Reviews tagging 'Racial slurs'

The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride

261 reviews

suchsweetsorrow89's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny informative inspiring mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

3.0

Similar to previous reviews I have read of this book, it is not quite what it advertises itself to be. Indeed, the "murder mystery" aspect of it seems to be almost a secondary focus of the account (think of this as similar to The Secret History's advertising). Instead, this book focuses on themes of community and solidarity, particularly showing how physical spaces not only impact the relationships we form with one another, but ultimately seems to show how the spaces we encounter impact our senses of agency and our politics overall. I think the book is stunning in the way it maps this out. Props also must go to the writing style of the book, which I think makes it easy to imagine and immerse yourself in the world, while also containing moments of excellence (which I found most stunning when we reach Chona's and Dodo's points of view). I think it is also very informative on Jewish and Black cultures, which I think makes it really interesting and leaves the reader taking away a lot on those identities. The only qualm I have with this book is that at times I think there is a lot of unnecessary clings onto descriptions, and with the wide breadth of characters and storylines, at times it comes off as a bit confusing and, perhaps, boring to read. All in all though, it is a wonderful book and I am glad that I picked it up. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness

Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Forced institutionalization, Antisemitism, Medical content, and Religious bigotry

Minor: Physical abuse and Injury/Injury detail

tessduryea's review against another edition

emotional 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Minor: Ableism, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Racism, and Sexual violence

kaymikulec's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Racial slurs, Racism, Antisemitism, and Medical trauma

hannahbee_97's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

This book was well written. I found myself thinking about books I read in my American Lit classes in undergrad, this had similar vibes to those, but with more complex/diverse characters. It isn’t a book I’m likely to reread, but it was worth reading.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Forced institutionalization, Excrement, and Antisemitism

Moderate: Child abuse, Medical content, and Medical trauma

victor_constantine's review against another edition

emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, and Antisemitism

Moderate: Death of parent

m_nappier's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault

kellyllin's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-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? Yes

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Forced institutionalization, and Antisemitism

hannahdthompson's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racial slurs and Racism

Minor: Pedophilia and Sexual assault

mnasadoo's review against another edition

challenging dark informative inspiring 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: Child abuse, Child death, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual violence, Forced institutionalization, and Antisemitism

schausjk's review against another edition

emotional reflective slow-paced

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

3.5

There were many aspects to this book I did enjoy. Some of the characters were very interesting, particularly Chona and Nate. The way James McBride really showcases his characters serves the book well in driving home how interconnected everyone is, and how one person's decisions can impact everyone else. That being said, I would have loved to have seen more character growth from many of those involved. And while I know that the characters are the main focus here, I'd also have loved more frequent descriptions of Chicken Hill itself as a place. At times I'd just sit back and soak in the sense of place created by the characters and their histories, and I would've liked to see more on how their surroundings impact them in turn. I also found the ending somewhat anticlimactic in part because of all this time spent building up this web of characters. I've seen how they relate to each other, and I learned what became of a few of them, but there are many more who I came to know and care about over the course of the story but never really found out what happened to them. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Ableism, Chronic illness, Death, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Excrement, Antisemitism, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail