Dealing with people is not always a pleasant experience. For Bernadette Fox, it's actually a form of extreme torture. The parents at the alternative school where her daughter, Bee, attends 8th grade are atrocious. For that matter, all Seattle residents (especially those transplanted from Idaho and Canada) are exhausting. She builds walls around her eccentric life, where she lives in a decaying former girls boarding school with Bee, her genius Microsoft-legend husband, and dog. A virtual assistant from India does her bidding, including making dinner reservations for a restaurant across town. All she wants is to continue living in the comfort of her bubble. Her bubble, however, slowly begins to deflate when Bee announces she wants to take a trip to Antarctica in reward for her good grades. Unable to get out of the commitment, the decision to travel sets off a long string of hilarious and bizarre events that eventually lead to a major wake-up call for everyone involved.
Where'd You Go Bernadette? is written from Bee's perspective as she goes through layers of emails and letters from school officials, classmates' moms, Microsoft personnel, and mental health officials. As she reads articles involving her family, police records and more, readers are taken on a roller coaster ride of events in order to figure out what will become of Bernadette. Even though readers will laugh out loud at the absurdity of Bernadette's life, it will warm hearts as well. Because it's also a story about a daughter searching for connection with her parents. Where'd You Go, Bernadette? reminds me of Wes Anderson's Moonrise Kingdom. It's thoroughly enjoyable for anyone - teen or adult - who is brave enough to ask, where'd you go, Bernadette?