Customer Reviews
Beautiful and compelling - By: kimbofo, 19 Dec 2006 
This beautifully succinct novel tells the story of two lonely 30-somethings, both coming to terms with personal tragedies, who forge a tentative -- & rocky -- friendship, almost by accident, on a cliff top overlooking Dublin Bay.
Clara, a freelance writer & lecturer who livesin a house filled with clutter & an overgrown garden, is recovering from major surgery & nursing a broken heart after a failed love affairin New York.
Meanwhile Laurence (Lar), a teacher from Northern Ireland, is mourning the loss of his wife & 10-month old daughter, who were killed two years' earlier.
Both characters have muchin common -- they are dealing with loss & grief, & the claustrophobia of familial concern -- but they deal with their problemsin vastly different ways. Clara is outspoken, blunt to the point of rudeness & self-deprecating; Lar is filled with hate & quietly stewingin his own anger.
However, as the story gradually enfolds we see that it is Clara who finds it difficult to express herself, other than on the written page, while Lar opens up to strangers, expunging his guilt & pain like verbal diarrhoea.
With no real plot to speak of, the narrative force of this novel revolves around each character's growth & journey to self-realisation. It is not a romance novel -- the friendship between the two is purely platonic -- but it is a novel about the fragility of the human heart.
Johnston, who is an acclaimed writerin her native Ireland, is a master at drip feeding information so that the reader is never quite sure what is driving her characters to say & do certain things. Then a certain fact is revealed that slots neatly into place & everything suddenly makes sense. I am sure I said 'a-ha!!' out loud several times while reading this book as fragmented pieces of information began to join upin my head to form one cohesive -- & intriguing -- whole.
My only quibble is that I found it hard to believe that a single woman would invite a strange man, who is "sickin the head" as she puts it, to come & stay with her for a few days... but then maybe this just demonstrates Clara's naivety & trusting nature, traits which have landed herin troublein the past.
Ultimately The Gingerbread Woman is a very sad & emotional book, but it is a compelling tale about hope, second chances borne through friendship & human resilencein the face of personal tragedy. I loved this near-perfect book & did not want the story to end & will definitely be reading more by this wonderfully talented writer.
A compelling and challenging novel - By: , 17 Mar 2002 "The Gingerbread Woman" clearly demonstrates Jennifer Johnston's experience as a consummate storyteller. She deals compassionately with the difficult themes of death & disease, weaving a surprisingly fast paced (very little actually happens) & compelling narrative. The characters are carefully crafted & though the reader may not like either of the main charactersin their often self-indulgent pity & grief, Johnston nonetheless makes their lives both accessible & commanding of the reader's attention.
This would be a great book for any book club to discuss, as there are plenty of moral questions raised. Setin Ireland & New York, the novel provides a careful commentary on the question of adultery & lust & raises the idea of the responsibilities of terrorists. Both difficult concepts are dealt with sympathetically by Johnston, leaving the reader with no easy answers.
The narrative is very clever, with the novelist within the novel exploring her past whilst coming to terms with her present. Johnson's description of the past & the passionate love affair is wonderfully evocative & maintains the reader's interest.
The end of the novel is a little frustrating; another book club debate could revolve around when the reader guesses the outcome! And I was also a little dissatisfied with the moral message of adultery leading to heartache & ultimately punishment for the protagonist. Nonetheless this is a beautifully written book; I read itin one sitting & thoroughly enjoyed the whole thing. Having never encountered Johnson before I will certainly search out her other novels as both her style & her themes provide the reader with food for thought, an element sadly lackingin a number of recent best sellers.
A deeply touching book. - By: , 07 Nov 2000 This book, setin Dublin, is the story of Clara & Lar, two people who are trying to deal with their sad, tragic pasts.
Lar has tried to run away from his past & the death of his wife & childin a car crash. Clara, on the other hand, tries to deal with her horrible past, a tragic relationship, by writing a book about it, entitled 'The Gingerbread Woman' (hence the title).
These two characters meet by chance, at Killiney Hill, & develop a special friendship.
Johnston looks at various themesin the book, such as; how tragedy effects people, the waysin which people deal tragedy, communication, relationships & love.
The author also skilfully gives the audience a deep insight into her realistic characters. One of the most original waysin which she does this is, of course, through Clara's novel.
This use of meta-fiction is extremely effective because as well as giving the reader an insight into Clara's character, it makes the book ever more interesting by giving it two plots.
The book is extremely sad, but it does offer hopein the end, as the characters begin to rise out of the depression of their pasts, & look to the future.
