Book Review: A Silent Treatment: A Memoir by Jeannie Vanasco 

INTRO

I have to be honest: I am usually not the type to pick up a nonfiction book. While I have a few of my nonfiction favorites, they are few and far between, and I often find myself lost in worlds of fantasy or young adult fiction. However, when I read the synopsis for Jennie Vanasco’s new memoir, I knew that I had to read it. It’s interesting title and premise made me instantly realize that this would not be a normal nonfiction book, or even a normal memoir, and I have never been more delighted to be right.

OVERVIEW

A Silent Treatment: A Memoir is a deep and raw look at Vanasco’s experience in living and enduring her mother’s silent treatment. Vanasco takes us with her as she explores her thoughts and emotions towards her mother and her silent treatment, writing with a vulnerability that is both emotional for her and the reader. 

In her book, Vanasco takes us to moments of her life where the loudest noise was her mother’s silence. The memoir works through Vanasco’s memories of growing up and explores themes of self-blame and guilt as she wonders why she is now subjected to these moments of silence. She also traces back to moments of her mother’s past, wondering if her experiences of abuse in her childhood or her loneliness after losing her husband contributed to her actions later in life. 

Vanasco also balances her love and anger for her mother. Throughout the book, Vanasco writes all the emotions that surrounded her as she was subjected to silent treatment. She writes about her anger and frustration towards her mother, dissecting her own behavior to wonder why her mother felt the need to ignore her. But within her disappointment, Vanasco also writes about her love for her mother, and her longing for them to have a good relationship. This tragic juxtaposition makes this a beautiful read. 

THOUGHTS

After I was done analyzing the effect of this memoir, I gave A Silent Treatment  4/5 stars.  

Vanasco does a wonderful job in bringing the reader into her world—and her mother’s silence. Vanasco is a fantastic storyteller, and I often found myself feeling the same emotions that she described, completely enthralled by her experience. Vanasco paints a complex and dynamic picture of her mother and their relationship. While I found myself angry at her mother for her silence, I also found myself understanding her as Vanasco wrote about her complicated history.   

There is no question that Vanasco is a very talented writer. However, I found that the unique writing style of this memoir was difficult to follow at times. Vanasco bypasses this use of quotation marks or traditional paragraph formatting. While I do think that this style contributes to the powerfulness of the book, I cannot lie and say that it did not confuse me at times. The book also shifts between time, not following a chronological narrative. Throughout the book, Vanasco draws back to moments of the past, or to moments in the future, with singular, hard-hitting lines. However, although these lines are important to the narrative, they were quite repetitive, and I found myself sometimes skipping over them, already knowing what they said and what the intended message they said was. 

Overall, A Silent Treatment was a beautiful memoir that explored how powerful silence can be. Vanasco did a wonderful job explaining her thoughts and emotions revolving around her relationship with her mother and made me think deeper about my own relationships. If you are looking for a read that will make your mind transcend its current understanding, I recommend that you pick up a copy today!

Madeline Davis (’28) is a sophomore at Susquehanna University.  She is a Marketing and Advertising & Public Relations dual major. In addition to her marketing work at the Blough-Weis Library,  Madeline serves as the Public Relations manager for Susquehanna’s Best Buddies chapter and as an editor for Ginkgo Magazine. Outside of school, she enjoys reading, writing, and antiquing with friends.