When someone in my book club chose LAB GIRL for our next discussion, I didn’t rejoice. With what is happening in the world these days, all I want to do in my spare time is eat Snickers bars and watch The Office re-runs. I was wrong. This is a terrific read.

LAB GIRL is the memoir of a brilliant and passionate geobiologist whose love for science is infectious, in a good way. The book traces the history of Hope Jahren and her lab manager, Bill, who is her science nerd clone, as they endeavor to establish and fund their research.

But the book is so much more than that.

Although Jahren does not make a big issue over this, one can see how hard it is to be a woman working in the sciences. When you read the book, take note of Jahren’s treatment at Johns Hopkins during her pregnancy. Also, regardless of how many research successes and awards Jahren has to her name, she lives under the constant tension of trying to find grants to support her work.

Jahren’s writing is gorgeous. She talks about leaves, soil and seeds in a way that will permanently change your ideas and attitudes regarding plant life. As I pulled a weed the other day, I thought about all that went into the fact that the weed existed. I yanked it out of the ground anyway, but not without deep appreciation of how it got there.

This memoir is about Jahren’s passion for science and also her devotion to her kindred spirit, Bill. If you are looking for lots of information about her relationship with her parents, her husband and her son, you won’t find it on these pages, which is okay. Instead, Jahren’s gift to us is her delightful and informative view of the natural world.