1. “ I was telling stories before I could write. I like to tell stories, and I like to
talk to things. If you've read fairy tales, you know that everything can talk,
from trees to chairs to tables to brooms. So I grew up thinking that, and I
turned it into stories. ”
— J. California Cooper
ESTABLISHED AUTHOR
OF OVER 10 PLAYS AND
OVER 10 BOOKS

2.  “Her style is deceptively simple and direct, and the vale
of tears which her characters reside is never so deep
that a rich chuckle at a foolish person’s foolishness
cannot be heard.” -Alice Walker

3. “Cooper’s stories dramatize the wages of
sin and the rewards of patience, as well
as the occasional sweet taste of revenge
in a moral universe in which justice
operates independently of social and
economic forces.”
----Chicago Tribune

4. “ Cooper knows how to ‘talk’ her
stories to us, as though each of
them is told by a kindly and
concerned friend. The sound of
them is lovely, memorable,
haunting.”---SAN FRANCISCO
CHRONICLE

5. "I love all of her books,
but some that really stand
out are Homemade Love,
Some Love, Some Pain
and In Search of
Satisfaction. When I need
wholesome reading with
some substance and
wisdom about self-love
and acceptance, I turn to
J. California Cooper." —
Chavon, Bermuda

7.  Joan California Cooper is her birth
name.
 No one knows her actual birth.
 She has one daughter, Paris A. Williams
 Born in Berkeley, California
 Has written 17 plays.
 Has written 13 books.

8.  1984: A Piece of Mine
 1986: Homemade Love, 1989
 1987: Some Soul to Keep
 1991: Family
 1991: The Matter Is Life
 1994: In Search of Satisfaction
 1996: Some Love, Some Pain, Some Time: Stories
 1998: The Wake of the Wind
 2001: The Future Has a Past
 2003: Age Ain't Nothing but a Number: Black Women Explore Midlife
(contributor), edited by Carleen Brice
 2004: Some People, Some Other Place
 2006: Wild Stars Seeking Midnight Suns: Stories
 2009: Life is Short but Wide