Some Soul to Keep

Featuring five incredible short stories exploring love and how its presence or absence impacts family relations, friendships and romantic relationships, Some Soul to Keep draws a vivid picture of Black characters that leap off the page with their spirit and voice in the literary folk tradition associated most often with Zora Neale Hurston and Langston Hughes. With her warm narration and understanding of the human condition, J. California Cooper brings stories of Black family life in rural and small town America that are deeply moving and unforgettable.

J. California Cooper (1931-2014) is the author of two novels, six collections of stories, and seventeen plays. She was honored as the Black Playwright of the Year in 1978 for her play Strangers, and her book Homemade Love was the winner of the American Book Award in 1986. She also received the James Baldwin Writing Award and the Literary Lion Award from the American Library Association.