Reviews tagging 'Confinement'

The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride

41 reviews

books_brews_and_booze's review against another edition

dark emotional funny mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

James McBride does it again. He's crafted a compelling, well-written, powerful story with special attention paid to the setting, to the characters, to humanity.

One of the greatest storytellers of this time, in my humble opinion. I'd love to see school curriculums include his books in their lists, if they aren't already doing so.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs

Moderate: Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Forced institutionalization, Antisemitism, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Medical trauma

Minor: Excrement and Abandonment

meganpbell's review against another edition

emotional hopeful mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

While there’s much to love about this book—its strong sense of place, its vast, lovable, diverse, and very human cast of characters, and its central message about community amid difference—religion, race, ability, class—I found it too structurally scattered to enjoy uninterruptedly and the author’s descriptions of women’s bodies (the number of times boobs and angelic singing occur smh) distracting to put it lightly.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Racism, Forced institutionalization, and Antisemitism

Moderate: Child abuse, Confinement, Sexual assault, Violence, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Death, Infertility, Medical content, and Death of parent

kimveach's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

This was an excellent book. I just didn't enjoy it. It felt slow and meandering at first. It eventually picked up the pace, and the various storylines came together for a thrilling ending. However, I spent most of the book wishing I had finished it. Once again, I must remember that just because a book is on a best-seller list doesn't mean I'll like it. I can appreciate this novel and even enjoyed parts of it, but I would have preferred this story as a mini-series to watch instead of reading.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infertility, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Antisemitism, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

booknerd_therapist's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Oh my goodness. If you've ever read a book that ripped your heart out and made you examine it.... this is that kind of book.

Admittedly, it was off to a slow start. I had a tough time getting into it, because the author meticulously goes into every character's back story. But without that, there is no story. So it's necessary, and if you want to experience the full beauty of this book, you need to truly understand the characters.

This book isn't just about being black. It's not just about being Jewish. It's not just about racism and antisemitism and surviving those things. It's not just about the horrific abuse disabled children experienced a century ago. Those things are omnipresent.... but they are a backdrop. They are a backdrop for the real story: Friendship, love, resilience, family, hope. 

If you are hoping for a plot-driven story, this is not it. This is unapologetically character driven. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Chronic illness, Death, Racism, Forced institutionalization, Antisemitism, and Classism

Moderate: Confinement, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Grief, Murder, and Alcohol

Minor: Child death, Cursing, and Excrement

purplepenning's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

In 1972, a construction crew finds a skeleton in the bottom of a well in Pottstown, Pennsylvania. But really, that's the end of the story. The real story takes place in the minority community of Chicken Hill in the 1930s, when Black and Jewish neighbors, estranged friends, quiet community protectors, well-intentioned hustlers, crooked public officials, morally diseased doctors, bankrolling mobsters, predatory monsters, and one deaf child intersect to reveal how an extraordinary community of communities came together to support and protect each other.     

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Forced institutionalization, and Antisemitism

Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Terminal illness, Violence, Excrement, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Ableism, Addiction, Infertility, and Death of parent

nuah_rains's review against another edition

1.0

I can see why people like this but my low rating is because this is simply not for me. Historically fiction can be hit or miss with me (like lessons in chemistry was a hit and this one a miss). I think I kept comparing it to lessons in chemistry because they are both historical fictions and they both have become boty. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Forced institutionalization, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Confinement and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Gun violence and Mass/school shootings

throwback682's review against another edition

I had to stop reading this book when I got to the part where Dodo meets the Son of Man. :

It’s implied that he’s a pedophile.

I tried to find out online whether it goes any further than that /

if there’s a child rape scene / how graphic it is.

but I wasn’t able to find the information so I just had to stop. 

My impressions of the first 70% of the audiobook were 

- that the narrator is really talented and voices many different characters distinctly and well. 

- there are a ton of characters and it’s hard to keep everyone straight. There  was constantly a new person  entering and their backstory being told. The book was really trying to do a lot. It felt like how I tell stories when I don’t have my ADHD meds. 

- but many  of the characters were very compelling and I do want to know how it ends

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Chronic illness, Confinement, Forced institutionalization, and Alcohol

Moderate: Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Antisemitism, and Death of parent

paulasnotsosecretdiary's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Bullying, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, and Antisemitism

melissa_bee's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Forced institutionalization, Antisemitism, Grief, Religious bigotry, Sexual harassment, and Classism

ashleyjean6's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

Both heartbreaking (lots of triggering content) and heartwarming. It's very much a story about people and expertly written. That said it was a difficult read. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Infertility, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Excrement, Vomit, Antisemitism, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Murder