Book Journey

Bernadette Fox was once an architect that was coveted by many.  She had won awards and was sought after my big industry names.  Married to Elgin, a head honcho with Microsoft, they could very well have been considered a power couple.

After many miscarriages, Bernadette gives birth to fragile but beautiful baby girl who they name Bee.  As the years go on Bernadette goes farther and farther away from who she once was, so far in fact that she hires a woman from another country on-line to do all her personal errands from shopping, to appointments, travel planning and more.  If Bernadette can avoid socializing with other people she is happy and chooses not to leave her house unless necessary. 

Bee now 15, aces her report card and as her reward she is given the choice of any trip she wants and Bee chooses a cruise ship to Antarctica.  At first Bernadette is filling her time making plans for the trip, purchasing excursions on-line and ordering up multiple pairs of everything to be delivered and tried on and returned if not right.  Yet as the trip grows closer Bernadette becomes fearful of the trip itself and the people all the people on the cruise who will want to small talk and there will be no place to breathe and….

Bernadette disappears.

Bee now is looking through the pieces that led to her mothers disappearance – emails, letters, travel notes… trying to find the mother she loves and bring her back home.

Where’d You Go Bernadette is a fun crazy tilt a whirl of a read.  Do not enter this book with the thought that you are about to read something deep and profound and Kleenex at hand…. instead enter this one with the anticipation of a fun house at a carnival filled with plenty of those wacky mirrors that cause you to see things as they truly are not. 

This book is impracticable, unrealistic, and border line insane.  Yet… it is also captivating, encouraging, and witty like a Janet Evanovich read.  You read this one for pure enjoyment.  The neighbors are crazy.  Saltine cracker with cool whip on it crazy.  The school faculty is stuck up and Elgin… well, lets just say he belongs with Bernadette. 

I wanted to read this book because earlier this year my book club read This One Is Mine by this author and truly did not like it across the board.  (Read my review here… we honestly think it is a Midwestern thing).  I had heard such good things about this book I had to give the author a second chance. 

I listened to this book on audio and Kathleen Wilhoite did an amazing job as narrator (there is a point she sings that wowed me). She captivates the voices of Bernadette and Bee very well. 

Overall… grab your Skittles and a cherry flavored slurpy and you are ready to dig into this one… its crazy unrealistic and funny bone funny and I am sure that is exactly what the author was going for.

A portrait of finding those you have loved and lost in the hearts of others.

Beautiful.  ~Sheila

14-year-old June Elbus thought the sun and moon rose and sat around her Uncle Finn.  He was her everything, her confidant and the one who really understood her.  He was an artist, known for his may with a canvas and he even created an incredible painting of June and her sister Greta. In the early 80’s it was hard for people to talk about what made Finn sick, but June’s mom (Finn’s sister), sat June down and explained that Finn had AIDS.

Suddenly June’s world is turned upside down.  She now has to fear what happens in Finn leans in to hug her, of offers her a drink of his beverage. And then, Finn dies.

At the funeral June sees a very sad-looking man and learns another shock.  This man, Toby, has been Finn’s long time partner of 9 years.  June’s mom will have nothing to do with him saying that he is the one who gave Finn AIDS.  Yet slowly as time goes on June meets with Toby and starts to learn about a side of Finn she never knew.  Hiding the fact she is meeting Toby from her family who would not approve and her always accusing eye of her troubled older sister Greta, June expands her world and understanding of how fragile life can be.

There are so many layers to this story that it is hard to put into a review.  Obviously the main story is of Finn and June and AIDS.  But there is also the painting of June and Greta that follows right along throughout the book in a powerful way – almost a metaphor of how life is never how we see it at one glance and how we are always changing and growing in ways that are seen and unseen.  And there is also Greta, battling her own demons as almost this under layer of turmoil that everyone is caught up in.

Powerful?  yes.  There were a couple of things in the book that I felt were unnecessary, and I am just going to say it. Toby drinking and smoking with June probably had some purpose to the story.. something about living on the edge or throwing caution to the wind – but it bothered me because 1) June is 14 and 2) Toby is an adult (30’s I believe) and should know better.  It just felt unnecessary.

Ok that said – the book is a brilliant look into the scare of the AIDS epidemic of the 80’s and the reaction of the families it touched.  It takes a young girl to see through the disease to the people, and for that reason, the book is brilliant.

I listened to this one on audio and Amy Rubinate narrated this very well.