I received a copy of The Glass Eye from the publisher in exchange for my honest review. I hope it gives Vanasco closure and the impetus to continue moving forward. Although to say I enjoyed this book would be a stretch – that’s mostly due to the content not the writing style. I’d pick up more of her work in the future, since I can’t help but feel some maternal instincts towards her. She chose an incredibly difficult topic and handled it with skill. I applaud Vanasco for her persistence in getting this book and her experiences on paper. I’m glad I did, because that’s where the beginnings of resolution appear. But after a week or two of this, I decided to take a day and power through the last 100 pages. So I’d put the book down, and pick it up when I could face the pain again. I’d read for a while, and start to feel overwhelmed with sadness. The Glass Eye isn’t a long book, but it took me a long time to read it. I can’t imagine processing all this grief at such a young age. Jeannie’s deepest grieving moments felt like a kick in the chest, yet my reaction was to feel so much compassion for her. Now add into the mix the author’s mental illness, and you can see the complexities of this memoir. Vanasco was given the same name (spelled slightly differently) as her half sister. Her father also experienced horrible grief when his 16 year old daughter died in a car accident. Because of this strong bond, Vanasco suffers from a long and complicated grieving process.

They were extraordinarily close, since she was born when he was older and had more opportunity to be her caregiver. And yet, she finds a way to move forward in the memoir and life.Īt eighteen, Vanasco agreed to write a book for her dad as he was dying. Vanasco illustrates both her writing process and her mental illness by jumping around thematically and chronologically. The narrative thread is more of a spaghetti-like jumble of disparate elements. But it also touched my heart and made me appreciate her willingness to be vulnerable. There were times it made me squirm with discomfort. Jeannie Vanasco bares her soul in The Glass Eye: A Memoir.

The glass eye a memoir