The Love Hypothesis

The Love Hypothesis relies on lies and twists to keep the suspense and drive the plot. What messages about truth and lies does the book offer? Support your response with evidence from the text.

Do you think Olive handled Tom’s threats well? If you were in a similar situation, how would you resolve the situation? Why do you think Olive reacts in the way that she does? Provide passage from the text to support your argument.

Did The Love Hypothesis teach you anything new about the lifestyle and expectations within science and academia? After reading the book, do you have a new appreciation for what grad students go through? What parts of Hazelwood’s description made you think? Why those parts?

Throughout The Love Hypothesis, Adam is harsh on all the grad students except Olive, and Olive is the only person who can make him truly smile or come out of a bad mood. What messages about treatment of others and love does The Love Hypothesis offer? Do you agree or disagree with these lessons? Do you feel Olive’s view of “he’s terrible, but not to me” is her trying to justify Adam’s behavior? Why or why not?

Adam and Olive faced traumatic events before the story (the death of Olive’s mom; Adam’s lonely childhood and abusive grad school advisor). Though these events occurred years ago, both characters still feel their aftermaths. What do their emotions and the way they deal with past events say about the impact and residual power of trauma? Do you agree with Adam’s statement that crying is good? Why or why not?

Olive struggles with anxiety and self-doubt throughout the book. Does Hazelwood sufficiently capture these emotions on the page? Can you relate to these feelings? Given Olive is so capable and intelligent, why do you think she struggles with believing in herself? Support your response with evidence from the text.

When Olive’s paper is accepted for the panel, Adam’s quiet understanding helps, while Dr. Aslan’s excitement worsens Olive’s fear. Do you think Dr. Aslan should have been more aware of her effect on Olive’s emotions? Are other people responsible for how we deal with a situation? Should we expect other people to tone down reactions that cause us stress, or does emotion management rest squarely on the individual experiencing the troubling emotions?

In Chapter 14, Olive claims she doesn’t care what people think, to which Adam says she does care, and that caring is her biggest problem. Do you agree with Adam’s observation? Do you think when people say they don’t care, they are lying? What are the possible benefits and losses to admitting we care about what others do and say? Why is Olive so reluctant to do so, and why else might people be reluctant to admit this?