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margee_loves_reading's review against another edition
Very very dry, and I’m a scientist!!!
rluo2294's review against another edition
3.0
Fun, endearing. Appreciate someone who is so dedicated to a particular field, esp one that is more of niche science. Some weird throwaway lines
al07734's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
inspiring
4.75
Very sweet and an amazing read. It is more a series of episodes that become farther spaced as the book progresses. I can't imagine having the grit to go through what she did. I probably would've given up by the third chapter.
velvetspectre's review against another edition
3.0
The blanket contempt the author shows for students in this book is distracting, and the way she attempts to normalize living (figuratively or literally) in the lab is inaccurate and frankly damaging to the geosciences community. Of course she can write whatever she wishes in her own memoir, but hazing new students and repeatedly emphasizing how lazy and incompetent most are does not inspire confidence that she is building a positive lab environment. I liked some of the stories in this book and found it exciting to see the workings of scientific instruments get a spotlight, but the overall tone of this book and my growing dislike of the author really took away from my enjoyment of reading it.
tenthousandactualbees's review against another edition
need to restart, got to reading other books
erintowner's review against another edition
5.0
If labs are homes to Hope Jahren, minds and stories like hers are homes to me. The first book book I've read in a long while that I genuinely couldn't put dowm
book_concierge's review against another edition
5.0
Hope Jahren was always most comfortable in a lab; as a child she played in her father’s lab. She chose to research botany, and this is her memoir.
Jahren structures the book with alternating chapters; in one she will give a botany lesson, detailing, for example, the functioning of a leaf; in the next chapter she’ll relate a personal story of her journey from childhood to her position as a research scientist. And I was frequently able to draw a comparison between the science and the memory. I was fascinated by the science lessons but was completely taken in by her personal story.
Jahren writes with humor and strength as she reveals her personal struggles with bi-polar disorder, with learning to show love having grown up in a reserved Scandinavian culture, and with being a woman in a decidedly male-dominated field. I particularly loved the stories she told of her adventures with her student and eventual lab partner, Bill. This is the kind of guy who will drive you to distraction, but whom you want along on a deserted island. Resourceful is his middle name!
I highly recommend this to all readers – male or female, science geek or amateur gardener. I think just about everyone will find something delightful and relatable in this memoir.
Jahren structures the book with alternating chapters; in one she will give a botany lesson, detailing, for example, the functioning of a leaf; in the next chapter she’ll relate a personal story of her journey from childhood to her position as a research scientist. And I was frequently able to draw a comparison between the science and the memory. I was fascinated by the science lessons but was completely taken in by her personal story.
Jahren writes with humor and strength as she reveals her personal struggles with bi-polar disorder, with learning to show love having grown up in a reserved Scandinavian culture, and with being a woman in a decidedly male-dominated field. I particularly loved the stories she told of her adventures with her student and eventual lab partner, Bill. This is the kind of guy who will drive you to distraction, but whom you want along on a deserted island. Resourceful is his middle name!
I highly recommend this to all readers – male or female, science geek or amateur gardener. I think just about everyone will find something delightful and relatable in this memoir.