<DIV><p>“Su negotiates the mercurial new world of cultural commingling in witty, formally assured poems—often in elegantly accomplished forms which themselves add to the layering of cultural reference."—Mark Doty</p><p>Written in the shadow of the devastating events of 9/11, these beautifully crafted narrative poems reveal heartfelt insights into the emotional life of a contemporary woman in her late thirties—balancing marriage, motherhood, and career—as well as contemplating her experience as the daughter of Chinese immigrants, for whom ambition is a lower priority than survival. While many of these poems are about being a mother (“With Children”), <i>Sanctuary</i> is also about being the child of a mother (“Escape from the Old Country”). In measured lines that are often humorous (“Asian Driver: The Sestina”), Su explores the risks that an individual can and can't take as a member of any community: a neighborhood, a family, a racial group, a gender, a parent.</p><p><b>Adrienne Su</b> was born in 1967 and raised in Atlanta. She received her AB from Harvard and an MFA from the University of Virginia. Her essays have been published in <i>Saveur</i>, <i>Prairie Schooner</i>, and <i>Beard House</i>. Her awards include a Pushcart Prize, as well as residencies at Yaddo and The MacDowell Colony. Her poems have appeared in <i>Best American Poetry</i>, <i>Asian American Poetry: The Next Generation</i>, and <i>Poetry 30: Thirtysomething American Thirtysomething Poets</i>. Su teaches at Dickinson College. She is also the author of <i>Middle Kingdom</i> (Alice James Books, 1997).</p></DIV>