Title: Where'd You Go, Bernadette
Author: Maria Semple
Published: August 2012
Format: ebook
Source: library
From Goodreads: Bernadette Fox is notorious. To her Microsoft-guru husband, she's a fearlessly opinionated partner; to fellow private-school mothers in Seattle, she's a disgrace; to design mavens, she's a revolutionary architect, and to 15-year-old Bee, she is a best friend and, simply, Mom.
Then Bernadette disappears.
I cut off the rest of the description because trust me, the above's all you need to know. With the help of report cards, emails, faxes, and other seemingly random papers Bee documents the events leading up to her mother's disappearance and the subsequent search.
Epistolary novels are my weakness and this one is exceptionally good. The range of mediums, as well as writers and recipients, gives us a deep look into people's heads. And what interesting heads! Semple does a great job giving each character a distinct voice and making the whole thing funny to boot.
Starting feels a little bit like wading into the weeds but things come together quickly. Even after the narrative settled down Semple kept me on my toes by bringing up something I didn't know (AutoCAD, say) and letting it hang. It gnawed quietly on a corner of my brain for 10, 20, or 50 pages before a subtle explanation was dropped. More than once I found myself smiling and nodding in recognition, "ohhh, that thing!" Now and then there was a reference I did get (...AutoCAD, actually), letting me feel smart for fitting in a puzzle piece early.
Where'd You Go, Bernadette lives and breathes the axiom "show, don't tell". I don't want to spoil you, so let's just say that a powerpoint presentation is given in front of a large crowd. The speaker's clicker breaks two slides in, though, and he has to resort to explaining everything. It's perfect because it allows the transcript to be a full record while also showing the character's poise under pressure. Add in a live blogger's comments and it's masterful.
The only fault I can find in the entire novel is a slightly slow part near the end, but it's so minor it's barely worth mentioning. Where'd You Go, Bernadette is a fun, engaging read just about everyone can enjoy.
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