Begin again: New and collected poems

by Grace Paley

For someone who describes herself as a "combative pacifist and cooperative anarchist," Grace Paley writes poetry like a rebel angel. Combining selections from her two previous volumes as well as new and unpublished poems, Begin Again is the work of a seasoned literary veteran but also that of a lifelong bur under the establishment's saddle. A teacher, activist, and National Book Award-winning master of the short story form, Paley fashions poems as terse as haiku but as direct and earthy as a note to a friend--which, in fact, several of these seem to be. Here are poems about milkweed pods, Saint John's wort, bees, and ants, as well as poems about El Salvador, Vietnam, and AIDS. Verses about the five-day week ("like a long bath in the / first bathtub of God") rub shoulders with those about responsibility:

It is the responsibility of the male poet to be a woman
It is the responsibility of the female poet to be a woman
It is the poet's responsibility to speak truth to power as the Quakers say

Who else could pen these lines and not perish under their weight? To say that Paley is a political writer is like saying that the hero of the Old Testament is an omnipotent God; without either half of the equation, there isn't much point. War, capitalism, sanitary napkins, old age and old dogs: no detail in the lives of men and women is too large or too small to warrant her compassionate eye. These are poems deeply invested in life and the world, rendered in a voice so immediate you feel you've called Grace up for a chat. --Chloe Byrne

Genres: Poetry, Anthologies

126 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Grace Paley was an American short story writer, poet, and political activist whose work won a number of awards.

Reviews

[Lesley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Strong woman, strong voice, strong poems...

[Grete · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars. Enjoyed the situatedness of these poems, the way they grow out of Paley's environment. Simple, vital language. Social consciousness that produces something more enduring than time-bound protest pieces (most of the time, anyway). Echoes of song patterns. Love of the body, nature, and humanity. Unsentimental family stories, rich in grief and humor.

[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

She has a sly sense of humor that I love. For example, the poem, "The Sad Children", which she writes after a visit from her adult children who have spent the time criticizing everything. Pretty great.

[Evan]

"At that time
I had a pocketful
of excellent stones

but I was not
without sin what
could I do but
walk heavily heavily"

[Kristin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I felt very close to Grace Paley reading this, and it surprises me I took so long to come to her. It was lovely to feel so known, from the reference to Mahopac and familiarity of the subway to the poems of resistance and notations of home. I wish I could have had a chance to study with her.

I especially loved "My Mother, 33 Years Later," "Fear," "When I was Asked How I Could Leave Vermont in the Middle of October," "In Montpelier, Vermont," "The Word Thrum," and "Walking in the Woods." Most of all to me now, "House: Some Instructions."

[Marisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was not for me. I understand how others could really like it, but it was not my favorite. She is an amazing poet, but I don’t know if I would read her work again.

[nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

The late Grace Paley was an incredibly gifted poet. She had the kind of voice that comes along only every once in a while. With a deep social conscience, Paley crafted poems that speak to people about events, places, and ideas that people speak of. She does not grope listlessly into an ethereal space where many poets tend to go--she addresses the tough issues of her time (war, that's a big one) and inquires into them, asking the questions we all ask. She is not just the voice of a generation, she sings the songs of every generation through her poems. Read this book if you like poetry at all. (She's funny, too.)

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful book of poetry! I found myself dog- earing my favorites and by the time I finished the book was in quite a state! Paley blends humor with heart-wrenching honesty in an elegant simplicity that makes her poems both accessible and beautiful.

[jo · Rating 2 out of 5]

i tried to stick it out, but paley's poetry doesn't speak to me.

[Cristina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will revisit this wonderful book in memory of this great woman.

[hh · Rating 4 out of 5]

i truly fell in love with the ease of Paley's language. her mastery of rhythm is both daunting and inspiring. these are the everyday poems of a storyteller, and they speak to my heart.

[Sabrina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bold, i'm envious of her unaffected and effortless language.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the way she so expertly braids together beautiful language; heart-wrenching, as well as joyful, feelings; and her political beliefs.

[Nick]

Winter is my time for poetry.

[chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

peacenik anarchist poet, no pretension

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

Great author and writing style. I just didn't pick up on the poetry on a deep level.

[Carolyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I need to add shelves: Feminist, Strong women, out spoken,...Because I love those things in my poets. Grace Paley is one such lady. I read her work when I was in my twenties and liked her, but reading her now in my fifties I can totally relate to a lot more of these poems. If you're young and reading her, save her books to read again in your mid life, I promise you will get even more than you expected then. I sure have, I love her poems.

[Kathy Piselli · Rating 4 out of 5]

From my favorite New York writer, real poems - not like her short stories which sometimes also sound like poems. My favorites this time: At the Battery ("the prow of great Manhattan"). The Old Dog's Song ("turning this way and that"). The Sad Children's Song (very Paley: "there are bombs all over the place"). And the poignant He Wanders ("he may have to go tomorrow / this is a mystery"). What would this daughter of a past Ukrainian horror think today?

[Kristy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I never quite know how to review a book when I can acknowledge that the writing was good, but I just didn't enjoy reading it.
Such was the case with this poetry collection. The subject matter for most of the poems just didn't move me.
With a poem I enjoy, I find myself going back to read a certain line over and over, letting the words marinate in my thoughts. That happened only once in this entire collection.
So... well written poetry that just doesn't interest me.

[Helga Wolf · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this dream the typewriter
is a piano and I play
with unplanned accuracy and
such fluency you would think
I was a Southerner whose tradition
recommended continuous telling

or an Englishwoman home at last
writing writing in English you
would think that I was one
of the persons in charge of this
language owning it from infancy
if this piano on which I have learned
to play preludes nicely if
this piano were a typewriter

🤎💖

[Ben Haines]

About aging, being Jewish/a woman, Vietnam.

I guess the one I remember is red world green world. You can have a perfect life if you don't start too early. Is it right that your hands should wither or something.

[Alison Whiteman · Rating 5 out of 5]

She was a strong woman. I only discovered the work of the late Grace Paley yesterday. Her wit is dry and at times I found myself both laughing and tearful.

[Ollie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stunning, gemstone words.

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5

[Cooch]

Four and a half stars

The earliest poems learning pieces really, but oh how she learned and improved. When she gets it right the poems are excellent.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great collection from a great poet who writes about the quieter details of rural Vermont life as well as the larger political world. Highly recommended.

[Kayla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Here was one of my favorites:

Hand-Me-Downs

My love rests on the couch
In the sweater and bones of old age

I have stopped reading to look at him I take
his hand I am shawled in my own somewhat
wrinkled still serviceable skin

No one knows what to do with these
hand-me-downs love them I suppose

weren’t they worn in and out of
dignity by our mothers and
fathers even our children in
the grip of merciless genes will
wear these garments

may their old lovers greet and
touch them then in the bare light
of that last beauty.