The Gretchen Question

by Jessica Treadway

The Gretchen Question  recounts a day in the life of Roberta Chase, who does not have much time left to make peace with the son who’s punishing her for withholding his father’s true identity. A single mother torn between protecting her only child or revealing herself fully to the people she loves most, Roberta finds herself at war with conflicting loyalties, the increasing betrayal by her own body, the confused love she feels for her oldest friend, and a trauma from her past that casts a deep and possibly permanent shadow not only over her own life, but over the legacy she will bestow upon her son. Portraying the most intense and even shameful moments of motherhood, and the things we leave unsaid even to those we want most to hear them, the novel is also a celebration of one woman’s private reckoning with the source of her life’s most profound pain—as well as its greatest pleasure.

Genres: Fiction

240 pages, Paperback

First published June 9, 2020

About the author

Jessica Treadway is the author of four novels and three story collections, with a fourth, I FELT MY LIFE WITH BOTH MY HANDS, coming out in Spring 2026 from Cornerstone Press. Her collection PLEASE COME BACK TO ME received the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction; her novels are AND GIVE YOU PEACE; LACY EYE; HOW WILL I KNOW YOU? and THE GRETCHEN QUESTION. She teaches in MFA program at Emerson College in Boston.

Reviews

[Lynne Spreen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a fascinating read. At first, one might think a whole novel depicting a single day in the life of a character would be a heavy lift. But in the hands of this talented author, it’s captivating. I apologize if my review seems cryptic or oblique, but I don’t want to give away the story.

Roberta Chase isn’t quite fifty, and she’s just received a bad diagnosis. But she can’t worry about that now, because today she is on a mission. There are three things she needs to do: go to a meeting at work, take in the trash cans at her vacationing friend’s house, and see her therapist. As she moves through her day, she tells us about herself, and her life--the mistakes she’s made, her goals, frustrations, heartaches. It's well-paced and interesting.

Roberta has a friend, Grettie, whom she met in college and has been close with ever since. Although the relationship is odd. Why is Grettie always looking out for Roberta? Is it her way of reciprocating Roberta’s love? Grettie, born into good fortune that continues throughout her life, almost serves as a caretaker, an overseer making sure Roberta is all right. This is presented, but not explained. We're left to draw our own conclusions.

In spite of their closeness, Roberta hasn't let Grettie in on her secret. She knows part of it, but not all. Grettie doesn't know how deeply it has affected the whole of Roberta's life. This secret drives the entire narrative.

Roberta raised her son, Will, alone. Will is in college now, and he’s furious that his mother still won’t reveal any information about the sperm donor who fathered him. Furious to the point of cruelty. We wonder, is this an overreaction or does Roberta deserve it? Why won’t she tell? She is resolute about the secret. She tells lies about the sperm donor to pacify Will, but it fails. They’re estranged for a while, even through her first bout of cancer.

It’s difficult to get a true sense of these characters, because Roberta is an unreliable narrator. But she’s fascinating. She’s pathetic, yet resolute. I'm always curious about what it feels like to be inside the head of a person who makes bad decisions either because of illness or unsavory character. When we meet Roberta’s sister, a determined alcoholic, we learn something about their childhood that helps us understand.

Upon encountering Roberta, other characters (often strangers) express shock and concern, almost to the point of horror. They ask if she’s all right. They offer to drive her or help her and she rebuffs them, sometimes rudely. We wonder what it is about her appearance that causes this reaction, but we are left to conjure for ourselves. One almost feels as if Roberta is living in an alternate reality. She frequently reacts to other characters first with anger, and then an extreme kind of open-mindedness. She can't decide. She doesn't know. She's apart from the rest of humanity somehow. She is at sea, and you get the sense she was always this way. Why? And is this the correct interpretation?

We are at the mercy of her perspective. For example, when she goes in to work, she is perfunctorily fired, this after fifteen years on the job. There is no compassion for a woman dealing with cancer, it’s simply that she has been making serious errors in her work (medical coding) and now she is asked to leave. Roberta gathers herself and hurries back to her car. We wonder, in what universe would such cruelty occur? But the only answer is that she is too ill to question them. Or not. Perhaps they're the sick ones, wearing the uniform of normalcy.

All of the characters are nuanced and complex. The son might be forgiven for his coldness because of mistakes Roberta made raising him, but then he attempts something so malicious it's heartbreaking. His girlfriend is either honestly concerned or deeply manipulative. A neighbor, obsessed with appearances, frightens Roberta with her sneering confidence, but then suddenly reveals she's broken. This novel is so well-written that you don't really know who anybody is for sure, but what a depiction of humanity. It's compelling. I found myself racing toward the end to find the answers, and then I was left with pure admiration for the main character.

What an amazing story. Highly recommended.
(Thanks to the publisher for the opportunity to read the pre-release of the book.)

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

My definition of a good book is one that makes you think long after the last word on the last page. I love when I can't get the book out of my head, and I think about the characters and their situations as if they are real people going through real dilemmas. "The Gretchen Question" is not just a good book. It's a fantastic one. It's rare to find a story that sticks with me in the way that this one has. Still, even days after I finished, I am thinking about the situations and conversations in "The Gretchen Question" that contributed to a deeply rewarding reading experience.

Though this novel takes place over the course of a single day, it is rich with a colorful array of characters and interactions that keep you constantly intrigued and hungry for what comes next. One of my favorite parts of "The Gretchen Question" was the relationships between the complex characters and how they contributed to the psyche of the main character, Roberta. Roberta has been dealt many challenges in her life, and it's utterly fascinating to read how she approaches these challenges with respect to those she is close with. Roberta feels so authentic, and "The Gretchen Question" allows you an intimate look inside the mind of someone with so many questions and not all of the answers - a feeling that is universally relatable.

I can't recommend "The Gretchen Question" enough. This is a read that you won't regret.

[Jeanette · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was inciteful but I would not recommend this book. She sure can write. And the core of her writing, just as in this book, is character of a depressed, repressive, inward looking always, and core human who has little self-identity. Always her people are reactive and not active.

So I do suspect that many will like her works more than I do. This particular one I felt was terribly well done for the first 1/3rd. Less well done for the middle. And just about rote and writing to get it over with for the last 1/3rd.

You don't want to read this book on a grey rainy day. It's a chill and misery pill over all.

Really, I can't imagine the kind of relationship she keeps with her son in this book. How could she ever believe or intuit or foresee true nurturing for his potential "eyes". This entire basis she keeps for interactions- how she distorts and plays any true facts? I just don't understand keeping those kinds of secrets as any possible relative position to a sharing or passing on solid mental health.

Roberta is only strong in her weakness affinity, IMHO. I most probably will be done with this author, She is excellent in women's insight and prose expression for thought patterns but terrible in base mood and within her personal views of "reality". UGH!

[BookTrib.com]

THE GRETCHEN QUESTION is a no-judgment zone from the very beginning when Roberta sympathizes with the motives of a petty thief to the moment her old friend puts a comforting arm around her shoulders and says, “Oh, Bert. We’re beyond all that now, aren’t we?” Readers may close the book thinking that Gretchen questions are, simply, better left unasked. We’re beyond all that.

Read our full review here:
https://booktrib.com/2020/06/if-you-d...

[Eileen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow this book has me thinking. It all takes place in one day of the main character’s life but as she goes along with her day we hear about things in her life leading up to it. Several things are left up to the reader to decide. I almost took off a star for yet another author having to let you know how much she hates Trump/the right but I’m going to forgive her for that because the book was so good.

[Shirley Hay · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novel is a deeply touching exploration of motherhood and what it means to protect a child. I felt an enormous range of emotions as I read this book - from nostalgia to loyalty to betrayal to friendship, and to the most profound moments of loneliness. I was invested in Roberta's story from the very first chapter. Her story will live with me for a long time to come.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was recommended by someone whom I trust and admire. Thank you! This was a short book, but a book that I did not want to put down. Not too hard, but hardly an easy read. Great ready for some emotions.

[Mary Conway · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very mixed - parts of it were extraordinary but the central character's unreliability challenges your ability to sympathize.