Judith Ortiz Cofer facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Judith Ortiz Cofer
Judith Ortiz Cofer
Born	Judith Ortiz (1952-02-24)February 24, 1952 Hormigueros, Puerto Rico
Died	December 30, 2016(2016-12-30) (aged 64) Louisville, Georgia
Occupation	Writer, professor at the University of Georgia
Nationality	Puerto Rican
Genre	Poetry, short stories, autobiography, essays, young adult novels
Notable works	A Partial Remembrance of a Puerto Rican Childhood

Judith Ortiz Cofer (February 24, 1952 – December 30, 2016) was a famous Puerto Rican writer. She wrote many different kinds of books, including poems, short stories, and novels for young adults. Her work won many awards and was praised by critics. Judith Ortiz Cofer was also a professor at the University of Georgia. She taught creative writing there for 26 years. In 2010, she was honored by being added to the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame.

Ortiz Cofer came from a family who loved to tell stories. She often used her own life experiences as a Puerto Rican American woman in her writing. She wrote about women's issues, Latino culture, and life in the American South. Her stories often showed how private family life and public spaces connect. She also described family relationships and places in a very detailed way. Her original writings are kept at the University of Georgia's library.

Judith Ortiz Cofer's Early Life

Judith Ortíz Cofer was born in Hormigueros, Puerto Rico, on February 24, 1952. Her parents were Jesus Lugo Ortíz and Fanny Morot. In 1956, her family moved to Paterson, New Jersey. Her father joined the U.S. Navy to find more opportunities for his young family. He was stationed in Panama when Judith was born. He met her for the first time two years later.

Judith's family often traveled back and forth between Paterson, New Jersey, and Hormigueros, Puerto Rico. She wrote about these trips in her memoir, Silent Dancing. She said these trips made it hard for her school and social life. She mostly went to school in New Jersey. But she also attended local schools in Puerto Rico when she was there. When in Puerto Rico, she stayed at her grandmother's house.

Moving between Puerto Rico and New Jersey greatly influenced her writing. It helped her compare the two different cultures. In 1967, when Judith was fifteen, her family moved to Augusta, Georgia. She lived there until she passed away in 2016. She went to Butler High School in Augusta. Judith and her brother, Ronaldo, did not want to move South at first. But when they arrived, Judith was amazed by Augusta's bright colors and plants. It was very different from the gray city life in Paterson.

Her Career as a Writer and Teacher

Judith Ortiz Cofer studied English in college. She earned a bachelor's degree from Augusta College. Later, she received a master's degree in English literature from Florida Atlantic University. Early in her career, she won special awards called fellowships. These awards helped her develop her writing in many different styles.

Ortiz Cofer spoke both English and Spanish very well. She worked as a bilingual teacher in Florida schools in 1974-1975. After getting her master's degree, she published her first book of poems. Then, she became a lecturer at the University of Miami.

In 1984, Ortiz Cofer joined the University of Georgia as a professor. She taught English and creative writing there. She taught both undergraduate and graduate students for 26 years. She retired from the University of Georgia in December 2013.

Ortiz Cofer is well-known for her creative nonfiction. But she also wrote poetry, short stories, and children's books. She started her writing journey with poetry. She believed poetry held "the essence of language." Her book Peregrina (1986) won an award. She received many other awards and grants for her writing. In 2010, she was inducted into the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame.

Awards and Honors

Judith Ortiz Cofer received many awards for her amazing writing:

• 1986: Won the Riverstone International Chapbook Competition for Peregrina, her first book of poems.
• 1990: Her memoir, Silent Dancing: A Partial Remembrance of a Puerto Rican Childhood, received a special award for nonfiction.
• 1990: Her essay "More Room" won the Pushcart Prize. This award celebrates great writing from smaller publishers.
• 1991: Her essay "Silent Dancing" was chosen for The Best American Essays 1991.
• 1994: She was the first Hispanic writer to win the O. Henry Prize for her story “The Latin Deli.”
• 1995: An Island Like You: Stories of the Barrio was named one of the best books for young adults by the American Library Association.
• 1996: Ortiz Cofer and illustrator Susan Guevara won the first-ever Pura Belpré Award for Hispanic children's literature.
• 2010: She was inducted into the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame.
• 2011: She received the Georgia Governor's Award in the Humanities.
• 2013: She won the University of Georgia's Southeastern Conference Faculty Achievement Award.

Her Literary Work and Themes

Judith Ortiz Cofer's writing is often called creative nonfiction. This means it mixes true stories with literary styles. She was greatly influenced by her grandmother, who was a wonderful storyteller. Her grandmother taught through stories, a tradition among Puerto Rican women.

Ortiz Cofer's stories about her own life often show her trying to balance two cultures. These were the American culture and the Puerto Rican culture. She explored how this balancing act shaped her as a writer. Her work also looked at topics like racism and sexism in American culture. She wrote about machismo (a strong sense of masculine pride) and female strength in Puerto Rican culture. She also explored the difficulties immigrants face when moving to a new country. Some of her well-known essays are "The Story of My Body" and "The Myth of the Latin Woman."

A main idea in Ortiz Cofer's work is language and the power of words. She believed words could create and shape who we are and the worlds we live in. Growing up, Spanish was her home language. At school, she learned English, which became the language she used for writing. Early in her life, she realized that "communication" was her main tool. To succeed, she needed to be fluent in the language of where she lived.

Ortiz Cofer believed that memories are more important than the actual events. She thought our minds change memories based on how we want to see them. She tested this idea by asking her mother and brother to remember the same event. They both told different versions. This made her realize that how a person remembers something depends on many things. These include gender, background, and even feelings. This idea became a big part of her writing. She always stressed that her stories were her own version of the truth. She said, "My intent was poetic rather than genealogical."

Major Books by Judith Ortiz Cofer

The Latin Deli

The Latin Deli is a collection of poems, essays, and short stories. All these stories are about Latinos living in the United States. Even though they come from different places, they are connected by their shared roots. These roots come from Europe, Africa, and the New World. The book shows that being unique and being part of a group can happen at the same time. It also shows how memories of the past and hopes for the future can mix together every day. Ortiz Cofer shows this through the lives of Puerto Ricans in a New Jersey neighborhood, similar to her own childhood.

Silent Dancing: A Partial Remembrance of a Puerto Rican Childhood

Silent Dancing is a collection of essays and poems. It tells the story of Ortiz Cofer's childhood. It describes her journey from her village in Puerto Rico to her life in Paterson, New Jersey. She writes about what it's like for children of military parents, as her father was in the U.S. Navy. Like many Puerto Ricans, her father left the island hoping for a better life. The book also explores the feeling of being torn between two places. Ortiz Cofer felt confused between her loyalty to the United States, where she grew up, and Puerto Rico, her birthplace. This is a common feeling for many Puerto Ricans.

An Island Like You: Stories of the Barrio

An Island Like You is a collection of twelve short stories for young adults. It follows different Puerto Rican teenage characters in a New Jersey neighborhood. Like many of Ortiz Cofer's famous works, this book uses her own experiences growing up. The American Library Association named it one of the best books for young adults in 1994. It also won the first-ever Pura Belpré Award in 1996. The stories all take place in the same neighborhood and often connect. Some characters appear in more than one story. This lets readers see them from their own point of view and from other characters' views.

The Line of the Sun

The Line of the Sun is a novel published in 1989. It tells the story of a Puerto Rican family from the late 1930s to the 1960s. A Spanish version, La Línea del Sol, was also published. The first part of the book shows the family's life in Puerto Rico. It focuses on a character named Uncle Guzmán. The second part is told by Marisol, the oldest daughter. In this part, the family moves from Puerto Rico to a building in Paterson, New Jersey. Later, they move to the New Jersey suburbs. This novel is based on Ortiz Cofer's own life, but it also includes made-up parts. It explores the idea of cultural identity. It also shows a realistic picture of what it was like for Puerto Rican migrants.

List of Works

Multi-genre Works

• The Latin Deli: Prose and Poetry (1993)
• The Year of Our Revolution: New and Selected Stories and Poems (1998)
• Silent Dancing: A Partial Remembrance of a Puerto Rican Childhood (1990)

Poetry

• A Love Story Beginning in Spanish (2005)
• Reaching for the Mainland and Selected New Poems (1995)
• Terms of Survival (1987)
• Peregrina (1986)

Prose

• The Line of the Sun (1989)

Young Adult Literature

• If I Could Fly (2011)
• Call Me Maria (2004)
• The Meaning of Consuelo (2003)
• An Island Like You: Stories of the Barrio (1995)

Children's Books

• The Poet Upstairs (2012)
• Animal Jamboree/La Fiesta De Los Animales: Latino Folktales / Leyendas (2012)
• A Bailar!/Let's Dance (2011)

Images for kids

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  Judith Ortiz Cofer

See also

• "The Myth of the Latin Woman"
• List of Puerto Rican writers
• Puerto Rican literature