Rules for Saying Goodbye

by: Katherine Taylor

Published by: Picador

Reviewed by Caryn St. Clair

Kate Taylor’s entire life is a mess. Her family is textbook dysfunctional, with a budding criminal for a brother, a neurotic mother and a mostly absent father. While she and her brother Ethan appear to be reasonably normal on the surface, the consequences of their less-than-nurturing childhood leaves them unable to cope.

Rules for Saying Goodbye is the story of Kate’s journey from a childhood in Fresno through boarding school in Massachusetts to adulthood in New York and Rome, and finally back to Fresno. It is not a happy trip.

Author Katherine Taylor has done a phenomenal job capturing human relationships at all levels. She shows the worst traits of people all through the book, starting with Kate’s parents. Life with her somewhat cold and detached father and hypochondriac and neurotic mother has done nothing to prepare Kate to stand up to the likes of Page, her boarding school roommate. Nor do Kate’s school experiences help her deal with life’s ups and downs as a grown-up. When the stress of everyday life gets to her to the point that her hair is falling out, Kate’s coping skills amount to popping vitamins and moving. And so the reader follows while Kate slogs through five years of prep school, college in Northern California, New York City, London, Rome, New York and finally back to Fresno. While she receives a topnotch education, she lacks the drive to make a success of life. While in her personal life, she drifts, failing to make a commitment.

I think the book is meant to be funny. It’s filled with nearly slapstick moments, yet they seem to miss the mark for me. There are books written with characters from dysfunctional families that are quite funny because of their eccentricity. And there are some books that are quite sad because of the tragic family circumstances. But Rules for Saying Goodbye is neither. I found the book to be extremely depressing. There were some humorous moments, and for the most part I found the life journey compelling reading, but Kate and her family were just too depressing for my tastes.

Armchair Interviews says: Heed this reviewer’s comments.

Author’s Web site: http://www.KatherineTaylor.com