A Different Beat: Writing by Women of the Beat Generation

by Richard Peabody (Editor)

Includes selections from Carolyn Cassady, Joyce Johnson, Jan Kerouac, Margaret Randall, Laura Ulewicz, and Anne Waldman

Genres: Poetry, Nonfiction

275 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 1997

Reviews

[Ploetzly · Rating 5 out of 5]

read this in seattle, right after my time in bali doing writing workshops with anne waldman, wanted to find out more about her work and the context of her work. i had kind of hated beats because of how male centric it all was. this book led to me discovering diane di prima, and she was such a good way into the whole beat thing, her and anne.

[Renee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read for school. This book is mostly memoir and poetry, and while I didn't read all of it, I think I read enough to get a good feel for the writing. In class, we looked at the writing of 10 of the 27 authors: Carolyn Cassady, Elise Cowen, Diane di Prima, Jan Kerouac, Joan Haverty Kerouac, Joanne Kyger, Joanna McClure, Margaret Randall, Laura Ulewicz, and Anne Waldman. The poems were a little "out there" for me, but then I'm not much of a poetry fan anyway. Some of them had really nice rhythm and images though. The memoir/fiction bits were my favorite. They're short but packed full of drama- love, marriage, sex, drugs, etc. I haven't read any writing by the (more famous) men of the Beat generation, but I think if I had, I could've appreciated this book more. The writings by Cassady and the Kerouacs were interesting on their own, but some of the kids in my class who had read Neal Cassady, Jack Kerouac, and Allen Ginsberg definitely came out with a different opinion of the men after reading these stories by the women in their lives.

I would give the fiction 3.5 stars and the poetry 1.5, so I'm rounding that out to 3. An okay read.

Find more book reviews at A Quick Red Fox.

[Thomas Hale · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wanted to explore outside of the core "canon" of Beat writers, so I picked up this collection with barely any names I recognised. It's a good and varied selection of poetry, prose, fiction and autobiography from women involved in and on the periphery of the Beats. There are a number of recurring figures and themes - Kerouac and Ginsberg are regular characters, for instance, and seeing them described by others helps to humanise (and problematise) their personal mythology. (Kerouac in particular comes off as a staggering arsehole, which is pretty satisfying to read). It's a mixed bag - some pieces don't work nearly as well as others - but the highs are very high indeed.
I'm also grateful to this collection for highlighting some really impressive and moving work by women I had no idea existed - particular favourites were Kay Johnson, Hettie Jones, Lenore Kandel, Barbara Moraff and Margaret Randall. Strongly recommend to anyone looking for new and interesting voices from 50s-60s counterculture.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice collection of writings from women of the "Beat generation". As with any collection, there's a mixed fare of good and not so good poems/excerpts, fortunately A Different Beat contains mostly good). The book, which celebrates "Grrrl" power is ironically edited by a man. Although the book claims to be about Beat generation female writers, two excerpts are included by Jan Kerouac, daughter of Jack, and a short memoir by a male writer.

It is commendable that the editor, Richard Peabody, made the effort to conserve the writings of these many talented women as the majority have either never been heard of outside of small literary circles or their works are hard or nearly impossible to find. After finishing the book, I was glad to have stumbled upon it on Amazon and will definitely be looking into the works of all of the authors showcased within its pages.

[Vin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I actually read Gargoyle 60, not A Different Beat. But I do want to read about the women of the Beat Generation. And the book about the Morton Salt Girl. Gargoyle 60 was like a water-balloon hurled at my migraine-head. That is a good thing. Some of my favorite fiction was '13-Part Story with Mime,' 'Comment Cards' and 'The Idea of Isabel.' Favorite poems -- 'My Underwear,' 'Homage to my Father's Tearlessness' and 'Swimming the Firth of Forth.' I hope that's helpful. Oh, and the non-fiction piece about moose hunting was enlightening.

[Paula Hagar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Confession: I only read half of this book - i.e. the prose and narrative sections, and I enjoyed those very much. I could not make it through ANY of the poetry, which was half of this book. It was almost completely inaccessible to me and I couldn't force myself to finish a single poem. But I very must enjoyed the prose/narrative/memoir choices, especially from Neal Cassady's and Jack Kerouac's wives.

[Tiffany · Rating 5 out of 5]

My husband is a huge Kerouac fan, and I have read some of his books. I was really excited to read book of short stories written by women of that generation. It was a really good read, I couldn't put it down.

[M.W.P.M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Different Beat provides a selection of writing from the many overlooked women of the Beat Generation, including: Elise Cowen, Diane di Prima, Sandra Hochman, Lenore Kandel, Joanne Kyger, Fran Landesman, and Margaret Randall ...

Elise Cowen...

At the acting class
The perfect paper daffofil
Upstages us all

- pg. 27

Diane di Prima...

1
what are you.
thinking.
at night/these nights/night
when
(unsleeping)
the red.
the hills
where you walk.

and who could tolerate that sky.

2
what blue is that
your eyes
your lumpy shirt

while you.
stand.
slumping in dawn light
(same blue)

and from your hands the cadmiums run, shouting.

- For Zella, Painting, pg. 50

Sandra Hochman...

I gave my life to learning how to live.
Now that I have organized it all, now that
I have finally found out how to keep my clothes
In order, when to wash and when to sew, how
To control my glands and horny moments,
How to raise a family, which friends to get
Rid of and which to be loyal to, who is
Phony and who is true, how to get rid of
Ambition and how to be thrifty, now that I have
Finally learned how to take off the mask
And be nude in my secret silence,
That life is just about over.

- Postscript, pg. 66

Lenore Kandel...

I have seen the junkie angel winging his devious path over cities
his greenblack pinions parting the air with the sound of fog
I have seen him plummet to earth, folding
his feathered bat wings against his narrow flesh
pausing to share the orisons of some ecstatic acolyte
The bone shines through his face
and he exudes the rainbow odor of corruption
his eyes are spirals of green radioactive mist
luminous even in sunlight even at noon
his footstep is precise, his glance is tender
he has no mouth nor any other feature
but whirling eyes above the glaring faceless face
he never speaks and always understands he answers no one
Radiant with a black green radiance
he extends his hollow fingered hands
blessing blessing blessing
his ichorous hollow fingers caressing the shadow of the man
with love and avarice his wings and rides the sky like an
enormous Christian bat and voiceless
flies behind the sun

- Junk/Angel, pg. 105

Joanne Kyger...

The eye
is drawn
to the Bold
DESIGN
the Border
California flowers
nothing promised that isn't shown
Implements:
shell
stone
Peacock

- Tapestry, pg. 140

Fran Landesman...

Don't cry baby, it's only a movie
It's only a picture show
Look and you'll see all the buildings are cardboard
That's only white sugar snow

Don't cry baby, that would isn't bleeding
It's only tomato sauce
Don't get upset when they're pounding the nails in
It's only a cardboard cross

The wind machine keeps grinding
The thunder's just a drum
The film does on unwinding
And will till Kingdom come

Don't cry baby, when somebody leaves you
The script called for him to go
Just remember it's only a movie
It's only a picture show

- It's Only a Movie, pg. 150

Margaret Randall...

Here we can listen
to nightfall
and blow in
the ears of
sunsets
while the
earth
staggers
through
an open
door.

- Number 5, pg. 186

[H]

mimi albert
carolyn cassady
diane di prima
joyce johnson
hettie jones
joan haverty kerouac