Kirjahaku

From the bestselling author of Push, a story of survival and awakening--and one young man's remarkable strengthThe Kid brings us deep into the interior life of Abdul Jones, son of Sapphire's unforgettable heroine, Precious. Left alone by his mother's death to navigate in a world where love and hate sometimes hideously masquerade, forced to confront unspeakable violence, his history, and the dark corners of his own heart, Abdul claws his way toward adulthood. In a generational story that moves with the speed of thought from a Mississippi dirt farm to Harlem in its heyday, from a troubled Catholic orphanage to downtown artists' lofts, The Kid is a soaring tale of body and spirit, rooted in the hungers of flesh and of the soul.

In Push Sapphire told the story of Precious Jones and in 2009 her book was adapted into the Oscar-winning film Precious. The Kid is Sapphire's heartbreaking sequel to Push.Abdul is nine years old when his mother dies. Parentless, he is sent to a foster home and then to a Catholic orphanage. But the priests charged to care for him abuse his trust terribly.Abdul reacts in the most frightening way imaginable. Soon he is trapped in a dark cycle of sexual violence and betrayal. Yet through dance, in controlling his body, he discovers a way he might somehow break free and become himself . . .A harrowing and powerful novel set in New York, The Kid is a portrait of a boy growing up in a cruel world.'Prepare to be harrowed; I was sobbing by the end of the first chapter . . . Sapphire writes with a burning anger that gives this novel an explosive power' The Times'Hardcore. Brave, bold, uncompromising. The breathtaking velocity and visceral power of Sapphire's prose soars off the page' Observer'Captures the gruelling heartbreak of trying to love anything when the world doesn't love you enough' New York Herald Tribune'A dark and punishing tale' Big Issue'A fearless writer and thinker of enormous talent, insight and skill. Abdul's story is frighteningly realistic. A consummate work of art, style and brains. Full of the energy of pain, rage, grief and doubt' List'Devastating. An accomplished work of art . . . hard to forget' Los Angeles Times'Urgent, troubling, harrowing, masterfully narrated, powerful' DivaSapphire is the author of two poetry collections, Black Wings and Blind Angels and American Dreams and the bestselling novel Push. The film adaptation of her novel, Precious, received the Academy Awards for Best Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress - for actor Mo'Nique - in addition to the Grand Jury Prize and Audience awards in the U.S. Dramatic Competition at Sundance. In 2009 she was a recipient of a United States Artist Fellowship. She lives in New York City.

A new 25th anniversary edition of the instant classic that inspired the major motion picture and Sundance Film Festival winner Precious: Based on the Novel 'PUSH' by Sapphire, whose power and ferocity influenced a generation of writers. "Affecting and impassioned . . . sails on the strength of pure, stirring feeling."--The New York Times Book Review Precious Jones, an illiterate sixteen-year-old, has up until now been invisible to the father who rapes her and the mother who batters her and to the authorities who dismiss her as just one more of Harlem's casualties. But when Precious, pregnant with a second child by her father, meets a determined and radical teacher, we follow her on a journey of education and enlightenment as she learns not only how to write about her life, but how to make it truly her own for the first time.

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.

In the tradition of Alice Walker, this electrifying new African American voice delivers the verdict on the urban condition in a sensual, propulsive, and prophetic book of poetry and prose. Whether she is writing about an enraged teenager gone "wilding" in Central Park, fifteen-year-old Latasha Harlins gunned down by a Korean grocer, or a brutalized child who grows up to escape her probable fate through the miracle of art, Sapphire's vision in this collection of poetry and prose is unswervingly honest. "Stunning . . . . One of the strongest debut collections of the '90s."--Publishers Weekly

* READ THE NOVEL THAT INSPIRED THE FILM PRECIOUS *This 25th Anniversary Edition includes a new preface from Tayari Jones, and a new afterword by the author. This is the story of Precious Jones, a sixteen year old illiterate black girl who has never been out of Harlem. She is pregnant by her own father for the second time, and kicked out of school. Placed in an alternative teaching programme, she learns to read and write. This is Precious's diary, in which she honestly records her relationships and her life. 'The Color Purple for the nineties' Vogue 'Sapphire's vibrant, unindulgent first novel has you cheering the awesome Precious on until the last page' Mail on Sunday 'Has all the power and vehemence of rap...brutal in its defence of the vulnerable' Independent 'Part wishful prayer, part manifesto, mingling poetry and humour...splendid, turbulent, bracing language...its music takes you over, its story grips... A voice to remember' Scotland on Sunday 'Harrowing yet hilarious... packs a powerful punch' Guardian

'I'm alive inside. A bird is my heart. Mama and Daddy is not win. I'm winning.' This is the story of Precious, a sixteen-year-old illiterate Black girl who has never been out of Harlem. Pregnant by her own father for the second time, she is kicked out of school and placed in an alternative teaching programme. Through learning to read and write, Precious begins to find her voice, and fight back. Push is the unflinching diary of a girl whose strength and kindness shines amidst extraordinary adversity. Meet ten of literature's most iconic heroines, featuring bold portraits by female photographers from around the world.