- Pages: 400
- RRP: $22.99
Lessons in Chemistry


















Apple TV + tie-in of the multi-million-copy No. 1 Sunday Times, No. 1 New York Times and No. 1 international bestseller and prizewinner
THE MULTI-MILLION-COPY BESTSELLER
Soon to be an Apple TV series starring Brie Larson
'I loved it' NIGELLA LAWSON
'Sparky, rip-roaring, funny' SUNDAY TIMES
'The most charming, life-enhancing novel I've read in ages' INDIA KNIGHT
'Brimming with life' RACHEL JOYCE
___________
Your ability to change everything - including yourself - starts here
Chemist Elizabeth Zott is not your average woman. In fact, Elizabeth Zott would be the first to point out that there is no such thing.
But it's the early 1960s and her all-male team at Hastings Research Institute take a very unscientific view of equality. Forced to resign, she reluctantly signs on as the host of a cooking show, Supper at Six. But her revolutionary approach to cooking, fuelled by scientific and rational commentary, grabs the attention of a nation.
Soon, a legion of overlooked housewives find themselves daring to change the status quo. One molecule at a time.
__________
A Book of the Year for: Guardian, Times, Sunday Times, Good Housekeeping, Woman & Home, Stylist, TLS, Oprah Daily, Newsweek, Mail on Sunday, New York Times, India Knight, Hay Festival, Amazon and many others
'Biting and cheerIng in exactly the right measure' JOJO MOYES
'I loved Lessons in Chemistry and am devastated to have finished it!' NIGELLA LAWSON
'Laugh-out-loud funny and brimming with life, generosity and courage' RACHEL JOYCE
'A novel that sparks joy with every page' ELIZABETH DAY
'Elizabeth Zott is an iconic heroine' PANDORA SYKES
'A page-turning and highly satisfying tale' MAGGIE SHIPSTEAD, author of GREAT CIRCLE
The multi-million copy bestseller
As read on BBC Radio 4 Book at Bedtime
Winner of the Goodreads Choice Best Debut Novel Award
British Book Awards Author of the Year
- Published: 10 October 2023
- ISBN: 9781804993477
- Imprint: Penguin
- Format: Paperback
- Pages: 400
- RRP: $22.99
About the author
Bonnie Garmus is the author of Lessons in Chemistry, a number-one global bestseller and winner of several national and international awards, including Barnes & Noble’s Book of the Year, Hay Festival’s Book of the Year, Goodreads Choice Award Debut of the Year, British Book Awards Author of the Year, Waterstones Author of the Year, Books are My Bag Author of the Year Award and Readers’ Choice Award, Germany and Australia’s Booksellers Book of the Year, Australia’s International Book of the Year, and many more. It was also selected by Queen Camilla for the Queen’s Reading Room and has been on the New York Times, Sunday Times and Der Spiegel bestseller lists for nearly two years. Currently published in forty-two territories, it has sold almost seven million copies.
Discover more
Learn what a day in the life of a publicist at Penguin Random House looks like.
Penguin Random House is proud to have twenty-four titles on the list this year.
Learn about a few of the major characters from Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus.
These are the Penguin Random House books that over 48,000 book clubs voted as the best group reads this October.
Lessons in Chemistry is getting TV treatment with a new Apple TV+ series based on the book. Learn more about it here.
Take this quiz, inspired by ‘Lessons in Chemistry’ to find out which element you are most like.
Tune into Radio National on Saturday 17 June and Sunday 18 June.
Congratulations to the winners!
We caught up with Bonnie Garmus after a whirlwind year of success with her debut novel, Lessons in Chemistry.
Find the perfect book based on the blooms she already loves.
These are the Penguin Random House books that over 48,000 book clubs voted as the best group reads this March.
Whip up a Zott-style pavlova to celebrate the new paperback edition of Lessons in Chemistry.
Discover the best Penguin Random House books of 2022 with this list of award-winning and shortlisted titles this year.
We talked to some of our graphic designers to learn more about the amazing book covers they created this year. Find out what runs through the mind of a designer as they bring a book to life through design.
From fantastically funny rom-coms to straightforward self-help, these are some of the best books of 2022.
See some of the best beach reads of 2023. Fiction, non-fiction, and children’s books, there’s something from every genre to enjoy.
See the Penguin Random House books that over 800,000 book clubs voted as the best group reads during the month of September.
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus is packed full of wisdom. Check out five of the many inspirational quotes from the book.
A Sunday Times bestseller and BBC Between the Covers Book Club pick.
We all need a little help choosing our next read sometimes. This time, we've got you sorted!
Bonnie Garmus was seething when she got back to her desk after a work meeting. It was then she began writing Lessons in Chemistry.
Chemist Elizabeth Zott is not your average woman. In fact, Elizabeth Zott would be the first to point out that there is no such thing. But it's the early 1960s and her all-male team at Hastings Research Institute take a very unscientific view of equality. Except for one: Calvin Evans; the lonely, brilliant, Nobel-prize nominated grudge-holder who falls in love with - of all things - her mind. True chemistry results. But like science, life is unpredictable. Which is why a few years later, Elizabeth Zott finds herself not only a single mother, but the reluctant star of America's most beloved cooking show Supper at Six. Elizabeth's unusual approach to cooking ('combine one tablespoon acetic acid with a pinch of sodium chloride') proves revolutionary. But as her following grows, not everyone is happy. Because as it turns out, Elizabeth Zott isn't just teaching women to cook. She's daring them to change the status quo. Meet the unconventional, uncompromising Elizabeth Zott. Buy now: https://www.penguin.com.au/books/lessons-in-chemistry-9780857528131
These female characters are brave, stand up for their beliefs and aren't afraid to break the status quo.
The blockbuster of 2022, set in 1960s California, introducing the unique and unforgettable Elizabeth Zott. Elizabeth is not your average woman. In fact, Elizabeth would be the first to point out that there is no such thing. Meet the unconventional, uncompromising Elizabeth Zott. A single mother, and the reluctant star of America's most beloved cooking show Supper at Six, Elizabeth Zott isn't just teaching women to cook. She's daring them to change the status quo.