The Line of the Sun: A Novel - Softcover

Cofer, Judith Ortiz

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0820313351 ISBN 13: 9780820313351

Publisher: University of Georgia Press, 1991

Synopsis

Set in the 1950s and 1960s, The Line of the Sun moves from a rural Puerto Rican village to a tough immigrant housing project in New Jersey, telling the story of a Hispanic family's struggle to become part of a new culture without relinquishing the old. At the story's center is Guzmán, an almost mythic figure whose adventures and exile, salvation and return leave him a broken man but preserve his place in the heart and imagination of his niece, who is his secret biographer.

About this title

About the Author

JUDITH ORTIZ COFER (1952–2016) was the Regents’ and Franklin Professor of English and Creative Writing Emerita at the University of Georgia. She is also the author of The Latin Deli: Telling the Lives of Barrio Women, An Island Like You: Stories of the Barrio, Woman in Front of the Sun: On Becoming a Writer; and many other books. The University of Georgia Press published her first novel, The Line of the Sun, in 1989.

Review

Cofer . . . reveals herself to be a prose writer of evocatively lyrical authority, a novelist of historical compass and sensitivity. . . . One recognizes in the rich weave and vigorous elegance of the language of The Line of the Sun a writer of authentic gifts, with a genuine and important story to tell.

(New York Times Book Review)

In this extraordinary first novel, Judith Ortiz Cofer bridges two cultures, giving voice to people who are seldom heard from. . . . Cofer invites us into a climate where the settings are authentic and richly textured, and whose lives bound in cultural mythology are particularized through the strengths and gifts of language, fully realized characters, and a multi-dimensional narrative. There is great strength in the way Cofer evokes the fierce, loving, and brave Latin spirit that is the novel's real theme.

(Joyce Johnson)

The Line of the Sun reads like a dream, from the beautifully realized description of the deceptive Paradise Lost, to the utterly different but equally vivid world of the urban North. . . . This is a splendid first novel.

(The State (Columbia, SC))

The writing in this superb novel stuns and surprises at every turn. Its sensuality and imagery . . . are riveting.

(San Juan Star)

Poetry . . . what distinguishes the book finally are the images, the phrases, the simple scenes that catch the ear like a sparkle catches the eye.

(Washington Times)

A remarkable story, written from the heart as only the best stories are.

(St. Louis Post-Dispatch)

Remarkable . . . Cofer is a fine storyteller. Her prose conveys all the energy and mystery of anticipation.

(Women's Review of Books)

About this edition

• Publisher: University of Georgia Press
• Publication date: 1991
• ISBN 10: 0820313351
• ISBN 13: 9780820313351
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 304