The Line of the Sun [Hardcover]

Judith Ortiz Cofer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 1989

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.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The vivid opening of this first novel, in which the hero, Guzman, kicks lustily in Mama Cielo's womb, abates somewhat before the first chapter ends. Even the doughty, tyrannical Cielo succumbs to the trials of Puerto Rican life--her older son's death in battle, Guzman's wild passion for the local whore, the late birth of a sickly daughter. After Guzman leaves for New York, the narrative is taken up by his young niece Marisol, daughter of his sister, who has moved to Paterson, N.J. Through Marisol's eyes we understand the clash of conflicting values endured by Puerto Rican emigres. Though exposed to the U.S. mainstream in school, Marisol remains rooted in the island culture stubbornly maintained by her mother and others in the Spanish-speaking tenement community. When Guzman suddenly appears in Paterson, the adoring Marisol finds a spiritual mentor. But the neighbors inexplicably detest Guzman, and other events--a factory strike, a fire, a seance--lead to the family's separation. Unfortunately, the rest of the novel never lives up to the excitement generated by Guzman in the opening pages. But though weakened by clumsy plotting, arbitrary shifts in points of view and sometimes pedestrian prose, prize-winning poet Cofer's novel paints a colorful, revealing portrait of Puerto Rican culture and domestic relationships.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

This first novel by an accomplished poet flavors the U.S. immigrant experience with a hint of magical realism. The story of Guzman, black sheep of a Puerto Rican village, is here told by his assimilited niece. Adventurous from childhood, the wild youth is ostracized because of an affair with a notorious older woman whose reputation as a spiritist does not save her from the wrath of righteous neighbors. Heading for New York and the American dream, Guzman wanders for more than a decade until he confronts his island roots in a violent, resonant denouement. A shaky transition between the novel's two main sections is offset by well-realized characters and vibrant depictions of Puerto Rican folk culture. Recommended.
- Starr E. Smith, Georgetown Univ. Lib., Washington, D.C.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: University of Georgia Press (June 1, 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0820311065
• ISBN-13: 978-0820311067
• Product Dimensions: 13.4 x 8.7 x 1.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,303,763 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Critically acclaimed and widely published poet, novelist, and essayist Judith Ortiz Cofer knows that "words have the power to transform you and give you the power to shape your life. The minute you open your mouth, you have introduced yourself." Writing extensively about the experience of being Puerto Rican and her identity as a woman and writer in the U.S., she is a lauded Regents and Franklin Professor of Creative Writing at the University of Georgia where she teaches literature and creative writing.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of My Favorite in Puerto Rican Literature., September 28, 2002

By 

El Brujo "Brujo Hechisero" (Lowell, Ma) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Line of the Sun (Hardcover)

This has to be one of my favorite books by Mrs. Cofer; I loved it so much I read it three times in a row. The story of the lives of Mama Cielo, her son Guazman and so forth takes you on a journey to Puerto Rico in the earlier part of the 20th century. The Characters are all interweaved into a World that will captivate you. Starting in rural Puerto Rico and then going to the barrios of New York, and back to Puerto Rico. One takes a journey through the Peasant Puerto Rican life, the mystery and magic of brujeria and Santeriia. This book has it all, a Novel that reads like one of those most loved, Spanish Telenovelas. This book is a must read for all Latino, especially to my sister Latinas as this book shows the importance and strength of the Latina woman in the Familia. Highly Recommended. I wish they would base a mini TV movie on this book, it would be such a treat. A++++++++++

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Good Read, April 11, 2002

By 

Joseph Peckham (Tifton, GA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Line of the Sun (Paperback)

I enjoyed reading this book about the life of Guzman or rather more about the life of a Puerto Rican family. The main focus is on Guzman and his sister Ramona's family. In the second half Marisol, Ramona's daughter, continues the story to the end. Magic plays a role in the story, but it adds interest as well as Guzman's return to the family in the second half. I also enjoyed the fact that women had a strong presence in the family. I thought that latin men would be the dominant members of the family. This book demonstrated to me that either women or men could have a dominant presence in the family. While reading, I felt that I was living with them as an impartial viewer seeing a life as though it were a movie in progress. The book captures the essence of the life and the spiritual influences that I have read or heard about from other sources. Some may feel that the story is full of cliches, but to me the story is about life, a good read as C.S.Forester's The African Queen or Daniel Quinn's Ishmael.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful book that unfortunately turns into a cliche, December 8, 2000

By 

C. L. Schoon "highly calibrated sarcasm machine" (Longmont, CO USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Line of the Sun (Paperback)

This book begins with a colorful and exoticized portrayal of a family living in Salud, a small town in Puerto Rico. The story is a telenovela, filled with bright colors, beautiful people, undying love between the wrong people. However, we find out that the narrator is, in fact, a niece to the first main character, Guzman. Her story is far less interesting and motivating than hers and the second half of the novel- her coming of age- is so similar to Nicholasa Mohr's Nilda and Esmeralda Santiago's When I Was Puerto Rican, that it is a disappointing denoument to the novel.