Lab Girl

Lab Girl by Hope Jahren

Never have I so badly wanted to be a scientist. 

I've never actually wanted to be a scientist.

Hope Jahren makes me want to be a scientist.

I checked out this book without an inkling of what it was about, and within the first few pages I was ready to declare my love for it. I love when a book takes you by surprise and changes your perspective. Hope Jahren is a renowned geobiologist and tenured professor at the University of Hawaii. In her life she has built three laboratories where she studies plants, trees, flowers and soil, and she has kindly shared some of her knowledge with us in this memoir. 

The stories that Jahren shares range from hilarious, to surprising, to heartbreaking, and each one of them is worth reading. It is fascinating to read, especially, about this woman who has had such great success in a predominantly male field. And she takes on these issues in the book, in a way that is meaningful and powerful, and not angry or man-hating. She speaks of many difficult topics in a very frank way that makes them easier to read and think about. Her own struggle with mental illness is a subject that might lend to a more open dialogue if we discussed it like she does. 

An overarching theme is her relationship with her lab partner Bill. Bill is an enigma wrapped in a mystery. He is tough, and distant, and the kind of person that you are constantly surprised by. The two have worked together for many years, and it is clear that he is fiercely loyal to Jahren and would never abandon her. I loved reading about Bill because he is such an interesting character, but he's also an actual human being, which makes him even more interesting. Most of the adventures center around these two, and there are definitely some unexpected outcomes. Through them you learn about the correct way to collect soil, what to do (or not do) while driving in bad snow, and that sometimes you spend several days acquiring samples that get unceremoniously trashed.

While I certainly enjoyed the stories of her own life, my favorite sections of the book were those in which she talks about plants. I don't think I ever in my life expected to be brought to tears by the description of a seed starting to sprout. But the beauty with which she writes of the process makes you feel a connection to the seed; makes you root for it (pardon the pun). 

“Each beginning is the end of a waiting. We are each given exactly one chance to be. Each of us is both impossible and inevitable. Every replete tree was first a seed that waited.”

 This memoir is not one that you pick up for a bit of light reading, but it is also not one that you would put down because it's too depressing. It is unique in that you can get to know Jahren and her life, but also learn so much about the world around you. You learn lessons you wouldn't expect to learn, in ways that you wouldn't expect to learn them. I would recommend this book to science lovers and non-lovers alike, as it gives you further appreciation for how the world works.

Lab Girl is located in our non-fiction section.