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Black Wings and Blind Angels   Push   American Dreams   African American Literary Book Club page AUDIO: 1999 NPR Talk of the Nation interview A Profile/Interview Minnesota Daily interview about PUSH Village Voice review of PUSH article on Sapphire in The Collegian, 1998 photo of Sapphire reading		Sapphire is the author of American Dreams, a collection of poems. Her novel, Push, won the Black Caucus of the American Library Association's First Novelist Award for 1997 and the Book-of-the-Month Club Stephen Crane Award for First Fiction. She lives in New York City. With fierce candor and an unflinching eye, the highly praised author of Push journeys through the harsh realities of African American existence to find the "door to the possibility of now." The heroes that emerge from these forty-seven vigorous poems confront the agony of betrayal as they strive in their quest for self-transformation and redemption. From the city streets to the rich landscape of dreams, each of these poems holds out the "black wings of expectation" offering the chance to emerge from the pain of the past and arrive at "the day you have been waiting for/when you would finally begin to live." At turns alarming and inspiring, the raw lyrics and piercing wisdom of Black Wings & Blind Angels remind us of Sapphire's place as a unique and fearless voice. "Few literary works today are as affecting as [Sapphire's] or have had as much impact on our society." --Poets and Writers "An enrapturing voice that charms and shocks." --The Miami Herald "In Black Wings and Blind Angels, Sapphire hammers home pain until it is the shape of hope. . . . It is a must for poetry fans." --The Advocate "[Sapphire's] characteristic intensity mixes with classical as well as experimental forms, excavating dreams, memory, and history to address a multitude of topics." --The Village Voice Literary Supplement