The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store

“The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store” is one of last year’s must-read books (at least according to Goodreads). And I have to say, I did enjoy this book. It gave me an interesting look into the racial tension existing in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, in the 1920s between three groups: the middle-class white community, the immigrant Jewish community, and the poor Black community. The books begins in 1975 with a mystery, a skeleton found in the bottom of the well, then rewinds back to the 1920s to explore the lines between these three ethnic groups and the overlaps between them that led to a murder. In the center of the story is always the Heaven & Earth Grocery Store, which provided not only much-needed food, but also emotional support for those who lived in the poorest part of town.

Like I said, I did like this book. It was well written, and the characters were interesting and well developed. The only reason I gave it 4 out of 5 stars is because of the ending; I felt like the author simply got tired to writing and rushed to finish an otherwise-great book. Too many of the character’s stories were left unresolved with no closure. The author had spent so much time making the reader care about these people, then to leave us hanging seemed unfair. Other than that, great book!