Where’d You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple – Book Review

‘Where’d You Go, Bernadette’ is a strange story told in an incredibly unique way by a series of emails, letters, and police reports. Bee Branch is a fifteen-year-old scholarly student raised by her genius parents. Her father, Elgin Branch, works for Microsoft and her mother, Bernadette, is an award-winning engineer famous world-wide for her structural designs and very opinionated ways. They live in an abandoned school building that her mother purchased as a remodel project when Bee was first born however the building remains untouched. The neighbors adore Bee but are skeptical of her parent’s strange ways especially her mother who they see as a disgrace as a mother and as a person. Bee considers her mom her best friend.

In her emails and journal posts Bee gives us an insight into her daily life at school with her friends and teachers, and at home with her peculiar parents. Strange incidents happen that make you laugh including the cracked ceilings and blackberry vines growing crazily throughout the property, even over the fence line into the hysterical neighbors place next door.

Bee’s parents give her the task of choosing the family vacation since she has produced a perfect grade card. Bee chooses everyone’s favorite destination Antarctica. Antarctica, seriously? Her parents’ question but give in and Bernadette begins working with Manjula, her personal assistant who is based in India, to plan this unforgettable trip for her daughter…that is until she disappears.

Where did Bernadette go? Why is the FBI involved? What does the hysterical neighbors have to do with this mystery? ‘Where’d You Go, Bernadette’ is a quirky fun story that will make you smile and shake your head. Maybe even roll your eyes.