I didn’t create the elusive—perhaps imaginary Black Stallion until this year. After reading and reviewing numerous “other worldly” short-story collections, I considered interweaving an image within this tale that would serve as one more metaphor. Initially, the title included “Dark Horse” as an allusion to the stereotypical racehorse who appears to be a loser—but then takes first place at the end of the run. 

Thus, might the Dark Horse be an image of the Boulder environment in the late 1970s? At that time, the city had grown from the college town hosting many 1960s demonstrations, some violent, wherein radicals damaged stores on The Hill. Yet a decade later, this once “dark” town had grown and progressed into a winning environment. (It continues to do so. Last year (2025), it was voted by a majority as the most desirable location to live in the U.S.) 

Further, the novel’s characters gather regularly at The Horse, a bar that’s more a three-story entertainment center than the standard western bar. The Horse is especially Ched’s hangout. Because Charli leaves the small city before Ched does, he could be the Dark Horse waiting in Boulder. 

Then, the fantasy (or is it?) of the Black, blue-eyed Stallion adds another level of meaning—Charli’s vision of a world beyond our material reality. It’s significant, too, that Ched, like many persons, doesn’t believe blue-eyed stallions exit. O but they do—albeit rarely. And considering that Charli sees herself as a loser of a wife at the novel's onset—then later in her relationship with Ched, might she be the Dark Horse who wins in the end?

Day 6 of the WordCrafter “Poetry Treasures 6: Seasons” Book Blog Tour – Nolcha Fox, Melissa Lemay, and Robbie Cheadle

Posted: April 25, 2026 | Author: kayelynnebooth | Filed under: Anthology, Blog Tour, Book Review, Giveaways, Poetry, Review, WordCrafter Book Blog Tours, WordCrafter Press | Tags: Book Reviews, Book trailer, Giveaway, Melissa Lemay, Nolcha Fox, Poetry Anthology, Poetry Treasures 6: Seasons, Robbie Cheadle, WordCrafter Book Blog Tours | 45 Comments

Welcome to Day 6 of the WordCrafter Poetry Treasures 6: Seasons Book Blog Tour, where we’re sending off the sixth volume of the Poetry Treasures anthology series, Seasons. Each volume of this poetry anthology series features the work of the talented poets, spotlighted as guests on Robbie Cheadle’s blog series, “Treasuring Poetry”, from the previous year. Seasons’ poets were guests in 2025.

For this tour, you’ll meet two poets at each stop, with fun facts about them and reviews of their work. Some of the contributors also share guest posts or poetry readings. Today, we’re introducing Nolcha Fox and Robbie Cheadle. And we’re giving away three digital copies of the anthology in our Giveaway. Each comment earns a chance to win, so be sure to give a shout out and let us know you were there.

Giveaway

We’re giving away three digital copies of

Poetry Treasures 6: Seasons.

Follow the tour through the links in the schedule

and leave a comment at each stop for additional entries.

Winners will be chosen in a random drawing following the tour.

Tour Schedule

Mon. – Cindy Georgakas (Reading) & Kevin Morris – Poetry by Mich, Hotel by Masticadores, Masticadores Phillipines

Tues. – Jean-Jacques Fournier (Reading) & Colleen Chesebro (Reading) – Dragons Rule

Wed. – Freya Pickard & V.M. Sang (Reading) – JoyNealKidney.com

Thurs. – Joy Neal Kidney & Yvette Prior – Roberta Writes

Fri. – Michelle Ayon Navajas (Guest Post & Reading) & Marsha Ingrao (Guest Post & Reading) – Prior House

Sat. – Nolcha Fox, Melissa Lemay & Robbie Cheadle – Writing to be Read

Introducing Poetry Treasures 6: Seasons  

Picture caption: Cover of Poetry Treasures 6: Seasons

Blurb

Open the cover

and you will discover

Poetry Treasures

from the guests on

Robbie Cheadle’s 2025 

“Treasuring Poetry”

blog series

on Writing to be Read.

Join poets Robbie Cheadle, Cindy Georgakas, Freya Pickard, V.M. Sang, Michelle Ayon Navajas, Marsha Ingrao, Nolcha Fox, Joy Neal Kidney, Kevin Morris, Jean-Jacques Fournier, Melissa Lemay, Yvette Prior, and special guest, Colleen Chesbro share their personal seasons of poetry.

Purchase link

https://books2read.com/PT6Seasons

Short Trailer for Poetry Treasures 6: Seasons

Rave Reviews for Poetry Treasures 6: Seasons

Dawn Pisturino offers up our first review, posted on her blog site:

Poetry Book Review: “Poetry Treasures 6: Seasons” Anthology

Next we have one from Marjorie Mallon on Kyrosmagica:

Book Review: Poetry Treasures 6 Seasons Robbie Cheadle & Kaye Lynn Booth #poetry #anthology #review

This one comes from Abbie Johnson Taylor on Abbie’s Corner:

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Through the Seasons: My Review of Poetry Treasures 6 #FantasticFridayReads #Poetry #Inspiration

Meet Nolcha Fox

Picture caption: Author photograph of Nolcha Fox

Fun Facts about Nolcha Fox

When I was a baby, my parents were so anxious to get out of North Carolina that they drove in front of a hurricane to get to Ohio.

My nickname as a toddler was Chatterbox.

I never learned how to sleep.

A review of Finger Painting with Words by Nolcha Fox (Robbie Cheadle – Treasuring Poetry)

(Treasuring Poetry – Welcome Nolcha Fox, poet and editor of Chewers by Masticadores and reviews #treasuringpoetry #poetry #bookreviews)

Picture caption: Cover of Finger Paining with Words by Nolcha Fox

This is a relatively short collection of fascinating and different poems and the first collection I’ve read by this poet. I have read a lot of classic books and poems written by British authors and poets and have only recently started exploring American writers and poets. The difference in style and content is intriguing to me and I have developed a real appreciation for the boundaryless thought processes and unstructured writing styles of American writers.

For me as a reader, Nolcha Fox’s poetry is a wonderful example of thinking and writing outside the ‘box’ and I enjoyed each poem in this collection a great deal.

An example of this freedom in writing is her poem, Catch Them, as follows:
“In morning dark, the stars are blinding white,
rampaging fireflies on steroids.
Hollyhocks defy gravity and aphids
to kiss the sky before the weight of
summer
tilts them to kiss the ground.
Heat bakes the sidewalk
into squares of peanut butter fudge,
sweet sludge from oven top.
Each second a butterfly
I scoop with net of tangled words
before it flies pastward to cocoon.”

This is an interesting and thought provoking short collection of poems designed to make you think. I must also mention the lovely cover which I found very attractive.

Purchase Finger Painting with Words by Nolcha Fox from Amazon US here: https://www.amazon.com/Finger-Painting-Words-Nolcha-Fox-ebook/dp/B0DBNZ7WR9

Meet Melissa Lemay

Fun Facts About Melissa Lemay

I cannot blow a bubble with bubble gum.

I wrote my first short story (60 pages) in the sixth grade.

As an adult, I have carpal tunnel in my wrists and this makes it difficult for me to write with a pen and paper for very long.

A review of Bro Ken Rengay: Unruly Poetry, by Melissa Lemay, Nolcha Fox, and Barbara Leonhard (Review by Dawn Pasturino)

I’m new to the rengay form of Japanese poetry, but I’ve admired the poetic works of Fox, Lemay, and Leonhard for several years. Their collaboration on a collection of three-person rengay was bound to be a success.

The poets interlock like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle to form poems that are witty, clever, and stunningly beautiful. Some of my favorites are “Off the Rails,” “Glitter Lips,” “Make Up Your Mind, Already,” and “Pain Will Do That.” The cover art by Lesley Scoble enhances the charm of this delightful little book. I give it five gold stars.

You can purchase Bro ken Rengay: Unruly Poetry, by Nolcha Fox, Melissa Lemay, and Barbara Leonhard from Amazon US here: https://www.amazon.com/Bro-ken-Rengay-Unruly-Poetry-ebook/dp/B0FQ4C9L9V

Meet Robbie Cheadle

Picture caption: Robbie Cheadle author photograph

Fun Facts about Robbie Cheadle

Robbie’s full name is Roberta, but she has never been called that. Her aunt called her Robbie as a baby and the name stuck. People are always surprised to discover Robbie is female.

Robbie is a qualified Chartered Accountant (South Africa) and has worked in corporate finance for nearly 30 years. Her area of expertise is documentation relating to various stock exchanges around the world.

Robbie was a gym instructor before she started her family. She taught 10 spinning classes a week at the local gym and entered several cycling challenges a year.

A review of Behind Closed Doors by Robbie Cheadle (Cindy Georgakas – “Celebrating Poetry”)

(https://lifesfinewhine.ca/2024/11/26/celebrating-poetry-by-cindy-georgakas-review/)

Picture caption: Cover of Behind Closed Doors by Robbie Cheadle

“Behind Closed Doors” is an elegant and engaging collection of poems written in various styles, either free or short form, poetry that is deeply relatable, drawing the reader’s attention to a variety of life’s aspects while conjuring up a swarm of emotions. In all its 6 parts, In the Boardroom, After death, In my mind, In the home, During lockdown and In nature, reading the poems feels both like a keen introduction to and a freely flowing zigzag through life’s moments… be them pleasant and enjoyable or much less so. And be them all closed, the “doors” – so convincingly part of the lovely title, still, the verses in the collection do ultimately slam them all open, airing out the “stuffy rooms” or letting the beauty in the “bright rooms” shine through refreshingly.

I was especially impressed by the grim details that could be read between the lines in the poems inspired by the corporate world (Achieving Tranquility, Do you want it enough?, The corporate hunt, Making A Splash). Nevertheless the verses inspired from the lockdown days also left a strong impression on me (No contact, Other Worldly, Lockdown days, I saw a fish a-swimming) with their harsh reminders of a sad reality in the whole world that the pandemic years also suddenly seemed to emphasize so acutely for us all, hopefully helping us to become more aware.

In the midst of the collection, two poems seemed to stand out to me, “A fabricated world” and “Stars in her eyes”. The latter feels like being in the eye of a storm, a calm and clear center, throbbing with all the beautifully bare truth and dreamy escape that the author’s heart can contain and express.

Equally impressive were all the poems that the author delightfully dedicates to the beloved members of her family, as was the last but one poem in the collection, “The best gift of all”, making the readers empathize with South African people on a blissfully rainy Christmas morning.

I gladly recommend “Behind Closed Doors” to everyone, as there is a little for everybody to delight in and learn about in Robbie’s wonderful collection.

Purchase Behind Closed Doors by Robbie Cheadle from Amazon US here: https://www.amazon.com/Behind-Closed-Doors-Robbie-Cheadle-ebook/dp/B09BBR94NC

Wrap-Up

That wraps up Day 6 of the WordCrafter Poetry Treasures 6: Seasons as we finish up the tour, as well. Get your comments in for the giveaway entries. You can visit any stops that you missed through the links in the Tour Schedule at the top of this post. Winners will be selected in a random drawing and announced in Monday’s “WordCrafter News”, here on Writing to be Read.

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Book your WordCrafter Book Blog Tour today!

Through the Seasons: My Review of Poetry Treasures 6 #FantasticFridayReads #Poetry #Inspiration

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