This is a really unusual book, mainly because of Semple's odd, yet strangely heroic characters and partly because it is written in epistolary format, which I find very appealing. Semple uses a combination of emails, faxes, letters, and reports (police, FBI, medical, etc.) interspersed with Bee Fox's commentary to tell Bernadette's story. It reminded me at times of Alan Bradley's Flavia de Luce series, but I think that was mainly because of the crumbling home, brilliant minds, and eccentric behavior.
Where Bernadette Fox actually went is examined on several levels. Does the title refer to her disappearance from the architectural world after winning a prestigious award just before the destruction of her brilliant signature project, to her apparently fragile mental state and agoraphobic tendencies, or her sudden departure from home after her husband stages an intervention because he believes her to be suicidal or addicted to drugs? Daughter Bee (short for Balakrishna) and husband Elgie, an inventor who works for Microsoft, love Bernadette unconditionally and don't seem especially bothered by her behavior as the story unfolds. They even plan a trip to Antartica to reward Bee for her excellent grades. Bernadette's dealings with her next-door neighbor and fellow Galer School mother (whose name escapes me at the moment) and the email exchanges between her and Elgie's assistant (with the multi-hyphenated, multi-cultural name) are absolutely hilarious, adding an irresistible slapstick element to the novel. Is it believable? Absolutely not! Will you love? I think so! Check it out soon!
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