Book on CD read by Dominic Hoffman

McBride begins this work of historical fiction in 1972, when skeletal remains are discovered at the bottom of a dry well by a construction crew. From there the story goes back to the early 20th century and the thriving community of Chicken Hill in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, where immigrant Jews who originally settled the area are moving out as the African Americans move in. But Moshe and Chona, who run the Heaven & Earth Grocery Store and live in the apartment above the business, refuse to leave. They continue to serve the African-American community and are comfortable with their neighbors.

The crux of the story revolves around Dodo, an African-American orphan who is deaf (as the result of the gas stove in his residence exploding), and whom the state wishes to consign to the notorious Pennhurst Asylum. The efforts of Dodo’s aunt and uncle, Addie and Nate, and of Moshe and Chona, to keep Dodo away from that hellish environment is the basic plot.

But the novel is less plot-driven than character-driven. McBride paints a colorful and intricate landscape, of two equally strong cultures co-existing because of the strength of character of their leaders. They rely on and support one another. They show compassion and empathy and love. And, yes, anger and disdain as well. There were times when I wanted McBride to “get on with it.” But I was invested in all these characters, even the unlikeable ones. I recognized that I needed to know all of them to understand the dynamics of Chicken Hill. At its heart, this is a story of community, cooperation, tolerance and respect.

The hardest section to stomach was the part set at Pennhurst. My heart broke for Monkey Pants, and I wanted to throttle Son of Man (and the administrators who allowed him to prey on the helpless).

Readers should definitely read the acknowledgement section at the end, where McBride tells of the real-life heroes and mentors who inspired this work of fiction.

Dominic Hoffman does a marvelous job of narrating the audiobook. He has a lot of characters to deal with, but he is up for the task. I was rarely confused about who was speaking (and when I was, it was MY fault, for not paying attention). ( )

Masterful. Multigenerational. Insightful. ( )

I really loved this book and was amazed that I could remember the characters with names I was not familiar with as the story moved from scene to scene. Yes, convoluted and twisting but so well interwoven ao that the prologue at the beginning makes perfect sense when you get to the end. ( )

A story of community, racism, stigmas, and resilience.
In the town of Pottstown, PA, a story evolves of a town that has been marked by its population of Jews and Christians, blacks and whites, and those who are shunned due to a disability.
Moshe and Chona Ludlow are main characters. Moshe integrated his theater and Chona ran the Heaven & Earth Grocery Store. A young deaf boy is going to be institutionalized, but Chona and Nate Timblin, the janitor at Moshe’s theater and leader of the black community on Chicken Hill, decide to keep him safe. We learn of the reasons, and how they worked against biases. Meanwhile, the racist gets his due!
I found the story interesting, but I thought the author's note was the most inspiring! ( )

Liked it, didn't love it. Characters, and keeping track of all of them, was an issue for me. I didn't really identify with any of them except maybe Chona. The beginning, and ending, which bring the whole thing whole circle, were a bit confusing to me.
Moshe and Chona run the Heaven and Earth Grocery store, and Moshe also owns and operates a local theater/dance hall, where both Jewish and Black musicians perform. They help their neighbors, Nate and Addie hide their deaf nephew Dodo from the "state" who believe the boy needs to be institutionalized.
Race relations, and prejudice are a big part of the story. I did particularly like the relationships between the Jews and the Black people, who were often friendly and helpful to each other, but never really "understood" the others. ( )