Acrylic Angel of Fate by Shirley McPhillips

Like Mary Oliver, Shirley McPhillips finds a kind of ecstasy in the natural world of apple boughs, beeswax, acorn and curled oak. Unlike Oliver, she also discovers joy in the world of wigs, outhouses, e-books, online photos and “stayhitched.com.” These are poems of experience from a writer who, you can tell, knows what she’s talking about. “The root does not care where its water comes from,” she writes. And you won’t care either, as long as the poems keep flowing.
–Peter E. Murphy, teacher of poetry and founder of Murphy Writing of Stockton University, NJ; author of Stubborn Child, Thorough and Efficient, Challenges for the Delusional, Mr. Nobody, Atlantic City Lives.

Rating: ***** [5 of 5 Stars!]

Shirley McPhillips’ poems are ripe and rowdy, rich with honey and grit. Using the language and rhythms of nature, she describes a woman who’s been on the edge, “unsure what the next wind will unhinge.” Through precise, powerful metaphors, we experience first hand life’s most unexpected and challenging moments. McPhillips’ visually stunning images show the reader “hawks [that] carve up clouds,” and “streams [that] tangle men.” Acrylic Angel of Fate is not only a feast for the senses, it is witty, lyrical and especially poignant.

–Norma Ketzis Bernstock, author of Don’t Write a Poem About Me After I’m Dead

Rating: ***** [5 of 5 Stars!]

Deftly swinging between smart, funny, sly and clever, Shirley McPhillips offers a collection of poems passionate and powerful. In one of my favorite poems, “Poemfields,” she offers a piece that feels like anthem and foundation: Yet in the boundary/ between myself and this landscape, / I am closer to what feels hidden. / Soon muddy roots will feed / the blooms. They will not let / their moment slip away, / unnoticed.

And, as readers, let’s not let this poet — Shirley McPhillips — slip away, unnoticed.

–Drew Myron, author of Thin Skin, poems and photos

Rating: ***** [5 of 5 Stars!]