Reviews with content warning for Sexual violence - The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store

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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djbobthegirl's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious slow-paced

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

2.5

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biobeetle's review against another edition

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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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cindypepper's review against another edition

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funny hopeful inspiring 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

Loved this!

The premise of the book made it seem like it would be a mystery, but to call it that reduces the worldbuilding of the Black and Jewish neighborhood of Chicken Hill. <i>Heaven & Earth Grocery Store</i> is part slice-of-life but altogether a story about the ways that we, as a community, help each other out. It does take a while to juggle all the different characters and names of Chicken Hill (and the larger Pottstown area), to the point where I wasn't sure if this was going to be a whodunnit (it isn't). It was a lot to get my bearings as a reader and suss out the constellation of connections, but James McBride is actually very airtight with the details and the character studies and he makes sure that no detail is made unnecessary! Even the tangents are important! I found myself referencing seemingly minute details from previous chapters. This novel rewards the most astute of readers.

And paying attention isn't a chore here; the characters are vibrant and deftly drawn. (Shout out to the socialist girlie Chona!!!) Once the characters settle in, the book really picks up momentum and hits the ground running. It's a fascinating story of community crossing lines of race and class to protect a child who is failed by the so-called safeguards of society.

It's a triumphant story of solidarity, but McBride's humor and snappiness keep the storyline clear-eyed. By the latter chapters of the book, I had kinda forgotten about the skeleton, not because it was unimportant, but because I was so invested in the fates of the characters that the skeleton was more of a secondary thought. That said, the end is absolutely satisfying up to the very last page. If you want warm storytelling, rich worldbuilding, and something that's uplifting but not naively feel-good-y, I'd highly recommend!

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juperson's review against another edition

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dark slow-paced

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

0.5

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amybartoli29's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious 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? It's complicated

3.0

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