The Complete Poetry of Cicely Fox Smith [2nd Edition]

By C. Fox Smith

"The Complete Poetry of Cecily Fox Smith" edited by Charles Ipcar and James Saville. Cicely Fox Smith was born February 1, 1882, and was well-educated at The Manchester High School for Girls from 1894 to 1897, where she described herself later as "something of a rebel," and started writing poetry at an early age. She published her first poem at 14, and her first poetry book when she was 17 to favorable press comments. She had a fierce desire to travel to Africa but eventually settled for a voyage to Canada. In her spare time she roamed nearby wharves and alleys, talking to residents and sailors alike. She listened to and learned from the sailors' tales until she too was able to speak with that authentic nautical air that pervades her written work. She soon put her experiences to use in a great outpouring of poetry, some of it clearly focused on supporting England's WWI efforts. Much of her poetry was from the point of view of the sailor. In fact, the detailed nautical content made it easy to understand why readers presumed she was male. Cicely's poetry was published in a wide variety of magazines and newspapers but most notably "Punch" magazine for which she wrote many poems between 1914-1954. She later re-published these poems in poetry books. In all, she published some 660 poems. She kept writing to the end of her life. Cicely Fox Smith died on April 8th, 1954. Cicely is now rapidly gaining a wider appreciative audience as more musicians set her poems to music and produce many fine songs, primarily in the nautical folk song tradition; over 100 of her poems have been adapted for singing and recorded. It is hoped that the publication of the 2nd Edition of The Complete Poetry of Cicely Fox Smith, with 74 new poems, and the important addition of an introduction by Marcia Phillips McGowan, Ph.D., will bring with it a wider recognition and the attention she so richly deserves as a true "poet of the sea."

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1935656384
• ISBN13: 9781935656388
• Release Date: June 2015
• Publisher: Little Red Tree Publishing
• Length: 792 Pages
• Weight: 3.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.6" x 6.7" x 9.6"