Chemistry

I really enjoyed this. It was a little different than I expected, and although that has actually been a bit of a pattern for the past few books I've read, this one ended up quite enjoyable despite that.

The narrator is definitely coded at first as highly autistic, and while I would still classify them as such, throughout the novel you actually come to understand that it's actually a lot of trauma and coping that set them in their ways. Despite this, an unsung quality of the narrator is that she is incredibly witty and clever despite her also very awkward outlook on some things–the inability to view life's problems as anything but parallels to chemistry is also in and of itself used as a comedic device by her, which highlights how aware she is of herself.

I was hoping for the book to be a bit more of a soul searching adventure on finding oneself after being lost and wrapped up in work for the better part of one's youthful years, and while it was some of that it wasn't quite what I hoped. Although it was broken into two distinct parts, it didn't really explore the stumblings of the narrator to pick herself back up with much depth in the back half. There was a ton of introspection and a ton of explanation of how her friends and family viewed her and their expectations of her but I think Weike's writing style just didn't explore the narrator's adversity of this and how she was going to overcome it, perhaps because it was written in a way that glided over her life quickly. I appreciated her writing style, but if there was one thing I would have liked to see explored, it would have been to see the weeks, months, and maybe even years after part two began with more depth of her actions and how she picked herself up through them. Surprisingly, it felt like there was more of her friend's that was explored–though I also think that was no coincidence!

This book did not touch me profoundly like I think I was hoping it would, as I felt like I was going through similar things to the narrator when I first heard of this book. However, I still greatly enjoyed it and am really looking forward to reading more from Weike. She has a great spirit that shows itself in this book, and her writing style is easy and fun to pick up and explore. I really enjoyed this book despite the few expectations that weren't quite met, and may very well read this again after this period in my life, on reflection.

The narrator (unnamed) tells a sad tale of her Chinese parents' obsession with education and achievement for her, their only child, and her inability to complete a Ph.D. in chemistry that leads her to push away an ideal suitor and to scramble to discover what she really wants in life. The narrator turns to chemistry, to science, to the complexities of the Chinese language, to try to understand her difficult relationships with her parents and with her boyfriend. Chemistry is a brilliant, wandering, serendipitous collection of random reflections on the nature of the universe side-by-side with introspections about the nature of the heart.

Sweet and sad in the familiar pain of a relationship ending (spoiler, I guess?). Not for the “plot-driven” reader but for someone who wants a contemplation on family, relationships, and our purpose in life. Also, a great dry sense of humor.