Into The Fire: A Poet's Journey through Hell's Kitchen

Into The Fire: A Poet's Journey takes place in the rough-and-tumble Hell's Kitchen community on Manhattan's West Side, a neighborhood that reflects the passion of the times. By 1980, both the arts scene and New York neighborhoods are on the verge of change. The author's life in the arts weaves in and out of the neighborhood's narratives. And she must make a choice between two possible lives.

The New York Poetry Festival at St. Clement's on West 46th Street in Manhattan featured many well-known poets of the time as well as up-and-coming and marginalized poets. Poems by some of the participants are recommended by the author. Cameo appearances in this memoir are made by Robert Altman, Amiri Baraka, Daniel Berrigan, Raymond Carver, Cher, Cornelius Eady, Allen Ginsberg, Spalding Gray, Abbie Hoffman, Maurice Kenny, William Packard, Robert Peters, Rochelle Ratner, Grace Shulman, and Kurt Vonnegut.