HOLLAND - A chapbook of poems by Jackie Bartley of the Hope College English faculty, "Women Fresh from Water," is being published this spring by Finishing Line Press.

"Bartley reveals to us the seamlessness of the worlds we wander in," says Jack Ridl, who is both a poet and a Hope faculty colleague. "Like her women in water, we must learn to 'live with' those worlds not by dominating, but by cooperating with the elements that make us who we are, and by surrendering to skill and trust."

The poems in the new collection take place in or around water as it weaves a constant thread through the lives of girls and women. Nevertheless, it is a book for both genders as it explores the nature of living and growing old in a world that is simultaneously lovely, dangerous and perplexing. According to author and Hope professor Heather Sellers, "In old movies, grade school, and locker rooms [Bartley] pulls out a kind of underwater music. Think swimming pool; dive into this volume again and again, refreshed each time. Truly wonderful poems."

Bartley, who is an adjunct assistant professor of English at Hope, has previously published five books of poems. Her work has appeared in "Image," "Gulf Coast," "Poet Lore," "The Evansville Review" and many other journals, and four of her poems have been nominated for the Pushcart Prize. She earned a B.S. from Clarion University in Pennsylvania and an MFA in creative writing from Western Michigan University. She swims regularly at the Holland Community Aquatic Center.

Bartley will give a reading of poems from the new book on Friday, Feb. 18, at 7 p.m. at The Bookman in Grand Haven. Advance copies may be ordered at that time or by contacting Finishing Line Books, PO Box 1626, Georgetown KY 40324. Online orders may be placed at http://www.finishinglinepress.com/. The cost, if ordered before Monday, March 21, is $14. After March 21, please add $2 shipping.

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