Helen Oyeyemi Dishes Up Magic in Her New Novel, ‘Gingerbread’ (Published 2019) (2024)

GINGERBREAD
By Helen Oyeyemi

I have a recurring disappointment with modern novels. Even when the characters act believably out of character and the plot twists in a satisfying way, all too often I can predict the next step. I find myself skimming sentences, paragraphs, entire pages without missing a single important morsel.

Helen Oyeyemi doesn’t allow her readers such laziness. Her sentences are like grabbing onto the tail of a vibrant, living creature without knowing what you’ll find at the other end. It’s absolutely exhilarating.

Her newest novel, “Gingerbread,” is no exception. Early in the story, the main character walks through a field and passes an “array of plant-vertebrate combinations,” including droopy-eared rabbits, which she douses with her watering can. A few paragraphs later, “the wheat field had done it again, stolen the afternoon.” Everything is alive, unpredictable, sometimes whimsical and other times sinister, and often very bizarre.

I knew immediately there wasn’t going to be any skimming. This novel would require attention, not just because I couldn’t guess where each sentence was leading, but also because I was trying to get my feet under me. Where am I? Is this science fiction or a fairy tale? Maybe satire or social commentary?

[ This book was one of our most anticipated titles of March. See the full list here. ]

Fans of Oyeyemi’s highly acclaimed novel “Boy, Snow, Bird” or her story collection, “What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours,” will expect an electric, genre-defying style, and won’t be disappointed. New readers should prepare to be dizzied.