As for Life:

A memoir in poetry exploring the isolation & loss of chronic illness

Redhawk Publications, 2022

“To every prospective reader of As for Life I would say, ‘Brace yourself. Do not avert your gaze. Here you will experience revelation that will increase your understanding.’ Marilyn McVicker does not countenance equivocation in herself or in others. This may well be the most candid volume of poetry I ever read. Be prepared.”

— Fred Chappell, former NC Poet Laureate

“’Even in illness, there is life and love,’ Marilyn McVicker proclaims in her memoir of poems, introducing us to her life with primary immune deficiency. In sharing her lifelong chronic pain and isolation, she opens us to the rage and grief, joy and beauty of a life confined to a remote mountain cove. As the world learns to live in the fracture of isolation, her elegant and honest poems teach us how to live with our feelings, the seasons, distanced family, and clueless friends. We learn, too, about arrogant and humble doctors, long lists of medications, the pain of tri-weekly infusions. As she untangles from the world, McVicker finds joy in the tap of a song sparrow at her window, the melody of a wood thrush at dusk, the wilting purple iris hospiced on the table. I am strengthened, humbled, and inspired by her resilience and honesty—a life celebrated in poetry.”

— Jennie Boyd Bull, author, volunteer with eldercare network