How to Say Goodbye in Robot: A Review

Natalie Standiford's debut novel, How to Say Goodbye in Robot tells the story of a girl who moves from place to place quite frequently. Moving doesn't bother Beatrice anymore, but she can't wait for summer vacation to end and school to start so she can get away from her mother who is on an emotional roller coaster lately. Beatrice thinks her mom is acting crazy, but her mom thinks Beatrice has turned into a robot and has no emotions at all.

When Beatrice, or Bea for short, goes to the first day of school she just assumes her new friends will be girls she meets on the first day. She wasn't expecting to begin a friendship with Jonah, known as Ghost Boy to his classmates. Jonah comes with a lot of baggage, a dead mother and twin brother, and a father he never talks to. In fact, the only people Jonah seems to talk to are callers to a late night talk show called the Night Lites.

When Jonah reveals to Bea that he just found out his twin brother, Matthew, isn't really dead the two decide to start a quest to break Matthew out of the hospital he's been living in for the past several years, and after high school graduation the three of them can begin a life together.

Standiford's story is about Robot Girl and Ghost Boy, who are more than friends, but don't have a romantic relationship. Bea doesn't have an interest in any other boys, but she doesn't really want to kiss Jonah either. Girls at school try to be friends with Bea, but she typically blows them off to hang out with Jonah. She's not interested in being friends with girls who are focused on clothes and appearances, when she can spend all day with Jonah hanging out at book stores, listening to the Night Lites, and occasionally going to parties hosted by the listeners of the Night Lites.

Throughout the story I wanted to scream at Bea to just give up on Jonah. He has a temper that the girls at school warned her about, and doesn't want her to hang out with anyone else, and sometimes warns her to just stay away from him. I know Bea has a strong friendship with Jonah, but if someone who constantly goes from being my friend one minute to screaming at me to leave him alone the next minute, I'd just forget about being his friend. Sure he has some family issues, but he isn't willing to allow Bea to help him.

I enjoyed this book and will look for future titles from this author, but it's a book I have to be in a certain mood to read. Did I enjoy it? Yes. Was it sad? No. However, it left me with a strange feeling. Not happy, but not sad. If you're wanting to read an uplifting book I advise you to shy away from How to Say Goodbye in Robot. If you're a stickler for closure and have to have all loose ends tied up when you complete a novel, this may not be the book for you. The storyline is very good and has a unique feel to it. Sure there are other books out there about friendships between teenage boys and girls, but this one is different. Both Jonah and Bea are more complex than teenagers who just want to get drunk, date lots of people, and have a great time. Instead they want to deal with their issues they both have with family, and are happy with being themselves and not conforming to high school stereotypes.

Fans of deep and meaningful young adult literature will enjoy How to Say Goodbye in Robot. It has weight to it and leaves you thinking so it's not the right book to take with you for a day of reading on the beach, but when you're in the mood to read something with meaning and a story with depth that will keep you thinking, this is an enjoyable read.