Peach Pit Corazon
A Judith Ortiz Cofer Reader
Will be published approx. on 15. November 2025
Book
Paperback/Softback
258 pages
978-0-8203-7411-6 (ISBN)
Description
Judith Ortiz Cofer (1952-2016), a prominent Latina writer, was, among various recognitions, nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for her 1989 first novel, The Line of the Sun (Georgia); awarded the coveted O. Henry Prize for her short story "The Latin Deli" in 1994; and inducted into the Georgia Writer's Hall of Fame in 2010. Beginning her literary career as a poet, Ortiz Cofer was a prolific writer of novels, short stories, and creative nonfiction essays, often inspired by her diverse cultural background. She was born in Hormigueros, Puerto Rico, and moved to Paterson, New Jersey, as a child in the mid-1950s. In Paterson, she witnessed the rise of a Puerto Rican community. During her early teenage years, her family left for Augusta, Georgia, the state where she put down roots. She joined the English Department at the University of Georgia in 1984, eventually being named the Franklin Professor of English and Creative Writing, before retiring from teaching in 2014. Her work often engaged with the intersections of the various geographies, cultures, and languages of the places she called home throughout her life.
Rafael Ocasio's critical introduction and commentary on representative literary pieces are guided by interviews conducted during his twenty-seven-year friendship with Ortiz Cofer. One common subject of their conversations, as they joked, was labeling themselves as "Georgia Ricans." From a temporal hindsight point of view, as a Georgia Rican writer, Ortiz Cofer recalls events that led to her rise as a Latina writer who was celebratory of a Latinx identity, a multiethnic community that comprised a range of socioeconomic backgrounds, while also being critical of their traditional binary concepts pertaining to gender and sexual orientations.
Rafael Ocasio's critical introduction and commentary on representative literary pieces are guided by interviews conducted during his twenty-seven-year friendship with Ortiz Cofer. One common subject of their conversations, as they joked, was labeling themselves as "Georgia Ricans." From a temporal hindsight point of view, as a Georgia Rican writer, Ortiz Cofer recalls events that led to her rise as a Latina writer who was celebratory of a Latinx identity, a multiethnic community that comprised a range of socioeconomic backgrounds, while also being critical of their traditional binary concepts pertaining to gender and sexual orientations.
Reviews / Votes
Rafael Ocasio has skillfully put together a comprehensive collection of Judith Ortiz Cofer's works; it's a true testament of the importance of her writing and permanence in the world of letters. This collection of some of her finest literary contributions, along with a detailed introduction and explanatory passages at the beginning of each chapter, honors the true spirit and gifted craft of a beloved writer. -- Carmen Haydee Rivera Vega * Professor of English, University of Puerto Rico * Peach Pit Corazon, the intriguing title of this book, poetically reflects Judith Ortiz Cofer's philosophy as a Latinx author determined to build cultural bridges through her artistry. Rafael Ocasio has lovingly collected a comprehensive range of her extensive and varied oeuvre. His reflections on her trajectory from Puerto Rico to New Jersey to Florida to Georgia introduce readers to her all-encompassing literary heart/corazon: belonging, displacement, adaptation, and preserving oral legacies. -- Mary Ann Gosser Esquilin * author of Culture, Nature, and the Other in Caribbean Literature: An Ecocritical Approach * This stellar collection of the writings of Judith Ortiz Cofer pays tribute to an author who transformed her Boricua life into widely-appealing works for Puerto Ricans as well as wider Latine and general audiences. Readers can now revisit-or discover-carefully curated short stories, creative nonfiction, and academic essays covering compelling themes of identity, oral folklore, gender roles and restrictions, and the reclamation of cultural traditions and heritage. Featuring deep cuts from her ground-breaking YA, adult fiction, nonfiction, and memoirs, Peach Pit Corazon makes her legacy available for the next generation and avid readers of the Latine experience. -- Maria Acosta Cruz, PhD * author of Dream Nation: Puerto Rican Culture and the Fictions of Independence * Peach Pit Corazon provides readers with an intimate understanding of Judith Ortiz Cofer and her work. Grounded in personal exchanges and interviews, along with a nuanced understanding of Ortiz Cofer's multi-genre writing, Rafael Ocasio's critical commentary confirms her place as a foundational Latina and Georgia Rican author. This reader includes a variety of Ortiz Cofer's work on the relationship between geo-cultural space and identity, demonstrating her continued relevance to a field attuned to increasingly varied Puerto Rican, Boricua, and Latinx experiences. -- Laura M. Quijano, PhD * Lecturer of Spanish, Marist College *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Georgia
United States
Target group
College/higher education
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Dimensions
Height: 229 mm
Width: 154 mm
Thickness: 16 mm
Weight
399 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-8203-7411-6 (9780820374116)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
RAFAEL OCASIOis emeritus Charles A. Dana Professor of Spanish at Agnes Scott College. He is the author of Cuba's Political and Sexual Outlaw: Reinaldo Arenas; The Making of a Gay Activist; and The Dissidence of Reinaldo Arenas: Queering Literature, Politics, and the Activist Curriculum, coauthored with Sandro Barros and Angela L. Willis. He lives in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico.