[ephemeral]

Where'd You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple (August 2012)
Requirements: ePUB Reader | 800 Kb
Overview: 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. It began when Bee aced her report card and claimed her promised reward: a family trip to Antarctica. But Bernadette's intensifying allergy to Seattle -- and people in general -- has made her so agoraphobic that a virtual assistant in India now runs her most basic errands. A trip to the end of the earth is problematic.

To find her mother, Bee compiles email messages, official documents, secret correspondence -- creating a compulsively readable and touching novel about misplaced genius and a mother and daughter's role in an absurd world.

Where'd You Go, Bernadette is a compulsively readable, irresistibly written, deeply touching novel about misplaced genius and a mother and daughter's place in the world.
Genre: Fiction, Literary

"Semple pieces together a modern-day comic caper full of heart and ingenuity.... The nuances of mundane interactions are brilliantly captured, and the overarching mystery deepens with each page, until the thoroughly satisfying dénouement." -- Publishers Weekly

"...Utterly delightful. Semple brings plenty of squirming comedy to the novel, which manages to be that rare good read that actually makes you feel good at the end. Her send-up of Seattle is hilarious, with its Victims Against Victimhood support groups, moms offering organic gardeners swiss chard in lieu of payment, and teachers who are so PC that fourth graders are expected to seriously debate the pros and cons of the Chinese occupation of Tibet. But the heart of the book belongs to Bee, who, as an admissions counselor puts it, tests off the charts for grit and poise; and her mother, who, for all her neuroses, did a bang-up job of turning out one terrific kid." ~Yvonne Zipp, Christian Science Monitor

"So where did Bernadette go? Does her disappearance have anything to do with her agoraphobia and Bee's long-awaited trip to Antarctica? Or has her outsider status, her conflict with the neighbors, or her dislike of Seattle finally driven her away? Well, the truth is a little bit complicated and this novel turns into a rather absurd, madcap adventure. If you are willing to suspend belief a bit, give the novel a try and have some fun with Bernadette and Bee. I did, and enjoyed the book immeasurably." ~mstigerlily, Mobilism Review

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Mobilism Review here.