THE HEAVEN & EARTH GROCERY STORE

Dominic Hoffman fully inhabits the characters in McBride’s fresh, vital, beautifully written historical novel, resulting in a deeply immersive listening experience. The story is set largely in the 1930s in Chicken Hill, a predominantly Black and Jewish neighborhood in Pottstown, Pennsylvania. Hoffman varies his accent and intonation and delivers many different languages for the large cast of characters who impact each other’s lives, from Chona, the owner of the titular grocery store that serves the community, to Dodo, a 12-year-old Deaf boy. With his mesmerizing performance, Hoffman makes it clear that this interconnectedness is the point as McBride explores themes of racism and anti-Semitism, the immigrant experience and the human experience, and acts of kindness and acts of evil and the consequences of each. J.M.D. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award, 2023 Best Audiobook © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine [Published: AUGUST 2023]