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stephyyanne's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
kwest_books's review against another edition
2.0
Not a big fan of this one. Found it to be pretty unbelievable. Wasn't a fan of the characters.
jessnpups's review against another edition
2.0
I'm not sure what to make of this book. I didn't dislike, but I also didn't particularly enjoy it. I'm perplexed by the quote on the cover that it is "divinely funny." While yes there are a lot of scenes that should have been comical, I didn't find it funny. Maybe it's because the story is told through a collection of documents - email/fax exchanges, invoices, etc. It becomes challenging to really rally around the narrator (since there isn't one) or any particular character. I don't know what my issue is with the book.
bridgettjensen's review against another edition
4.0
I love this book; in fact, I couldn't put it down. The text is a compilation of sorts, emails, letters, psychiatrist's reports, gathered together and turned into a book of sorts by the missing Bernadette's daughter. Not only is the story compelling and the "evidence" page-turning stuff, Semple's story asks deeper questions of the reader. What does it mean to be a mother? Can a woman, in fact, disappear when she becomes a woman? What happens when a woman sacrifices her creativity to her domestic life? How well do we know anyone?
I don't see the point in writing reviews or even reading books I don't like. This book drew me in from the first page. The characters are beautiful and human, ugly, ambitious, afraid, and in the end, courageous. Fragile and frightening people (thanks E) as we all are.
I don't see the point in writing reviews or even reading books I don't like. This book drew me in from the first page. The characters are beautiful and human, ugly, ambitious, afraid, and in the end, courageous. Fragile and frightening people (thanks E) as we all are.
phwoooarker's review against another edition
4.0
I asked the lovely people of Goodreads to recommend me a fun, light read and I got exactly what I wanted. This was an addictive and entertaining read that I whizzed through in a few days.
It tells the story of Bernadette Fox, a world-famous and extremely talented architect who, after some ‘nastiness’ in her past, has become a recluse in a collapsing Seattle mansion. Bernadette spends her time venting her spleen about the various annoyances of Seattle, from Canadians to the rain and, most importantly, the terrible mothers of Galer Street, the school that her 14-year-old daughter Bee attends. Her husband, a workaholic, becomes increasingly frustrated by her erratic behaviour. And then one day Bernadette disappears without a trace and Bee needs to piece together the story of what happened. She does this by compiling various emails and articles leading up to her mother’s disappearance, and the story is told via these disparate clippings.
I have to admit that when I first began reading this I just could not handle how nasty Bernadette was. She was utterly obnoxious and self absorbed. At around the 20% mark I was hoping that she’d gone to Antarctica and been dragged off by a leopard seal; she was so vile I didn’t care where the hell she’d gone or whether she’d be found. Part of my antipathy towards her was based on the horrendous way she spoke to Manjula her ‘assistant’ in India. However, I later realised that Manjula was a ‘virtual assistant’ and therefore Bernadette was talking to a robot, which vindicated her slightly (unless I’ve got that completely wrong? If so, Bernadette is an awful character and my previous comment about the leopard seal still stands). You are also given a better indication of what made her so angry and twisted and I think that this helps to humanise her. Whichever way you look at it though, Bernadette is a deeply flawed character and - aside from being a genius, eccentric and very brave - she wasn’t very sympathetic.
Throughout the book, Semple takes aim at some deserving targets: helicopter moms using their children’s education to create nonsense dramas; stupidly over-protective new-age schooling; and big tech companies. The writing is witty and filled with wry asides; however, it didn’t make me laugh like an idiot on the train like some books have; rather it made me occasionally give a knowing smile.
Despite the highly flawed central character and the far-fetched plot, this was massively entertaining and perfect if you’ve had a run of very serious books and need a bit of a mind holiday.
It tells the story of Bernadette Fox, a world-famous and extremely talented architect who, after some ‘nastiness’ in her past, has become a recluse in a collapsing Seattle mansion. Bernadette spends her time venting her spleen about the various annoyances of Seattle, from Canadians to the rain and, most importantly, the terrible mothers of Galer Street, the school that her 14-year-old daughter Bee attends. Her husband, a workaholic, becomes increasingly frustrated by her erratic behaviour. And then one day Bernadette disappears without a trace and Bee needs to piece together the story of what happened. She does this by compiling various emails and articles leading up to her mother’s disappearance, and the story is told via these disparate clippings.
I have to admit that when I first began reading this I just could not handle how nasty Bernadette was. She was utterly obnoxious and self absorbed. At around the 20% mark I was hoping that she’d gone to Antarctica and been dragged off by a leopard seal; she was so vile I didn’t care where the hell she’d gone or whether she’d be found. Part of my antipathy towards her was based on the horrendous way she spoke to Manjula her ‘assistant’ in India. However, I later realised that Manjula was a ‘virtual assistant’ and therefore Bernadette was talking to a robot, which vindicated her slightly (unless I’ve got that completely wrong? If so, Bernadette is an awful character and my previous comment about the leopard seal still stands). You are also given a better indication of what made her so angry and twisted and I think that this helps to humanise her. Whichever way you look at it though, Bernadette is a deeply flawed character and - aside from being a genius, eccentric and very brave - she wasn’t very sympathetic.
Throughout the book, Semple takes aim at some deserving targets: helicopter moms using their children’s education to create nonsense dramas; stupidly over-protective new-age schooling; and big tech companies. The writing is witty and filled with wry asides; however, it didn’t make me laugh like an idiot on the train like some books have; rather it made me occasionally give a knowing smile.
Despite the highly flawed central character and the far-fetched plot, this was massively entertaining and perfect if you’ve had a run of very serious books and need a bit of a mind holiday.
jennwhosit's review against another edition
4.0
Hard to decide on 3 vs 4 stars. Part way through I would've given it a two, because I found some of the Gaylord mothers despicable, but storyline improved. A little too neat of an ending which seems to be the case with a few books I have read lately. Clever parts to the book and some sweet relationships that seemed real.
phubbard's review against another edition
Giving up on this one, my dad tried to warn me...
ccelvensmith's review against another edition
5.0
i just wanted to read a lighthearted/silly book but the sweetness and empathy with which semple treats every single character overwhelmed my heart. it’s just full of so much nuance and i have such a soft spot for books that treat kids as people. i love that things go from misinterpretation to empathy. i love that the characters grow TREMENDOUSLY but also very naturally. i think we can all learn something about forgiveness and tenderness and faith and love from this book. big heart :)