Warning: When I Am an Old Woman I Shall Wear Purple [Hardcover]

Jenny Joseph (Author)

Book Description

Voted Britain’s best-loved poem by viewers of BBC TV’s Bookworm, this perennial favorite with its declaration of defiance against convention appeals to all those with a secret desire to throw off the strictures of propriety and set out deliberately to shock and be outrageous. It sums up this wish perfectly with its pronouncement: "When I am an old woman I shall wear purple/With a red hat that doesn’t go, and doesn’t suit me/I shall sit down on the pavement when I’m tired/And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells.” Reprinted here as a gift book with line drawings by Pythia Ashton-Jewell, this edition of the classic is ideal both for those who know and love the poem and for those who have yet to relish its gleeful anticipation.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Would make a wonderful gift" -- The Newton Kansan

...changed the face of aging for women in the United States. -- Sandra Martz, founding editor and former publisher of Papier-Mache Press and consummate

About the Author

Jenny Joseph won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for her narrative in prose and verse, Persephone.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Souvenir Press (May 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0285634119
• ISBN-13: 978-0285634114
• Product Dimensions: 6.1 x 4.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #434,755 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #72 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Literature & Fiction > Poetry > Anthologies
  • #84 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Literature & Fiction > Poetry > Single Authors > British & Irish

More About the Author

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

64 of 66 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hit Home and Made Me Smile..., March 24, 2002

By 

laura mancuso (Houston, Tx.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Warning: When I Am an Old Woman I Shall Wear Purple (Hardcover)

I read the book several years back. I loaned it to a friend, and took a Job Transfer shortly thereafter.
Well, needless to say, I think the friend liked the book also.
So, today I am ordering it for my 2 daughters. They are approaching their 40's, and I know they will love it as much as I did.
The Author does an excellent job in depicting that which makes us smile at ourselves, as we grow older. She lets you know that growing old can be a lot of fun.
",,,I shall wear purple", is a very appropriate title. And, when a Woman nears that special time , OLD AGE, wearing purple is almost an unwritten rule.
The Author tells that in Old Age, you can get more respect. If for no other reason, than just being your Old Self.
I highly recommend reading at least twice. You'll never feel the same about yourself.
The picture on the cover and the poem that goes along with it,are alone worth the price of the Book.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Splendid!, July 31, 2009

By 

Voice of Zip (Greenbrae, CA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Warning: When I Am an Old Woman I Shall Wear Purple (Hardcover)

I heard Jenny Joseph interviewed on NPR many years ago, and have since added a fair amount poetry and writing authored by women to the literature classes I teach. I have found this book to be particularly valuable as regards promoting an increased awareness of women - not just their writing - but also how the human condition is uniquely evinced and exemplified by the women in our world. I also feel that this is an excellent book for discussion and for helping young men begin - while YOUNG - to be sensitive to and respectful of women in general. Gentlemen seem to be a vanishing breed these days; perhaps this book's eloquent poetry and revealing anecdotes about women can help foster a bit more understanding and mutual appreciation. My wife and I have given several copies as gifts, and they have always been well-received.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I have been wearing purple since I was a teen...I should have started this movement..., February 19, 2006

By 

LadyInPurple "MaryPat" (Arvada, CO USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Warning: When I Am an Old Woman I Shall Wear Purple (Hardcover)

Of course I had to have this poem...and all the little things about it, like the red hats I've suddenly acquired, my own Red Hat Chapter...I really have been wearing purple all these years, so that poem must have been stolen from my head...lol...neat little book...