Family, J. California Cooper
Family, J. California Cooper
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Family
A Novel

Author: J. California Cooper

Narrator: Janina Edwards

Unabridged: 4 hr 42 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 11/03/2020

Synopsis

In this beautifuly textured first novel by the author of the acclaimed short story collection Homemade Love, the history of one slave family becomes symbolic for all slaves and slaveholders.Family is a stunning, often painfully graphic re-creation of the realities of slavery: black women raped by white masters; black children sold to sustain failing plantations—or to satisfy the whims of a petulant mistress; strong men humiliated, whipped, and beaten because of the color of their skin. But it is also the triumphant story of a mother whose loving spirit transcends the barriers of death and time, allowing her to watch over her children and her children’s children.In simple, hauntingly poetic language, the slave Clora, who killed herself to escape an unbearable existence, recounts the “grief and misery that is soul and core of the life of a slave” and follows her children as they experience the joys and challenges of emancipation, create new lives for themselves and their families in the postwar South, in northern cities, and abroad, and hold fast to their dreams and their faith as they confront the fear and hatred that permeates their world.

About J. California Cooper

J. California Cooper (1931–2014) first found acclaim as a playwright. The author of seventeen plays, she was named Black Playwright of the Year in 1978. It was through her work in the theater that she caught the attention of acclaimed poet and novelist Alice Walker. Encouraged by Walker to turn her popular storytelling skills to fiction, Cooper wrote her first collection of short stories, A Piece of Mine, in 1984. Two more story collections followed, and in 1986 came Homemade Love, which won an American Book Award.

About Janina Edwards

Janina Edwards is a graduate of the acting program at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. Based in Atlanta, she voices webinars, eLearning, and audiobooks in a variety of genres, including drama, romance, nonfiction, and mysteries.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Mariah Roze on April 17, 2017

I read this book for the Goodreads' book club Diversity in All Forms! If you would like to join or check out the discussion on this book here is the link: [URL not allowed] I am so glad that J. California Cooper was our voted on author because her work is amazing and I would ha......more

Goodreads review by Cheryl on March 17, 2021

J. California Cooper is one of the best authors in my world. This book was not a pleasant book to read but she wrote the story with so much dignity and grace. Reading this book takes me back to the days of listening to my great grandmother tell her stories, her struggles and her peace. For all of my......more

Goodreads review by Meghan on November 27, 2011

This is the story of my family, and that of every African American family that had to endure such trying times. As I pass though the pages of this brilliantly written book, I thought to myself, how did she know this was me. Time after time we as African American living now forget what they people wh......more

Goodreads review by James on February 23, 2015

I used this book with college freshmen for many years. No matter how many times I taught it, I was always amazed at the author's ability to move an audience to tears. Family is narrated by an enslaved woman named Clora in the southern United States sometime before the Civil War and concerns the woma......more

Goodreads review by Betty on September 01, 2010

I would say the book answered my questions.I always believed Black people were originally BLACK... Black people are so mixed, that's why we come in so many shades of colors... I also believe that some white people with thick curly hair had someone black in their ancestors. I'm not trying to affend a......more

Quotes

“The sort of book that ought to be read out loud. Both eerie and saddening, [and] filled with tragedies, it is also about survival. In its strong rhythms and colloquial expression, this book is a living woman’s monologue.” New York Times

“What most distinguishes Family…is its persistent affirmation of the power of the human spirit to do battle with evil—and to win, even if only for a while…It has a compelling voice.” Chicago Tribune

“Cooper whips up a fascinating tale.” Detroit Free Press

“Mesmerizing…Cooper weaves four wry, humorous, tragic tales that envelop and transcend time, offering hope and renewal at the same time they chronicle desolation and death.” San Francisco Chronicle

“A celebration of language, and of the indomitability of the human spirit…Family is a beautiful piece of writing, pulsing almost operatically with cadence, poetry, and power.” West Coast Review of Books

“What a voice…Cooper celebrates family, freedom, perseverance, life, and…powerful voices finally heard.” Atlanta Constitution

“With power and grace, Cooper weaves the dialect, style, and myths of the South into a portrait of the hell that was slavery.” Publishers Weekly

“Family is a pleasure to read. What might have been a much darker, angry book is refreshingly hopeful…and honest in its acknowledgment that good and bad may be found in almost everyone and every situation.” Belles Lettres

“Many novels have been written about slavery, but this one is original, stirring, vividly personal, and painfully intense.” Los Angeles Times

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