Poetry
Aliens at the Border
Poems from the Writing Workshop at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility which Hettie Jones led for some 15 years. “A gathering of remarkable voices. This collection is a testament to the fact that the mind and the heart cannot be confined.” — Chuck Wachtel. “This small miracle of a book is not what people expect ‘prison writing’ to be. Each of these women has a unique voice, and the writing is luminous, surprisingly lyrical, tender, and hopeful as a candle in the dark.” — Bibi Wein.
Doing 70
"Readers will instantly know that Jones is committed to being fully present in the world. That’s why she writes with such engaged interest about what we know well—everyday life. Whether presenting New York scenes with delightfully quirky insight, offering biting but brief political commentary, or lightly cloaking compact observations on the state of the world in simple words with sharp wit, Jones reveals the wisdom of someone who has really thought about life. Yet her greatest gift, which will make readers wish they could befriend her, is the way she sympathetically connects with strangers, observing in the same way as a concerned friend carefully listens."-Janet St. John(Booklist, 2007)
Drive
The Poetry Society of America 's 1999 Winner of the Norma Farber First Book Award, Drive was hailed as the work of a "potent and fearless poet," with "a good mind and sound ideas" and the "gift to paint with vivid words and to cloak her wit with images that linger in the mind long after the reading."
“Hettie Jones writes with gusto, wide-ranging compassion and sensitive wit. Hers is a voice of appealing authenticity; the well-arranged poems in Drive welcome us aboard and carry us deeply, comfortably, into the city, into memory and the human heart. There is nothing extra here, no intrusive sense of ‘crafting’ or ‘intention’—but a clear, compelling spirit and appetite, a thoughtful eye and deep care….” -Naomi Shihab Nye (from the PSA Award citation)
All Told
All Told adds to the achievement of Drive. Readers who have appreciated Jones's previous works will be exhilarated by this one. An engaging meditation from the personal to the collective. (Booklist, 2003)