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33rd out of 119 books
—
38 voters
Life Is Short But Wide
Beloved writer J. California Cooper has won a legion of loyal fans and much critical acclaim for her powerful storytelling gifts. In language both spare and direct yet wondrously lyrical, LIFE IS SHORT BUT WIDE is an irresistible story of family that proves no matter who you are or what you do, you are never too old to chase your dreams.
Like the small towns J. California C...more
Like the small towns J. California C...more
Hardcover, 336 pages
Published
March 24th 2009
by Doubleday
(first published 2009)
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Author J. California Cooper takes us to Wideland, Oklahoma to chronicle the lives, loves, and losses of two families in her latest offering entitled, Life Is Short But Wide. A 91 year-old narrates the story and immediately espouses Cooper's signature edicts of loving life, yourself, one another, and God. The "do right," work hard, save money, importance of education, etc. lessons are also overtly and repeatedly layered in the stories of Val and Irene, Joseph and Bertha, and their children. Their...more
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Liked the beginning, loved the middle, hated the end. The book spans the lives of several poverty stricken black families over almost a century. The beginning is intriguing with a quaint narrator describing the lives of these characters and throwing in her own folksy comments and observations. The middle of the story is gripping as it follows the struggles and triumphs of the characters. As their troubles increase, so does their need for love. One thing that bothers me about the middle of the bo...more
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J. California Cooper is a phenomenal writer. She inspires and motivates inside her short stories and novels, through her characters. This book was no exception. Unfortunately, I still enjoy her short stories better than her novels.
This book discussed how these families lived, how lives came together through the journey of life, and how love never grows old or dies. This book was very depressing and stressful in some parts. Having to read about how a young girl was sold away from her family beca...more
This book discussed how these families lived, how lives came together through the journey of life, and how love never grows old or dies. This book was very depressing and stressful in some parts. Having to read about how a young girl was sold away from her family beca...more
Now that I am a J. California Cooper junkie, I had to squeeze in another book by her this year. Prior to me reading anything by Cooper, Life is Short but Wide, was on my Amazon Wish List. Cooper is such a phenomenal storyteller that I could not wait to read a novel by her.
Cooper begins this story with a blossoming love story between Irene and Val. Irene is a young woman “running from a motherless home” (14). Val is a hard working man that happens to be part Indian and part African. Val meets Ire...more
Cooper begins this story with a blossoming love story between Irene and Val. Irene is a young woman “running from a motherless home” (14). Val is a hard working man that happens to be part Indian and part African. Val meets Ire...more
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When I read the comments on the back of the book and saw the line, "Cooper's work reminds us of Langston Hughes and Zora Neale Hurston...It is a delight to read," by Alice Walker I had to read the book (loving Hurston and Walker as I do). The book did not disappoint. I loved that, like "Their Eyes Were Watching God", it didn't focus on white people's oppression of blacks but rather told the story of people. It gave me new insights into another segment of society and gave honest feelings to the c...more
I cannot believe that I finished this book within one day. Feels good to be getting back in the grove of reading like I have done this week. I am proud of myself. Just like when I lived with my parents. Now to this book...J. California Cooper has yet to disappoint me. I would classify this book as being a complex romance novel. So many times the pain was too much for me to bear. The poison, the grief, the misuse would make me cringe. I even found myself, "How can people be so evil, so selfish, a...more
This is another book that I found in the library's "new" section. I picked it based solely on its' title. I didn't really love it at first, but in the heart of it, I really started to enjoy it. There seemed to be too much history and too many people at the beginning. And I still don't really understand the narrator's place in all of it.
The story takes place in Wideland, OK in a predominately black area. Irene and Val are deeply in love. The have two daughters, Tante, and Rose. They also have a...more
The story takes place in Wideland, OK in a predominately black area. Irene and Val are deeply in love. The have two daughters, Tante, and Rose. They also have a...more
This was pleasant reading about a black family growing up in Wideland, Oklahoma. Sisters growing up, wanting more out of life, to become educated, go to college, to help others who have less than them and dealing with those who take advantage of their goodness. The author would add her commentary in parentheses and italics through out the book, but I'm not sure why. As an example, it wasn't necessary to explain the ages of the characters at a particular time. One could assess that by reading. Th...more
I am a big fan of J. California Cooper and her short story anthologies. However, this is the first actual novel that I have read of Cooper's.
This book is a historical journey that reaches across a few generations. It tells of two sisters that grow up and take very different paths. The story mostly follows Rose, the sister that stays home. Ultimately, it ends up being a story of how Rose finds her true love.
This was an interesting enough story with a lot of people and situations to follow throug...more
This book is a historical journey that reaches across a few generations. It tells of two sisters that grow up and take very different paths. The story mostly follows Rose, the sister that stays home. Ultimately, it ends up being a story of how Rose finds her true love.
This was an interesting enough story with a lot of people and situations to follow throug...more
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Cooper is a great story teller, no doubt about it. Her characters are interesting and she makes you want to find out where their lives are going. Let me just say without giving away the ending; chapter 43 was a little over the top - more; well read it for yourself. The rest of the story was just great! I like her style and will read more of her writing. I appreciate here glimpse in African-American life in Oklahoma during the 20th century through the lives of the families she writes about. I don...more
Maybe I shouldn't have purchased a reader, but just kept borrowing from the library....I feel I have to finish a book I don't even like, just because I have purchased it! Crazy, I know. I really do love "folksy" books ("Cold Sassy Tree" and "Enemy Women" are two of my all-time favorites). This book, however, was disjointed, inappropriately folksy, and boring. Added to that, there were a lot of outright comments against conservatism, and in the end a long "commercial" for the Jehovah Witness Chur...more
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I have wanted to read a book by J. California Cooper for the longest. This particular book has been sitting in my wish list, then TBR pile since forever and a day. A couple of my bookhearts (Vern and Cassandra) have encouraged my reading this author. What better time to try a new African American author than during Black History Month? So I finally picked up and started reading Life is Short but Wide.
The story is told from different perspectives. Overall, it is about love. That "hard-to-find, h...more
The story is told from different perspectives. Overall, it is about love. That "hard-to-find, h...more
Sometimes you read a work of fiction that makes you think and want to be better, this is one such book if you read with a combination of an open mind and a sense of historical times.
First character that I felt let down by in a sense was Val Strong. His double stron(Val in Latin) and yet his wife's death makes him lose his will to live. I am also disappointed in this because he was raised as an Indian Warrior/Brave. I am rather certain they do not teach give up and die but this is my assessment....more
First character that I felt let down by in a sense was Val Strong. His double stron(Val in Latin) and yet his wife's death makes him lose his will to live. I am also disappointed in this because he was raised as an Indian Warrior/Brave. I am rather certain they do not teach give up and die but this is my assessment....more
This was an interesting story. I liked the style in which the story was told. I felt that there was a lot of sadness, loss and grief in this story, but the happy ending made the story worthwhile. I liked the fact that the story had a nice theme of love, family & friendship. It helped to balance out the sadness and misfortune.
I liked that the setting of this story was in Oklahoma. I lived there for almost ten years. I finally moved to another state in 2009. Like some of the characters in the...more
I liked that the setting of this story was in Oklahoma. I lived there for almost ten years. I finally moved to another state in 2009. Like some of the characters in the...more
I like a good character study, and was looking forward to this story of the lives of a small neighborhood of family (biological and "lifelong friend" family) in Oklahoma. The beginning of the book was adequate to keep me interested, but nothing that really stood out as outstanding. In the middle, I did come to care for the characters and was engaged in their stories and what would happen to them.
I personally felt like things fell apart in the last quarter or so of the book. All of the sudden Co...more
I personally felt like things fell apart in the last quarter or so of the book. All of the sudden Co...more
The book is written from the perspective of a narrator who is personally telling you a story while sitting next to you. Some may find this charming, I found it hokey. the "oh mys," etc, felt forced to me.
The narrator weaves a tell of two people/families who blend together - I enjoyed the latter half of the book, but felt that the first section gave short shrift to the early characters.
It's a nice easy read that went on about 5 pages too long. The story ultimately about love and how it can buil...more
The narrator weaves a tell of two people/families who blend together - I enjoyed the latter half of the book, but felt that the first section gave short shrift to the early characters.
It's a nice easy read that went on about 5 pages too long. The story ultimately about love and how it can buil...more
Hattie B. Brown, the 91 year old narrator of this book, sure was good telling her story in the shape of a "Y."
Some quotes:
"Life is not perfect...for anyone. But love makes such a difference in life that sometimes it is the only thing that seems important. It makes life livable."
"Life is short, especially if you are happy. And life is wide; especially if you are old, and still have a chance for happiness. But, you have to watch life as you live it, because life is always deep."
Some quotes:
"Life is not perfect...for anyone. But love makes such a difference in life that sometimes it is the only thing that seems important. It makes life livable."
"Life is short, especially if you are happy. And life is wide; especially if you are old, and still have a chance for happiness. But, you have to watch life as you live it, because life is always deep."
I really enjoyed J. California Cooper's way of story telling. Her way of writing made you feel as if you were right there interviewing the story teller. The "Y" that was refered to was done very well. The way that these families lived their lives right next to each other, but oblivious to what was going on aroundnthem and the changes that were happening in the world. The love story was truly a very good love story. Old love or young love, it's still love.
This was a character study, but to me, it jumped so quickly from character to character that I never felt fully involved with any of them. I read the entire book, as I wanted to see what happened to several of the characters. The setting was Oklahoma at the beginning of the 20th century, and the book covered the better part of the 1900's.
I rather liked the author's voice, but just had trouble connecting to the characters in the way I like.
This was the September selection for one of the fiction...more
I rather liked the author's voice, but just had trouble connecting to the characters in the way I like.
This was the September selection for one of the fiction...more
Life is Short But Wide is filled with wisdom about the importance of seizing each day, expressing the love you feel for others and making your dreams happen now. It's sad to think about all the years people waste because they are too afraid, too shy, too ignorant or sometimes too poor to make life what they want it to be. In a fast-paced world, a book like this is great to remind us of what matters most in life.
Although this book is well written, and at times interesting, I found it to be tedious (very repetitious) and I found then ending to be very preachy. It was as if the author was trying to convert readers to become Jehovah's Witnesses! It's too bad because I have long enjoyed many of her books-- they have been some of my favorites of all time! I'll stick with her earlier works!
I really like this writer, she's a fine storyteller. Here, she Intertwines stories of the struggles of people living in a small town in Oklahoma over a period of several decades. Marriage, children,aging, families made of neighbors, and finding love even in older ages made this a very satisfying read. Skip the last chapter, an obvious add-on commercial for Jehovah Witness.
written from the perspective of the poor black community beginning in the 1930's on, this is the story of one family "just livin'". wonderful vocabulary and cadence bring you into the heart of their experiences; their heartbreaks and victories, their loves and losses. I say read it to open your mind and heart to a world most of us will never know.
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Growing up my mom had just about all of J. California Cooper's books and I happily read them. I was excited when I found out there was a new one out and it more than lived up to my expectations. I could barely put it down for want of finishing it. Nobody spins life lessons and love stories into 1 quite like this author.
Really enjoyed this book at the outset but as it went along I felt like the author spent way too much time on a lot of unnecessary narrative. It ended on a bad note for me when the author rambled for pages on a completely disjointed character epiphany. It was a nice story but needed some fine tuning and EDITING!
As usual this one reminds me of sitting in the swing at my grandparent's home.
This one did not disappoint me, I enjoyed it and was sorry when I had read the last page.
Life is short but we can get a lot of experiences and love in the years that we are here. I loved Mine's romance. Another 5 star novel for Ms J. California Cooper.
This one did not disappoint me, I enjoyed it and was sorry when I had read the last page.
Life is short but we can get a lot of experiences and love in the years that we are here. I loved Mine's romance. Another 5 star novel for Ms J. California Cooper.
J. California Cooper has quickly become a favorite author of mine. Her prose is so open and fluent. She writes the way everyday people talk making it easy to read, and yet in this simple language, she creates images and situations that affect your soul.
Jan 01, 2012
Latasha T
added it
This book reminded me of sitting a kitchen table. I always enjoy hearing others' life story. . . This book was so interesting and intense I read it in one day. What I got from this book was that everything in life happens in circles and cycles.
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J. California Cooper 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...more
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