Category Archives: Books

What I’m Reading: Where’d You Go, Bernadette

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13526165From Goodreads.com:
Bernadette Fox is notorious. To her Microsoft-guru husband, she’s a fearlessly opinionated partner; to fellow private-school mothers in Seattle, she’s a disgrace; to design mavens, she’s a revolutionary architect, and to 15-year-old Bee, she is a best friend and, simply, Mom.

Then Bernadette disappears. It began when Bee aced her report card and claimed her promised reward: a family trip to Antarctica. But Bernadette’s intensifying allergy to Seattle—and people in general—has made her so agoraphobic that a virtual assistant in India now runs her most basic errands. A trip to the end of the earth is problematic.

To find her mother, Bee compiles email messages, official documents, secret correspondence—creating a compulsively readable and touching novel about misplaced genius and a mother and daughter’s role in an absurd world.

My review:
I really wanted to enjoy Where’d You Go, Bernadette after hearing so many rave reviews. I wouldn’t say I didn’t enjoy it, but I felt a little let down by it in the end.

The characters themselves were all great. I loved reading about Bernadette and all her craziness, although sometimes she seemed to be a little too crazy. Why her husband didn’t intervene earlier and try and get her help is beyond me, especially considering the state of their “house” and her agoraphobia.

The way the story was put together didn’t quite make the mark for me. When I read the book cover I thought the story would be more about Bee trying to figure out where her mother disappeared to. Instead, it was a little discombobulated and when Bernadette finally does disappear, the remainder of the story seems rushed and plot lines seem unfinished. (What about Soo-Lin? Audrey?) I was rapidly turning the pages to see what happens, only to feel a little let down.

(I’d also like to know what Bernadette has against us Canadians, haha!)

Still, Where’d You Go, Bernadette is still an OK read. There a hint of satire and sarcasm that really spoke to me, so I’m still going to give it 3.5 stars out of 5.

 

What I’m Reading: Crazy Rich Asians

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18373213From Goodreads.com:
When New Yorker Rachel Chu agrees to spend the summer in Singapore with her boyfriend, Nicholas Young, she envisions a humble family home and quality time with the man she hopes to marry. But Nick has failed to give his girlfriend a few key details. One, that his childhood home looks like a palace; two, that he grew up riding in more private planes than cars; and three, that he just happens to be the country’s most eligible bachelor.
 
On Nick’s arm, Rachel may as well have a target on her back the second she steps off the plane, and soon, her relaxed vacation turns into an obstacle course of old money, new money, nosy relatives, and scheming social climbers.

My review:
Perhaps it’s my Asian genes, but I was really drawn to this book when I was browsing through the online bookstore. It sat on my Wishlist for a while and I finally decided to download it last week. Once I started reading it, I couldn’t put it down!

There are SO many things that made to go, “THAT’S MY FAMILY!” Not the rich part, obviously, but there were elements that I could totally relate to. (My husband lovingly refers to me as ‘Chincy Chow’ from time to time.)

Aside from the bits of relatability, Crazy Rich Asians is a fun, easy read. The lack of character development and plot seems to be a bone of contention with many people who have read the book, but I think the author wanted the main focus of the book to be the ricidulous over-the-top spending of the Singaporean wealthy rather than the character’s inner hopes and dreams. (I noticed that there’s a sequel to Crazy Rich Asians, so perhaps we’ll learn more there.)

I truly enjoyed this book and found myself laughing out loud a lot! Sure, the characters are shallow, but what crazy rich person isn’t? I still gave Crazy Rich Asians 5 stars out of 5.

 

What I’m Reading: What Alice Forgot

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Image via Goodreads

From Goodreads.com:

Alice Love is twenty-nine, crazy about her husband, and pregnant with her first child. So imagine Alice’s surprise when she comes to on the floor of a gym (a gym! She HATES the gym) and is whisked off to the hospital where she discovers the honeymoon is truly over — she’s getting divorced, she has three kids, and she’s actually 39 years old. Alice must reconstruct the events of a lost decade, and find out whether it’s possible to reconstruct her life at the same time. She has to figure out why her sister hardly talks to her, and how is it that she’s become one of those super skinny moms with really expensive clothes. Ultimately, Alice must discover whether forgetting is a blessing or a curse, and whether it’s possible to start over…

My review:

This is the third Liane Moriarty book I’ve read and while I still enjoyed it, it was my least favourite after Big Little Lies and The Husband’s Secret.

I felt that it was kind of all over the place; between the “main” plot of Alice forgetting the past 10 years of her life, Elisabeth’s journal entries to her shrink, and Frannie’s letters to her fiancé, it felt a little cluttered. I’m not so sure Frannie’s letters added anything to the storyline, although I appreciated Elisabeth’s.

Like I said though, I did enjoy book as a whole and it made me think about how much life and relationships can change, regardless of how solid you think they are. And how insane would it be if you woke up and thought it was 10 years previous, forgetting everything? I’d probably crap my pants if I woke up and suddenly I had three kids and was in the middle of a hostile divorce. I had a hard time putting the book down as I wanted to find out if/when Alice remembered the past 10 years and how she would react to what transpired.

I still gave What Alice Forgot 4 stars out of 5. It’s a good read and really makes you think about your own life!

Where do you think you’ll be in 10 years?