Blood and Gypsies

In this two-part study of a dysfunctional Italian, New York family and the dream-like series of vignettes, Lenny DellaRocca blends the hard-nosed with the atmospheric. In one world, he is a character in his own lower class, uneducated cast of sisters, brothers, parents, aunts and uncles, and in the other, an observer of fragmentary, dark and sometimes sinister stories set in imaginary towns and landscapes. Lenny DellaRocca's work has appeared in Poet Lore, Poetrybay, Albatross, 2River view, Fairy Tale Review and Nimrod. His chapbook, The Sleep Talker, is available from Night Ballet Press. DellaRocca was instrumental in bringing to South Florida such poets as Denise Duhamel, Albert Goldbarth, Yusef Komunyakka, Carolyn Wright and Lyn Lishin. A Pushcart nominee, his Electric Chair Poetry Reading was a sought-after South Florida event, which featured handpicked poetry readings. DellaRocca works for a blood center and lives in Delray Beach, Florida with his wife, Marie Herrera.