How to Say Goodbye in Robot by Natalie Standiford

Bea is not a stranger to moving, and consequently, she’s given up on lasting friendships. Since her latest move to Baltimore, Bea has figured she’ll probably end up buddies with some random but overly friendly girl at her new school. Instead, Bea finds herself sitting next to Jonah, a withdrawn and sullen boy who hasn’t made a friend since the third grade, and somehow their less than cordial introduction morphs into something in the realm of friendship. And they certainly make an interesting duo, connected by a love of late-night radio and secrets in their pasts and possibly appropriately nicknamed Ghost Boy and Robot Girl. But as with all friendships this deep, there comes the hard times, the pushing away and the pulling back. Will each ever know how much this bond means to the other? And could one ever recover from a separation, because as much as they’d like to think they’re ghosts and robots, they’re really just people.

How to Say Goodbye in Robot is a novel all about the depth and complexities of the truest form of friendship, as well as the quirks of other relationships people share. It is a story heavily reliant on its characters, which are thankfully realistic, and its writing, which was thoughtful and descriptive. I truly enjoyed the characters in this story, particularly Bea and Jonah. Even with all their peculiarities, their personalities are believable and easy to relate to. Standiford so wonderfully develops their selves that they become people the reader genuinely cares about and wants to understand. Another thing I loved about this story is how it shows that the seemingly random connections people make among each other sometimes end up being the most perfect combinations ever. It’s more than just “it’s a small world;” it’s about all the wonder the world creates, how fate worlds in mysterious ways, the magic in bringing people together, and all the possibilities in life. How to Say Goodbye in Robot is a sweet, touching, and even a little heartbreaking story that shows that no matter how much we want to think we’re okay on our own, we really do need other people.

This novel will be enjoyed by fans of The Miles Between by Mary E. Pearson and Paper Towns by John Green.

Rating: 4.25

Review copy from publisher Scholastic