Why the House Is Made of Gingerbread: Poems

L.E. Phillabaum Poetry Award

by Ava Leavell Haymon

In Ava Leavell Haymon's third collection, an unremarkable, harried, contemporary woman named Gretel finds herself at midlife overtaken by the Grimms' household tale "Hansel and Gretel." The violence and terror in that story supplant the memory of her own childhood, and the fairy tale retells itself in a sharp succession of surprising poems. The witch, the sugar house, Gretel's brother, her passive father, his cruel second wife, the sinister forest -- all these and more rise like jazz motifs to play themselves in the present. Addressing themes such as hunger, child abuse, betrayal, cannibalism, and murder in a tone by turns disturbing and humorous, Why the House Is Made of Gingerbread is most certainly not a book for children.

Genres: Poetry, Fairy Tales

72 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2010

Reviews

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Poet Ava Leavell Haymon's collection, Why the House is Made of Gingerbread, was recommended by a friend, and I have to say that for the most part, Haymon's work, which is new to me, was quite enjoyable. The premise of this collection is that an ordinary contemporary woman finds herself drowning in both life and Hansel and Gretel. Throughout the collection, parallels are drawn between the persona's own life and the fairy tale.

I believe that some readers might find the Hansel and Gretel theme a bit tiresome, especially since the whole collection makes references to the fairy tale, but I found just enough poems to hold my interest. My favorite? "How a Good Girl Learns to Kill" where the main character explains that "Little birds, rabbits/caught in her simple snares//these were easy once/the knife was sharp//But to kill the witch/Gretel had to give up// the first mother."

I couldn't find a lot of the poems from this book online, but one work found on Haymon's homepage is a great introduction to the collection.

http://avahaymon.com/

[Mary McMyne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lyrical poems, arranged in moving sequence. Especially haunting was the section "Everygirl sings herself an old lullaby," which features the poem "Cradlesong" about the historical roots of a familiar, disturbing lullaby. I will never look at it or "Hansel and Gretel" in quite the same light.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gretel blackens the inside edge of a shadow
and wonders: Where is the witch?

Inside the house looking out? Hiding behind trees,
cackling under her breath that her bait has attracted
its prey? Is she in the sky somehow, sailing back
from who knows where to witness this arrival?

And then Gretel sees her--her two eyes
are the round heads of the lost children,
her jagged nose line cuts through
the hands they hold tight. Below that,

the last curve of gold smirks into a mouth.
Gretel squeezes the red crayon in her fist,
stabs preschooler zigzags for teeth.
She squints and sees all the rest...

from "Everygirl's Mandala"

I was a big fan of Ava Leavell Haymon's poetry collection Kitchen Heat, and this collection Why the House is Made of Gingerbread does not disappoint. Haymon uses the tale of Hansel and Gretel to examine in a series of poems the impact of evil and memory repression in the everyday world. Haymon fuses two genres well--realism and fantasy--and, in doing so, leaves the reader dizzy from trying to fully comprehend the odd intersections she navigates. Odd as it probably sounds, this collection of poems would make an excellent film. Highly recommend.

The insistent new version of her childhood:
uncluttered clashes among simple forces, a death
struggle. In short, a fairy tale,

one which calls for hero children--girl and boy--
always lively and frequently lucky,
and maybe the standard reward at the end.

She looks back at this childhood
and asks: Who was Hansel?
Why was it I who had to kill the witch?

Why does the story begin with the mother
dead? The walls of gingerbread--
they were not on plumb. They'd yawed

against each other, skidded sideways a bit
till the eggwhites in the icing set hard.
Who raises, who braces walls with only sugar?

from "Fairy-Tale Childhood"

Louisiana Poetry Reviews

The Dirty Side of the Storm: Poems<<<>>>Memorial + Sight lines

[Michelle Hoogterp · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love the story telling and connectivity of the poems. the poetry is warm and cozy despite the dangers of womanhood that seat Gretel and the mixed memories of her namesake.

[Rowena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully grim reinterpretations of an already unsettling faerie tale.

[Benjamin Niespodziany · Rating 3 out of 5]

A modern and lyrical retelling of the famous fairy tale as a woman finds her way. I wanted a bit more fabulist magic, but still found it to be an enjoyable read.

[Carrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found the conceit of this book--an adult woman slips into the fairy tale with herself as a conflicted Gretel--fascinating, but ultimately the poems don't quite live up to the conceit.

[Hillary Major · Rating 2 out of 5]

First poem was better than an "OK," but collection as a whole was just that.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

retellings of the Hansel and gretel story as well as an exploration of Gretel as a real person, Loved the middle section