Summary of Lab Girl: by Hope Jahren | Includes Analysis

By Instaread Summaries

Summary of Lab Girl by Hope Jahren | Includes Analysis

 

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In her memoir Lab Girl, Hope Jahren describes the life she’s lived and the knowledge she’s learned as a scientist trying to find her way in the world. Focusing mostly on a period of

• Language: English
• Publisher: Instaread, Inc
• Release date: May 13, 2016
• ISBN: 9781683780847

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Summary

In her memoir Lab Girl, Hope Jahren describes the life she’s lived and the knowledge she’s learned as a scientist trying to find her way in the world. Focusing mostly on a period of professional development that stretches from 1997 to 2008, the bulk of the narrative follows Jahren from her first appointment as a professor in Atlanta to her current job at the University of Hawaii. Navigating personal and professional challenges including bipolar disorder, meager budgets, and sexist work environments, Jahren and her eccentric lab manager, Bill, learn a lot about themselves, each other, and the mysterious lives of plants.

Growing up in Minnesota, Hope feels starved for human connection. Her parents and her three older brothers are quiet, distant, and seemingly emotionless. The only sure love in her life is the feeling she experiences in her father’s laboratory, a place where she feels happy and curious. Hope’s father is a physics teacher at a local community college. During her childhood, he lets her indulge her scientific impulses to her heart’s content. Even at a young age, she seems to grasp her identity as a scientist. This certainty will serve her well later in life when her competence is continually called into question by sexist colleagues.

As an undergraduate at the University of Minnesota, Hope initially focuses on literature. Soon she moves to hard science. On top of her studies, she works to support

Reviews for Summary of Lab Girl

[Mollie Reed · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I read Lab Girl several years ago but wanted to reacquaint myself with it prior to a discussion of the book in my book group. The summary and analysis of different aspects of the writing were invaluable to me as they sparked my memory and enjoyment of the book.