A review by ms_la
The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride

emotional funny 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

I’ve been trying to decide who the main character is. Chona is a force of kindness and strength, despite her physical challenges. Her husband, Mosche, wants to find the American dream of making money & finding fame but is drawn to the contradictory rightness of living a morally good life. Nate has left behind a violent life for a simple domesticity, though he is pulled into actions to right the few wrongs in his reach to right. His wife, Addie, not only holds Nate in place, she gives Chona the back up needed to care for the neighborhood through the Heaven & Earth Grocery Store.  There is a whole other cast of characters and villains to round out the story of a 1930s Pennsylvania community on the verge of modernity where African Americans, Jewish immigrants, and self-proclaimed Mayflower descendants live and love and hate. This is a bit of the American story that helps us understand who we are. 
McBride’s characters are fully drawn, fully human.  By page 50 I was completely invested in their stories, wanting to know both their futures and their pasts.