April 2026 Alumni and Friends Virtual Book Club

The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride

Tuesday, April 14, 21, 28
5:00 - 6:30 p.m. Central Time

There is no cost to participate, but registration is required. You will need to purchase a copy of the book.

Enrollment is limited to 40. First-come; first-served. 

Heaven and Earth Grocery Store is a novel by James McBride. “This novel tells the story of Black and Jewish residents of the Chicken Hill neighborhood of Pottstown, Pennsylvania, in the 1920s and ‘30s.” The novel begins with the discovery of a skeleton at the bottom of a well when foundations are being dug for a new development, in 1972. This is the story of how the Chicken Hill community comes together to protect a deaf child, whom the authorities want to institutionalize. McBride writes with insight, humor, compassion and a deep understanding of “mixed” communities.

James McBride brings a clear personal perspective to this novel*.  McBride’s. mother was born in Poland, the daughter of an itinerant rabbi and disabled mother.  The family immigrated to the United States and lived in the south.  As a teenager, McBride’s mother, moved to Harlem where she met and married a black minister, raising 12 children.

*In 2006, James McBride wrote his memoir: Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother.

Discussion Leader(s):
Registration Deadline: April 14, 2026

 (*) - Required field