The Line of the Sun
A Novel
Published on 1. April 1991
Book
Paperback/Softback
304 pages
978-0-8203-1335-1 (ISBN)
Description
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 Guzman, 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.
Reviews / Votes
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. -- <i>New York Times Book Review</i> 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. -- <i>The State</i> (Columbia, SC) The writing in this superb novel stuns and surprises at every turn. Its sensuality and imagery . . . are riveting. -- <i>San Juan Star</i> Poetry . . . what distinguishes the book finally are the images, the phrases, the simple scenes that catch the ear like a sparkle catches the eye. -- <i>Washington Times</i> A remarkable story, written from the heart as only the best stories are. -- <i>St. Louis Post-Dispatch<i> Remarkable . . . Cofer is a fine storyteller. Her prose conveys all the energy and mystery of anticipation. -- <i>Women's Review of Books</i>More details
Edition
Revised edition
Language
English
Place of publication
Georgia
United States
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
illustrations
Dimensions
Height: 215 mm
Width: 142 mm
Thickness: 22 mm
Weight
445 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-8203-1335-1 (9780820313351)
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Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
E-Book
10/2020
University of Georgia Press
€18.18
Available for download
Person
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.