I finished the book before finishing the show and now I'm regretting it

First blog post woo-hoo!

As some of you may know from my Instagram, I've finished reading Lessons in Chemistry in four days. And I can honestly say that it's one of the best books I've read in my life. Given, most of the books I've read in my life were due to homework assignments and summer readings; but despite being forced to read even the amazing books like To Kill a Mockingbird and Of Mice and Men, I'd at least been able to gain a sense of which ones I like and don't like. For example, I'm not very keen on dystopian worlds likes the ones in The Giver or Anthem. And Lord of the Flies wasn't a favorite either. I've noticed that I enjoy books that are relatable. I like plots that consist of challenges that the protagonists have to go through that are similar to what I've been through, or characters whose personalities are similar to mine and make me question if I'd do the same things they do in their situations. Maybe I'm selfish in that sense. But I want to be able to immerse myself in the story, and if the characters are drastically different from me, or if the setting gives me a feeling of "out-of-placeness" too much, then the author loses me.

Anyway, the reason I became interested in Lessons in Chemistry is because I'd actually discovered the Apple TV show first through clips on TikTok. Once I watched the first three episodes, I decided to look up when the next episode was coming out and found that it's actually based on the book. Immediately bought it (the hardcover was on sale on Amazon so I couldn't say no, it's like the universe begged me to read it), and after reading through the whole thing in less than a week, I've come to the conclusion that the show is (and I don't say this lightly) very loosely based on the book.

Now, I'm not one to diss film. I fucking love film. In fact, I'd much rather watch a film than read the book. But in this case, I couldn't wait another week just to see the plot continue. Another thing about me, is I'm impatient. I'd much rather have a show release all its episodes at once than let it sit for a week until the next episode comes out. And if the release gets DELAYED?? Nono. Absolutely tf not. I digress. People always say that the book is better than the movie or show, and I don't doubt it. But before I graduated from school, I had no time to sit down and read a book. Also, I didn't really want to make the time. So I couldn't really find that observation out for myself. Plus, I found out at the early age of 12 that if I read the book then watch how it plays out on screen, I get disappointed. Still have not forgiven Chris Columbus for not including Snape's potions challenge in The Sorcerer's Stone.

Unfortunately, this goes for Lessons in Chemistry, too. When customers at my job came in and saw the book sitting in front of me, I told them that I liked the show and the book for their own reasons, despite them warning me that the book is better than the show. But after this past episode, "CH3COOH," I can't really defend the show, anymore.

Okay spoilers ahead so if you haven't read the book or watched the show, I highly recommend reading and watching both before reading the rest of this review. But if not, it's fine. It's your life.

Anyway, one of the things I love the most about the novel is Mad's and Elizabeth's relationship. Elizabeth ensured that Mad knew how much she loves her, and despite Mad having a dead father, she also ensured that he loves her too. Mad is only 4 years old, but she is an incredibly intelligent, empathetic, and mature child for her age. Elizabeth knows Mad's capabilities. They both understand each other very well and are able to have open conversations with each other about absolutely anything. Elizabeth shunned the idea of "fame" despite being one of the most famous TV sensations in the nation. She also made sure that Mad was shielded from any type of publicity. Mad knows how well-known her mother is, though, and understands why Elizabeth subjects herself to unwanted fame, given their circumstance. Really trying hard not to spoil everything.

But IN THE SHOW?? Oh. My. Gosh. I'm not even gonna lie, y'all. I'm pretty upset that they're skewing their relationship. The episode ended with Mad being upset that Elizabeth came home late from filming her show, and when Elizabeth tried to make up for it by taking her out to dinner, they were interrupted by the waitress talking about how much she loved Elizabeth's show. This makes Mad upset even more, understandably, because she just wants to have quality time with her mom again. Okay, in retrospect, I guess it makes sense to make Mad more child-like, considering she's supposed to be only 4. But that's what I liked about her character in the book so much. She's wayyy beyond her years and completely understands that being on TV comes with a price, and the only reason why Elizabeth is doing it in the first place is because they need financial support, financial comfort, even. It just makes me wonder how it's going to play out in the show because Mad's and Elizabeth's unique relationship as a daughter and mother is one of the main elements of the novel. It reflects how unique Calvin's and Elizabeth's relationship was before he died (sorry, I tried). And it emphasized the bond over the fact that they both lost someone they wished they knew, or knew longer; the bond that keeps them close because they are the closest people to blood relatives that they'll ever get. The show is straying from this and therefore, the story loses its complexity. Maybe the writers of the show are just trying to drag it on, but if it were me, I wouldn't have written over this factor. Elizabeth is already going through enough, and I feel like her relationship with Mad is something that gives her room to breathe a little. The show is, for some reason that I have yet to see, muddling their beautiful relationship.

There are also a bunch of other details that are completely different from the book, like how Harriet's husband was in the military and the reason for the strain in their marriage is because she has to stay home and take care of their children. In the book, he's actually a total alcoholic bum who abuses her and she utterly despises him for being the thing weighing her down only because Catholics don't believe in divorces (which is something that I'll never understand). Also, Harriet's supposed to be older. She has FOUR CHILDREN (in contrast to the two in the show) all grown up and doing their own things. I genuinely don't know what's to come for Harriet's story in the show, either. Because something else happens nearing the end of the novel that makes me question if they're going to write it into the show. Probably not, the way things are going as of yesterday. Like, the details in the previous episodes could be forgiven, I guess. But the change in Elizabeth's and Mad's relationship pissed me off. We'll see how it goes.

I'll probably go deeper into the differences between the show and the book and hopefully things redeem themselves. But so far, not looking so good, y'all. Not gonna lie. I'll keep y'all updated.

<3A