It is a great love of mine to find time to read for pleasure. So often, I’m reading blogs and essays on parenting and potty training and toddler tantrums and the like that I am ecstatic to lay in the bed, if only for five minutes before I fall asleep with the Kindle in my hand, and read something delicious, for my own pleasure. Hubby and I sometimes slip into phases where we watch TV instead of read, but I love the times that reading takes the place of a TV binge.

Recently, I read a post from my friend Ginna (her blog is here!) about a book she was reading. Okay, confession: it was not recent. It was over the summer. Details, right? I’m a procrastinator. Anyway, I just finished the book she had recommended, Where’d You Go, Bernadette? by Maria Semple.

The title character, Bernadette, is a seemingly washed-up but brilliant architect, loved by her quirky daughter and Microsoft-guru husband, revered by architecture nerds all around, and hated by her fellow private school mothers who think she is a social disaster. We read the saga from the daughter Bee’s point of view, and follow the mother-daughter relationship closely. As you may assume from the title, Bernadette disappears, and we go literally to the ends of the earth (Antarctica) trying to find her. The twist at the end is a total kicker, solidifying our warm feelings toward the family of three that we had at the beginning of the book.

It’s written very interestingly (I thought at first oddly, haha), including emails and notes to and from different characters, mixed in with Bee’s narrative. The reason for it is cleared up at the end, with the twist, so hold out through the odd writing… you will be rewarded!

Has anyone else read the book? What did you think? Have you read anything interesting recently that I should read? I’m always looking for suggestions!