Irene Fick’s second poetry collection available in area bookstores

Irene Fick’s second poetry collection, “The Wild Side of the Window,” is now available in Delaware locations: Browseabout Books in Rehoboth Beach, Bethany Beach Books in Bethany Beach, and Acorn Books in Smyrna. The book was published in June by Main Street Rag Publishing Company of Charlotte, N.C. It is also available through the publisher’s website, www.mainstreetragbookstore.com.

Fick, who lives in Lewes, peppers her writing with quirky, unforgettable characters, including a large extended family of aunts, uncles and grandparents. With an eye for detail and a strong, compelling narrative voice, Fick describes her Brooklyn roots, growing up in the Midwest, a disastrous first marriage, and coping with illness, caregiving and death. Her poems deal head-on with body image, aging and sexuality. Yet, there is humor throughout this collection. Fick’s style is straightforward, personal and accessible.

Although Fick has written poetry since childhood, she began writing seriously after retirement from a career in journalism and public affairs. Her first chapbook, “The Stories We Tell,” published in 2014 by The Broadkill Press, won first-place awards from the National Federation of Press Women and Delaware Press Association. Her poetry has also been published in such journals as Gargoyle, Poet Lore, The Broadkill Review, Pittsburgh Poetry Review, Mojave River Review, Delaware Beach Life and Philadelphia Stories. Her work has been featured in five anthologies. Her poem, “We Didn’t Know Anything,” featured in her new book, was nominated for a Pushcart Prize. Another poem, “Asunder,” also in the book, won first place in the 2016 Delaware Press Association communications competition.

Fick is active in the Rehoboth Beach Writers’ Guild, Coastal Writers and Eastern Shore Writers Association.