Hilary Plattner launches "The Momma Puzzle," with Nicole Treska

Hilary Plattner will read from The Momma Puzzle, followed by a conversation with writer Nicole Treska, audience Q&A, book signing, and reception.

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In February 1968, Hilary Plattner’s mother died by suicide. It was the height of the Vietnam war and Hilary was six years old.

Years later, in an attempt to understand the mystery of her mother’s death, she studies the items her mother left behind: photographs, and a file of papers from the 1950s when Momma worked as a Foreign Service secretary in Saigon. Hilary pores over letters written to her future father, her grandmother, and to her mother’s best friend.

She dreams of burning the pile of documents in a bonfire, and simply being done with it all. But she continues her investigation and eventually discovers an important piece of the puzzle: her mother’s medical records from a psychiatric hospital. Ultimately, she forms an image of who Momma was—and finds a way to release herself from the hold of her family history.

Advance Praise for The Momma Puzzle

“The book’s archival method—reproducing letters, Christmas cards, newspaper clippings—creates a feeling of intimacy while foregrounding what cannot be known. A painter’s business card, dress designs clipped from magazines…accumulate texture, but the most powerful passages acknowledge the limits of documentation. Suicide, the author writes, makes people ‘disappear.’” — Kirkus Reviews

“Plattner pieces together her mother’s life story in this moving memoir, tackling loss, grief, and the aftershocks of generational trauma. . . . Plattner’s early memories of her mother provide a respite from the memoir’s heavy subject matter, and, in appreciating the quiet moments of their time together . . . she derives much-needed meaning, reconciling her anger, guilt, and resentment with lingering feelings of love for a mother lost to her long ago.” —Publishers Weekly's Booklife Reviews

“If you’ve ever felt like you didn't quite finish the puzzle of a loved one's life, or if you simply appreciate a beautifully told story of complexity and resilience, this book is a must-read. It’s a comforting, affirming reminder that seeking understanding is a crucial part of healing, and that even the most difficult endings can lead to a deeper appreciation of the beginning. The Momma Puzzle is an absolutely lovely and illuminating memoir, and I highly recommend adding it to your reading list.” —Los Angeles Book Review

Hilary Plattner holds a Master of Fine Arts in fiction writing from Columbia University and has taught writing at The New School. Previously, she founded and directed Brooklyn Writers, a community-based writing program. Her fiction and poetry have been published in numerous literary journals, including Allegro, Cider Press Review, Fence, GSU Review, Gulf Coast, Synkroniciti, and The Ledge. She lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her family.

Nicole Treska is the author of the debut memoir Wonderland: A Tale of Hustling Hard and Breaking Even. The Wall Street Journal called Wonderland "gatsbyesque," and Treska "washed up on the shores of respectability.” Her writing has also appeared in Harper's Bazaar, New York Tyrant, The End, Forever Magazine, Epiphany Magainze, and Archway Editions. Her interviews and reviews are up at BOMB, Electric Literature, Guernica, The Rumpus, and others.

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