American Dreams - Softcover

Sapphire

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1852423277 ISBN 13: 9781852423278

Publisher: Serpent's Tail, 1994

Synopsis

Sapphire is one of the most impassioned voices in African-American literature today. In American Dreams, Sapphire explores the raw edges that circumscribe urban life. The ?Wilding? incident in Central Park; the shooting of fifteen-year-old Latasha harlins by a Korean grocer; the vicious cycle of family violence; the prospect of escaping one?s fate by choosing art over madness, solitude over dependency, and spiritual renewal over addiction - these are the subjects explored in this astonishingly honest book. Sapphire invests strength and sensuality in poetry and prose that enlighten as they challenge contemporary perceptions of what American dreams really mean.

About this title

Review:

?American Dreams is gutsy, disturbing, painfully challenging reading, but it must be read by us all. Sapphire is an important voice, an important witness. Thank God she?s here? Essex Hemphill ?Sapphire?s American Dreams is one of those books I would love to give to young writers to show what is possible... if you come to the work unafraid and determined... if you look underneath clich? and stereotypes and tell the truth about human character... if you take apart your own fear and force yourself past it. Her insights are precise, terrifying, and ultimately hopeful. She sings in many voices, and every one of them cries out for justice? Dorothy Allison

Synopsis:

One of New York's most popular performance poets, Sapphire explores the raw edges that constitute urban life. In this collection, her poems have been inspired by incidents of violence, crime in Central Park and spiritual renewal after addiction.

About this edition

• Publisher: Serpent's Tail
• Publication date: 1994
• ISBN 10: 1852423277
• ISBN 13: 9781852423278
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 176