Homemade Love [Paperback]

J. California Cooper (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1, 1998

In one of the best-loved volumes of her work, J. California Cooper tells exuberant tales full of wonder at the mystery of life and the hardness of fate. Awed, bedeviled, bemused, all of Cooper's characters are borne up by the sheer power of life itself.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The stories in this second collection from the author of A Piece of Mine are all about love. About sex and family too, and life when it is lived with wonder and relish. Told in first-person, in a lively, unobtrusive black dialect, these tales, set in both country and city, are lit with wisdom and high-spirited humor. In "Happiness Does Not Come in Colors," a black activist widowed in the '60s gradually allows herself to become attached to a white man, while a younger black woman finds that activism has expanded her life in surprising ways. In "The Magic Strength of Need," an ambitious girl of exceptional ugliness builds an empire of beauty products and services, is finally wooed by the longed-for rich man and learns to value the love of a constant friend. "Spooks" is a sexual comedy in which two men enjoy the favors of a recent widow whose "husband" returns to her each night. Cooper is overfond of aphoristic commentary and exclamation marks, and her narrators may have similar-sounding voices, but she tells stories that move and dance about people who pop off the page to lodge themselves firmly in the reader's affection.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Cooper's second volume of short stories (her first was A Piece of Mine , LJ 12/84) concerns black women and men, parents and children, as they struggle and love. Told in a folksy first-person voice, these stories nearly all have happy endings. Contrasts abound: In "Living," a middle-aged man leaves his wife and piece of land to try city life, and after three days and four hospitalizations crawls gratefully back home. "The Watcher" is the neighborhood snoop, so intent on everyone else's business that she does not see that her own son is on smack. The overabundance of exclamation points and the sameness of style do get a little tiresome, but the stories are saved from preachiness by the wry and somewhat ingenuous tone. This would be an excellent addition to collections serving black young adult readers. Janet Boyarin Blundell, M.L.S., Brookdale Community Coll., Lincroft, N.J.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin (December 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 031219465X
• ISBN-13: 978-0312194659
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #341,984 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

J. California Cooper was honored as Black Playwright of the Year, and has received the American Book Award, the James Baldwin Writing Award, and the Literary Lion Award from the American Library Association. She lives in California.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Homemade Love is rich, endearing, and joyful reading., July 12, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Homemade Love (Paperback)

I received this book as a graduation gift in 1992 and have read it at least five times since then. This book is a collection of warm, sad, funny, deep stories. Homemade Love is about life, love, and the pursuit of happiness. One particular story of a country born and raised man who becomes fascinated with the lights and sights of the big city, teaches the lesson that we often don't know what we have until we don't have it anymore. Yet while teaching this lesson, the story will have you laughing out loud. Other stories have lesson to be learned but do it in such a hilarious and sometimes emotional way that you forget you're learning something in the process.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very Good, June 27, 2002

By 

E. Villarreal "marivigi" (Mexico City, Mexico) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Homemade Love (Paperback)

Ok... I feel a bit guilty about not putting 5 stars as everyone else, but I guess I just need to let others like me know what to expect when they read this book.

The main reason why I bought it was because everyone put 5 stars on it, and I do have to admit I liked it. It is filled will lessons of life, some of which are very funny, others are a bit sad, but in the end the messages are encouraging and motivating.

Now, the reason for the 4 star rating is that I found some of the stories a bit unbelievable, and although I love happy endings, there were way too many here. Also, I found the writing style hard to understand sometimes, since it uses a lot of "argot", which made it difficult to focus and keep the stories flowing.

Having said that, I do have to point out that this is definetly a Happy Book, full of funny characters, nice stories and lots of love ... it will put a smile on your face and fill your heart with joy.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simply Wonderful, April 20, 1999

By 

S. Mitchell "Avid Reader" (TLH, Florida) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Homemade Love (Paperback)

I recently recieved a book by J. Califorina Cooper as a gift, "In Search of Satisfaction", and I have been hooked every since. After reading that book, I realized I had to have all of her books. She is such a gifted author. The books are so good that I refuse to read them, one after the other, because I don't know when the next one will come out. I'll have to make them last for a while.

I have read a few short stories, but the ones that are in Homemade Love are by far the best. Each story has a lesson on life. The stories were were simple and easy understand. I found myself laughing out loud and wanting to call someone to read a portion of the story to.

As I have said before, if I had a reading group, J.Califorina Cooper would be at the top of the list.