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Two-Headed Poems
Atwood's first new collection since 1974 reaffirms her status as a perceptive writer and includes her poetic musings on the violence of history, the awkwardness of love, the preciousness of time, and other topics
115 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1978
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545 people want to read
About the author
Margaret Atwood
664 books89.4k followersMargaret Atwood was born in 1939 in Ottawa and grew up in northern Ontario, Quebec, and Toronto. She received her undergraduate degree from Victoria College at the University of Toronto and her master's degree from Radcliffe College.
Throughout her writing career, Margaret Atwood has received numerous awards and honourary degrees. She is the author of more than thirty-five volumes of poetry, children’s literature, fiction, and non-fiction and is perhaps best known for her novels, which include The Edible Woman (1970), The Handmaid's Tale (1983), The Robber Bride (1994), Alias Grace (1996), and The Blind Assassin, which won the prestigious Booker Prize in 2000. Atwood's dystopic novel, Oryx and Crake, was published in 2003. The Tent (mini-fictions) and Moral Disorder (short stories) both appeared in 2006. Her most recent volume of poetry, The Door, was published in 2007. Her non-fiction book, Payback: Debt and the Shadow Side of Wealth in the Massey series, appeared in 2008, and her most recent novel, The Year of the Flood, in the autumn of 2009. Ms. Atwood's work has been published in more than forty languages, including Farsi, Japanese, Turkish, Finnish, Korean, Icelandic and Estonian. In 2004 she co-invented the Long Pen TM.
Margaret Atwood currently lives in Toronto with writer Graeme Gibson.
Associations: Margaret Atwood was President of the Writers' Union of Canada from May 1981 to May 1982, and was President of International P.E.N., Canadian Centre (English Speaking) from 1984-1986. She and Graeme Gibson are the Joint Honourary Presidents of the Rare Bird Society within BirdLife International. Ms. Atwood is also a current Vice-President of PEN International.
Throughout her writing career, Margaret Atwood has received numerous awards and honourary degrees. She is the author of more than thirty-five volumes of poetry, children’s literature, fiction, and non-fiction and is perhaps best known for her novels, which include The Edible Woman (1970), The Handmaid's Tale (1983), The Robber Bride (1994), Alias Grace (1996), and The Blind Assassin, which won the prestigious Booker Prize in 2000. Atwood's dystopic novel, Oryx and Crake, was published in 2003. The Tent (mini-fictions) and Moral Disorder (short stories) both appeared in 2006. Her most recent volume of poetry, The Door, was published in 2007. Her non-fiction book, Payback: Debt and the Shadow Side of Wealth in the Massey series, appeared in 2008, and her most recent novel, The Year of the Flood, in the autumn of 2009. Ms. Atwood's work has been published in more than forty languages, including Farsi, Japanese, Turkish, Finnish, Korean, Icelandic and Estonian. In 2004 she co-invented the Long Pen TM.
Margaret Atwood currently lives in Toronto with writer Graeme Gibson.
Associations: Margaret Atwood was President of the Writers' Union of Canada from May 1981 to May 1982, and was President of International P.E.N., Canadian Centre (English Speaking) from 1984-1986. She and Graeme Gibson are the Joint Honourary Presidents of the Rare Bird Society within BirdLife International. Ms. Atwood is also a current Vice-President of PEN International.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
July 31, 2022
Beautifully crafted poems about love and motherhood among other topics. I always walk away from reading anything Atwood has written with intense feelings of satisfaction and wonder and jealousy (wish I could write like that).
I've been reading a lot of poetry lately, and what I appreciate about Atwood's poetry is that while her poems are interesting on the sonic level, she never sacrifices meaning for sound. I also appreciate that everything she writes is narrative and that I am able to follow that narrative.
I've been reading a lot of poetry lately, and what I appreciate about Atwood's poetry is that while her poems are interesting on the sonic level, she never sacrifices meaning for sound. I also appreciate that everything she writes is narrative and that I am able to follow that narrative.
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July 19, 2023Poetry feels, largely, unable to be rated because, for the most part, a collection will contain some poems I don’t care for, some that speak to a deep core of me, and many that are quite good. This collection is no exception.
Instead, the story of how this collection came to be in my possession is interesting to me. And I want to write it down as a record, so one day I remember. One of my favourite people, a former teacher of mine, invited me to go through the house of her father-in-law. A man I never met. A theatre director, university professor, and member of the Order of Canada, with a prolific literature collection (among other impressive media collections). A man who meant a lot to a lot of people.
I took a lot. First editions of some of my favourite books. Whole collections from authors I know are important, but haven’t yet read. The early and lesser known works of my favourite writers. Magazines from the past featuring The Beatles. Vinyls of classical music collections. In almost every book, he’s written his name inside the front cover.
This is the first book I’ve read since I was invited to take what I wanted, a family’s desire to see their loved one’s items passed to those who will cherish them. At the time, his wife was very ill and, even though he was not, they were moving out of their gorgeous house near the river valley to a place with more care. My favourite teacher and her husband were getting the house, her husband’s childhood home, ready to sell. A lifetime of living, boxed away, given away, thrown out.
Since that day, both the man whose book I read today and his wife have died. When I read this, there were little rips of paper—not post it notes or stickies of any kind, but irregularly torn pieces of paper—tucked into the pages, marking certain poems. Poems to share? To revisit? To teach? To copy? To inspire? All of the above? Were they from him or someone else who borrowed his book? I won’t ever know for certain, but what I do know is that these scraps of paper in this book of poetry connect me to a man who no longer lives and who I never met. I’ve left them there for someone whoever reads this book after me to discover. And if that isn’t poetic, I don’t know what is.
Instead, the story of how this collection came to be in my possession is interesting to me. And I want to write it down as a record, so one day I remember. One of my favourite people, a former teacher of mine, invited me to go through the house of her father-in-law. A man I never met. A theatre director, university professor, and member of the Order of Canada, with a prolific literature collection (among other impressive media collections). A man who meant a lot to a lot of people.
I took a lot. First editions of some of my favourite books. Whole collections from authors I know are important, but haven’t yet read. The early and lesser known works of my favourite writers. Magazines from the past featuring The Beatles. Vinyls of classical music collections. In almost every book, he’s written his name inside the front cover.
This is the first book I’ve read since I was invited to take what I wanted, a family’s desire to see their loved one’s items passed to those who will cherish them. At the time, his wife was very ill and, even though he was not, they were moving out of their gorgeous house near the river valley to a place with more care. My favourite teacher and her husband were getting the house, her husband’s childhood home, ready to sell. A lifetime of living, boxed away, given away, thrown out.
Since that day, both the man whose book I read today and his wife have died. When I read this, there were little rips of paper—not post it notes or stickies of any kind, but irregularly torn pieces of paper—tucked into the pages, marking certain poems. Poems to share? To revisit? To teach? To copy? To inspire? All of the above? Were they from him or someone else who borrowed his book? I won’t ever know for certain, but what I do know is that these scraps of paper in this book of poetry connect me to a man who no longer lives and who I never met. I’ve left them there for someone whoever reads this book after me to discover. And if that isn’t poetic, I don’t know what is.
March 22, 2019
Happy World Poetry Day!
While I've read poem here-and-there from Atwood, I definitely consider her primarily a novelist—and one of the best I've read at that. But I need to reassess that title of "novelist" because this collection found at a used book shop honestly blew me away with its cohesiveness and ambiance, as well as the depth of its message. None of these poems were familiar to me, but made me think of many of those memorable poems I've stumbled across in anthologies and for classes back in my college days.
My favourite poem/series in this book was "Marrying the Hangman," which gave me a chilling glimpse into the themes of her masterwork, The Handmaid's Tale, which would see publication 3 years after this book of poetry. There are actually many poems that tread similar ground—female power, female subjugation, motherhood, nature, aging.
The final movement of the book is a series of poems about her daughter and they are pretty stirring. Atwood's voice is so distinct and sharp, unflinching and not afraid to disturb. For her, language is "not words only"; it is a sun that illuminates and burns and gives life to true transformation.
Also check out "The Woman Makes Peace With Her Faulty Heart," among many others.
While I've read poem here-and-there from Atwood, I definitely consider her primarily a novelist—and one of the best I've read at that. But I need to reassess that title of "novelist" because this collection found at a used book shop honestly blew me away with its cohesiveness and ambiance, as well as the depth of its message. None of these poems were familiar to me, but made me think of many of those memorable poems I've stumbled across in anthologies and for classes back in my college days.
My favourite poem/series in this book was "Marrying the Hangman," which gave me a chilling glimpse into the themes of her masterwork, The Handmaid's Tale, which would see publication 3 years after this book of poetry. There are actually many poems that tread similar ground—female power, female subjugation, motherhood, nature, aging.
The final movement of the book is a series of poems about her daughter and they are pretty stirring. Atwood's voice is so distinct and sharp, unflinching and not afraid to disturb. For her, language is "not words only"; it is a sun that illuminates and burns and gives life to true transformation.
Also check out "The Woman Makes Peace With Her Faulty Heart," among many others.
August 10, 2023
3.5 stars
"She has been condemned to death by hanging, A man may escape this death by becoming the hangman, a woman by marrying the hangman. But at the present time there is no hangman; thus there is no escape. There is only a death, indefinitely postponed. This is not fantasy, it is history."
All time favourites that altered my brain chemistry: "Marrying the Hangman" & "A Red Shirt"
Other favourites: "The Woman Who Could Not Live With Her Faulty Heart", "Five Poems for Grandmothers", "Four Small Elegies", "The Woman Makes Peace With Her Faulty Heart", "Solstice Poem", "Marsh, Hawk", "Night Poem", "All Bread".
"She has been condemned to death by hanging, A man may escape this death by becoming the hangman, a woman by marrying the hangman. But at the present time there is no hangman; thus there is no escape. There is only a death, indefinitely postponed. This is not fantasy, it is history."
All time favourites that altered my brain chemistry: "Marrying the Hangman" & "A Red Shirt"
Other favourites: "The Woman Who Could Not Live With Her Faulty Heart", "Five Poems for Grandmothers", "Four Small Elegies", "The Woman Makes Peace With Her Faulty Heart", "Solstice Poem", "Marsh, Hawk", "Night Poem", "All Bread".
August 29, 2019
Most of the poems in the collection didn't resonate with me - but a few were great. I did somewhat admire though not always fully understand the interesting "two headed"/turn-the-page formatting used for many of the poems in this collection. There were some helpful notes for context for a couple of the history-inspired poems at the very back of the book which I did not discover until after I'd gotten all the way to the end.
January 12, 2018
Astute political commentary that is universal and directly parallel to today, I found myself devouring Margaret Atwood's Two Headed Poems. I'm especially drawn to Atwood's attention to how these poems were composed, their page breaks, and how they connect to each other. This is a collection worth reading for the thematic cohesiveness blended throughout the collection.
February 11, 2022
I enjoyed the poetic technique that was used in this collection. I do think that repetition was one of the elements that Atwood used most creatively here. I just didn’t feel like this collection was super unique, but I greatly enjoyed the reflection on nature and personhood.
September 1, 2017
Dksjdnskckdj loooved it
September 22, 2018
Loved it!
May 17, 2020
This was not my favorite book of her poetry. I will probably read it again in a few years and see what I think at a different time of life.
February 14, 2024
Poems to spend time with and “Marrying the Hangman” is one of my favorites of all time.
April 10, 2024
“Our flag has been silence,
which was mistaken for no flag,
which was mistaken for peace.”
- Two Headed Poems
which was mistaken for no flag,
which was mistaken for peace.”
- Two Headed Poems
December 25, 2024
some days, yes, you fill all the windows
October 31, 2025
WHY DID IT TAKE 19 YEARS OF MY LIFE BEFORE DISCOVERING HOW GOOD POETRY IS…. the first time i willingly read actual poetry and enjoyed it
November 27, 2025
4.5 rounded up because there was genuinely some new faves in here !! But they weren’t all ’perfect hits’ so to speak
December 3, 2025
I especially loved Five Poems For Grandmothers!
April 6, 2012
2.5/5 stars. I was kind of disappointed in this collection, but that doesn't mean that there weren't a few that didn't make my heart ache in the right way. (That, and I liked it a lot better than Selected Poems by Oscar Wilde, which got 2 stars, so it didn't feel like it fit into the same category).
Though most of the poems in this collection were less than memorable (or so I felt), the following five stuck with me (listed in order least to most favored):
1. The Man With a Hole in His Throat
2. You Begin
3. A Red Shirt
4. Five Poems for Grandmothers
5. The Puppet of the Wolf
Three out of five of the aforementioned poems had to do with Atwood's daughter, with a sweet blend of mythology or femininity or language; another had to do with being both a daughter and being a daughter's daughter and death, while another described a man who, as you can imagine, had a hole in his throat that seemed to define the very husk of his body.
Another one that deserves notice is "Marrying the Hangman," but it didn't get the same reaction from me as the other five did.
It's a treat. I write letters on the back of poems and short stories to friends, and I will be using some of these poems--maybe all of them?--as material to write on.
Anyways, it's pretty. Forgettable and sometimes so lofty with metaphor you lose the meaning that would make this collection wound, but the few gems in here sparkle brightly.
Though most of the poems in this collection were less than memorable (or so I felt), the following five stuck with me (listed in order least to most favored):
1. The Man With a Hole in His Throat
2. You Begin
3. A Red Shirt
4. Five Poems for Grandmothers
5. The Puppet of the Wolf
Three out of five of the aforementioned poems had to do with Atwood's daughter, with a sweet blend of mythology or femininity or language; another had to do with being both a daughter and being a daughter's daughter and death, while another described a man who, as you can imagine, had a hole in his throat that seemed to define the very husk of his body.
Another one that deserves notice is "Marrying the Hangman," but it didn't get the same reaction from me as the other five did.
It's a treat. I write letters on the back of poems and short stories to friends, and I will be using some of these poems--maybe all of them?--as material to write on.
Anyways, it's pretty. Forgettable and sometimes so lofty with metaphor you lose the meaning that would make this collection wound, but the few gems in here sparkle brightly.
August 28, 2011
Atwood's poems have a rich density to them that I am not sure I always like. I keep trying her, because sometimes I come across something that really speaks volumes. Reading her though, sometimes feels like I am toiling in mud to find the thing I want. The words sometimes fall into a basket of words accumulating in my body. Sometimes I want lightness and words that float through me, and tremble in the air.
November 16, 2015
Back in 1978 a young Margaret Atwood is mired in the domestic, raising a small child, making apple jelly, sewing clothes and such, but this is what her X-mas tree looks like:
A tree hulks in the living-/room, prickly monster, our hostage from the wilderness,
and when someone gives her a cactus she asks,
It did not grow or flower./ It could not be touched/ without pain; finally/ it could not be touched/ What was it you wanted/ to say or offer?
A tree hulks in the living-/room, prickly monster, our hostage from the wilderness,
and when someone gives her a cactus she asks,
It did not grow or flower./ It could not be touched/ without pain; finally/ it could not be touched/ What was it you wanted/ to say or offer?
October 4, 2012
A number of exceptional poems, but I forget which collection of Atwood's poetry I'm reading, her voice begrudging in its consistence.
I won't discount the hard work that went into this collection, however; Atwood's craftsmanship is evident. Nothing feels casual or cast-off, as if she spent decades writing this collection.
I won't discount the hard work that went into this collection, however; Atwood's craftsmanship is evident. Nothing feels casual or cast-off, as if she spent decades writing this collection.
August 17, 2016
I have always been a fan of Atwood's work, but I just felt like some of these poems were just too-far out there for me...I think if I had a guide to walk me through some of the deeper meanings here, I might have gotten more out of it...I think this is a book I will need to reread 20 years down the line as I didn't feel a connection to many of the life events represented here.
July 14, 2014
some of these did nothing for me (maybe because i'm not a parent, nor have i ever farmed) but as usual many glimmers of light & some real gems, especially "marrying the hangman" & "the woman who could not live with her faulty heart"
April 9, 2009
Another wonderful collection from Atwood. Some of the poems lost me a bit, but the ones that were flat-out brilliant ("Two-Headed Poem" being a prime example) made up for that.
April 20, 2010
Especially:
Two Miles Away
Foretelling the Future
Poems for Dolls #4
Footnote to the Amnesty Report on Torture
The Woman Makes Peace With Her Faulty Heart
All Bread
Two Miles Away
Foretelling the Future
Poems for Dolls #4
Footnote to the Amnesty Report on Torture
The Woman Makes Peace With Her Faulty Heart
All Bread
May 18, 2013
So good :)
May 29, 2013
I think I'll stick with Atwood's fiction.
August 18, 2014
This was not like the last book of poetry that I read of Atwoods. There weren't as many that hit me hard and make me think, hence the star rating not as high.
But I still love the Atwood!
But I still love the Atwood!
April 20, 2015
I love reading Atwood's poems and thinking about them in relation to the chronology of her novels, which is to say pre-Handmaid's Tale and post. This one was good, but lagged in the middle.
June 13, 2015
Overall, this seems like a much more domestic collection then her previous ones, dealing with matters like children, gardening, and cooking. I liked it!
March 2, 2016
The poem that I connected with the best was "Heart." Atwood's language is so rich, though, many of these resonate.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews