Native New Yorker, and Queens born and bred, Maria Lisella is the sixth winner in the competition for Queens Poet Laureate 2015-2019 and the first Italian American. She is the author of the collection, Thieves in the Family (NYQ Books), and two chapbooks Amore on Hope Street (Finishing Line Press) and Two Naked Feet (Poets Wear Prada). She curates the Italian American Writers Association readings, is a charter member of brevitas and is the newest Queens Poet Laureate 2015-2019. She is an award-winning travel writer and editor who contributes to The Jerusalem Post, USA TODAY as a New York expert and to the bilingual La Voce di New York.