Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

Where'd You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple

7 reviews

greenan26's review against another edition

adventurous funny mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, and Abandonment

Moderate: Cursing, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Grief, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Classism

Minor: Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, and Alcohol

mels_reading_log's review against another edition

funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Bernadette doesn’t belong in Seattle, but her husband is a big shot at Microsoft, so there she is. So different from all the other moms at her kid’s (Bee) school. In a wild series of events in which everyone acts without actually discussing anything with each other, Bernadette goes missing. Now it’s up to Bee to think like her mom to try to find her even though everyone else has given up hope. This book was hilarious and I loved it!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Grief, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Alcohol

Moderate: Infidelity and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Animal death, Bullying, Drug use, Miscarriage, and Suicidal thoughts

juleseliasw's review against another edition

adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

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Content Warnings

Minor: Drug abuse, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, and Alcohol

calliedoo's review against another edition

funny mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

rory1387's review against another edition

adventurous funny fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

just good vacation vibes with a pretty decent exploration of mental illness

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Miscarriage, and Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Infidelity and Alcohol

mateoj's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I think the main selling point for this story is the way it's told partially via emails, notes, articles, etc ; I'm a sucker for that trope. Unfortunately, Where'd You Go, Bernadette falls victim to the classic pratfall of that trope, which is that the characters write unrealistically long and prosaic emails and letters in order to get the narrative across. This grated on my nerves throughout the novel, but I have to admit that it was fun to read nonetheless. The story itself... equal parts entertaining and infuriating. The only character I found remotely tolerable and redeemable was Bee; everyone else sucked, especially Bernadette herself. All I really saw in her was a very mentally ill woman who was unhealthily attached to her child and had an incredible amount of sheer dumb luck. The answer to the title question should really have been "therapy"—but rhen, of course, there would be no story. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, and Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Forced institutionalization, and Alcohol

Minor: Misogyny and Rape

storykath's review against another edition

adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

A fun easy read! I liked the combination of emails, letters, narration, etc - we got to experience a variety of distinct voices in the telling of the story. The tone came across to me as whimsical and a bit absurd, but it was done well and was still engaging. I found the pace a bit odd at times, since the whole premise of the book is Bernadette's disappearance (it's in all the synopses and the title!) but it took longer than I'd expected to get to that point. Still, it was fresh and fun to read throughout. There were some sincere moments amidst the silliness, but neither tone felt out of place.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Infertility, Infidelity, Medical content, and Grief

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Car accident, and Alcohol