Reviews tagging 'Xenophobia'

The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride

59 reviews

dogoodwithbooks's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad 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

4.5

This book was something else. While I don’t really read a whole lot of historical fiction and that I thought the pacing at first was pretty slow, I was captivated by McBride’s storytelling of the residents in Chicken Hill. Capturing the various points of intersectionality in terms of race, social class, and disability (just to name a few), McBride’s stories of the African American and Jewish residents who live in Pottstown’s Chicken Hill is both heartbreaking yet hopeful.

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Content Warnings

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

Moderate: Child abuse, Medical content, Ableism, and Child death

Minor: Infertility, Death of parent, Excrement, and Abandonment

leahisreading's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Ableism, Xenophobia, Sexual assault, Antisemitism, Racial slurs, and Rape

ajhill24's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense slow-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

4.25

Complex characters, multi-layered plot, engaging setting, and talented writing. It is a slow start, and occasionally tries too hard to be philosophical, which comes up forced. But I will be reading more from this author. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism, Racial slurs, and Xenophobia

Minor: Sexual assault

smreads24's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective sad 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? No

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Antisemitism, Xenophobia, Chronic illness, Racism, Forced institutionalization, and Racial slurs

Moderate: Excrement

Good context for race and culture in 1936 in US

bbootamin's review against another edition

emotional sad 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? No

3.5

It started off really slow and I found it hard to get into. I was also confused at times because of the sudden change of narrator.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Xenophobia, Death, and Racism

aroush's review against another edition

emotional inspiring 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? No

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Xenophobia and Racism

Moderate: Pedophilia and Rape

greenan26's review against another edition

emotional hopeful 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? No

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Grief, Chronic illness, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Antisemitism, Racism, Classism, Death, Racial slurs, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Ableism, Excrement, Pedophilia, Rape, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, Cursing, and Violence

Minor: Alcohol

killeenm's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense 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? It's complicated

3.0

I liked it overall. I’m not sure why some plot points existed, and I wished things had been made a bit more clear. It got REALLY dark at times in ways that I didn’t think added to the storyline.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Child abuse, Child death, Antisemitism, Sexual assault, Racism, Forced institutionalization, and Xenophobia

biobeetle's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense 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: Rape, Xenophobia, Ableism, Antisemitism, Racism, Sexual violence, Racial slurs, Violence, Forced institutionalization, and Child abuse

Moderate: Murder and Child death

Minor: War

beamae's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense slow-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

3.0

I entered thinking this was going to be a murder mystery book. For those thinking that it is…it’s not. I feel like I would have enjoyed this book more knowing that it wasn’t actually a murder mystery. Not even sure why this book has that in the description cause it’s very misleading. 

With that said, this book is a beautiful story that has a wonderful way of showing how minorities support each other and how they are pitted against one another as well. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Misogyny, and Xenophobia