Strongly, deliberately reminiscent of conversations over backyard fences, Cooper's genial, heartful new stories feature poor to middle-class black women reflecting on friends and neighbors much like themselves. The signature first-person monologs tell of women's perseverance in the face of economic and emotional hardship, both usually caused by fickle, selfish men, and of the recurrent ?and sometimes fruitful? search for real love. A consistently natural vernacular enlivens these tales; readers familiar with black talk or with Cooper's other works, e.g., In Search of Satisfaction (LJ 9/1/94), will enjoy the engaging, comfortable rhythms and speech patterns. That most of these stories are little differentiated from one another in either form or content may frustrate nonfans, but most public libraries should acquire this winning if repetitive collection by a well-regarded author. Janet Ingraham, Worthington P.L., Ohio