An “earthquake romance in the style of a Shakespearian comedy" June Jordan completed the entirety 'I was looking at the ceiling and then I saw the sky' in six weeks after composer John Adams requested that he have the entire libretto before he began work on the musical arrangement. Jordan said “...that's all I did. I didn't do laundry, anything. I put myself into it 100 percent. What I gave to John and Peter [Sellars] is basically what Scribner's has published now”. The story takes place in the aftermath of the 1994 Northridge earthquake in Los Angeles, following 7 twenty-somethings living in the Los Angeles area, hailing from different socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds,all on intertwining journeys of love and self-discovery. The title was taken from a quote by a survivor of the earthquake in the Los Angeles Times. First edition. Fine condition. Dust Jacket and protective jacket sleeve.