With the approval of the correspondents, here’s a summary of comments on the book and author’s earlier memoire sent to me privately.
Many thanks to all who took an interest. Best, Joel I am so glad you brought this up! I read the book last month and searched unsuccessfully for reviews which discussed the Jewish content with a critical eye. While McBride is a very good storyteller, I was disappointed that he hadn't sufficiently verified the myriad details about Jewish religion and culture. So many of them were slightly off, and some pretty far from plausibility. Even a major plot point, about the source of water for the mikveh, falls apart if one considers that such water could not, according to halacha, be piped in from either a well or the town water supply. I was especially disappointed that the reviewer for the Forward didn't seem to notice any of this, as I looked there for a Jewish perspective on the book. P.S. (In the book)…a Jewish character sees an Italian American, but thinks he is probably a Sephardic Jew and therefore addresses him in Yiddish. It didn't seem right to me either, Joel. I am discussing The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store will my synagogue book groups this winter. The books has gotten so much buzz – everyone is reading it! I didn’t pick up on what you’re referring to but I will be interested to see if any of my readers do. There’s definitely a lot to discuss! I read this book after seeing rave reviews and getting many recommendations. And I loved his first book. Maybe I expected too much, but I didn’t get the point or message, if there was one. I think McBride is a wonderful writer but I certainly didn’t love this book. And from online: https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://jweekly.com/2023/09/28/author-james-mcbrides-anti-mormon-remarks-contradict-spirit-of-his-new-novel/__;!!KGKeukY!2Rl_2NWGjjhp5G5LCtD1U-Penam3bvtH1Qpb6HUL4jAe096Q3JOZY-4j4ixsfeYcfsc6TkPj-rejSq-OdmXZkA$ Because I have a deep interest in the thorny topic of Black-Jewish relations, I devoured the new novel and enjoyed it, despite the author’s shaky grasp of some of the finer points of Jewish tradition. There are dissonant references to “Talmudic melodies” (which are what, exactly?), a man who is described as “spreading the Jewish Word” (um, no) and misspelled transliterations of Hebrew (“mazchor” instead of “machzor”). One correspondent noted, “When his first book came out, everyone seemed to rave about 'The Color of Water'…however to me it was mildly and implicitly antisemitic, as in ignoble Christians got a pass but the rabbi father's angry behavior seemed to stand in for the Jewish people. (A) tired antisemitic trope.” JB note, see: https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.litcharts.com/lit/the-color-of-water/characters/tateh-fishel-shilsky__;!!KGKeukY!2Rl_2NWGjjhp5G5LCtD1U-Penam3bvtH1Qpb6HUL4jAe096Q3JOZY-4j4ixsfeYcfsc6TkPj-rejSq9_iPsMtQ$ “He was an Orthodox rabbi and a shopkeeper, but more than anything he was a cruel, greedy man. Tateh molested Ruth and verbally abused her siblings and his wife. He cared more about his own wealth and wellbeing than anyone else’s, and seemed to value his family because of the free labor they provided. He was also a racist, and although he sold goods to the black community in Suffolk he despised his black customers, and disowned Ruth for marrying a black man.” From: Hasafran <hasafran-bounces+joel.br=verizon....@lists.osu.edu> On Behalf Of Joel Bresler via Hasafran Sent: Saturday, January 6, 2024 8:06 PM To: 'Rebecca Levitan' <ralevi...@gmail.com> Cc: 'Hasafran' <hasafran@lists.osu.edu> Subject: Re: [ha-Safran] Reviews or commentary on McBride, "Heaven & Earth Grocery Store" Rebecca, thank you so much! I am sure others will find these links as useful and on point as I did. The author has mentioned that the character of Chona was modeled on his grandmother, who he never met. IMO, one way to honor his grandmother Rebecca, thank you so much! I am sure others will find these links as useful and on point as I did. The author has mentioned that the character of Chona was modeled on his grandmother, who he never met. IMO, one way to honor his grandmother would have been to insure a close reading of the manuscript by someone reasonably well grounded in Jewish traditions before it was published. I think, using Goodreads lingo, I am a “DNF” for this one. Shavua tov, Joel Joel Bresler, Publisher (he/him/his) <https://urldefense.com/v3/__http:/www.sephardicmusic.org__;!!KGKeukY!0I0j_UvwV2JlUlhAOzx_WW1wg8lEyZPiT9eKGsjeaqjAhHqznbDLTwWlCELdKURoO9_GkPdduIcrDiI_qtSOwQ$> https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://www.sephardicmusic.org__;!!KGKeukY!2Rl_2NWGjjhp5G5LCtD1U-Penam3bvtH1Qpb6HUL4jAe096Q3JOZY-4j4ixsfeYcfsc6TkPj-rejSq8qnD65MA$ 250 E. Emerson Road Lexington, MA 02420 United States <mailto:joel...@verizon.net> joel...@verizon.net IN CASE OF VERIZON EMAIL PROBLEMS, PLEASE USE MY BACK-UP EMAIL: joelbresler-at-gmail.com From: Rebecca Levitan <ralevi...@gmail.com <mailto:ralevi...@gmail.com> > Sent: Friday, January 5, 2024 11:06 AM To: Joel Bresler <joel...@verizon.net <mailto:joel...@verizon.net> > Cc: Hasafran <hasafran@lists.osu.edu <mailto:hasafran@lists.osu.edu> > Subject: Re: [ha-Safran] Reviews or commentary on McBride, "Heaven & Earth Grocery Store" Joel, Here's a few links I found https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://forward.com/culture/558395/james-mcbride-heaven-and-earth-grocery-store/__;!!KGKeukY!2Rl_2NWGjjhp5G5LCtD1U-Penam3bvtH1Qpb6HUL4jAe096Q3JOZY-4j4ixsfeYcfsc6TkPj-rejSq_ghmXD0g$ <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/forward.com/culture/558395/james-mcbride-heaven-and-earth-grocery-store/__;!!KGKeukY!0I0j_UvwV2JlUlhAOzx_WW1wg8lEyZPiT9eKGsjeaqjAhHqznbDLTwWlCELdKURoO9_GkPdduIcrDiJXyxNO_A$> https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.hadassahmagazine.org/2023/08/25/the-heaven-earth-grocery-store/__;!!KGKeukY!2Rl_2NWGjjhp5G5LCtD1U-Penam3bvtH1Qpb6HUL4jAe096Q3JOZY-4j4ixsfeYcfsc6TkPj-rejSq_N_aS6EA$ <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/www.hadassahmagazine.org/2023/08/25/the-heaven-earth-grocery-store/__;!!KGKeukY!0I0j_UvwV2JlUlhAOzx_WW1wg8lEyZPiT9eKGsjeaqjAhHqznbDLTwWlCELdKURoO9_GkPdduIcrDiJeE7cd6w$> https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.thejc.com/life-and-culture/books/the-heaven-and-earth-grocery-store-book-review-communities-come-together-in-pennsylvania-ihyfi88f__;!!KGKeukY!2Rl_2NWGjjhp5G5LCtD1U-Penam3bvtH1Qpb6HUL4jAe096Q3JOZY-4j4ixsfeYcfsc6TkPj-rejSq-mBCVKnw$ <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/www.thejc.com/life-and-culture/books/the-heaven-and-earth-grocery-store-book-review-communities-come-together-in-pennsylvania-ihyfi88f__;!!KGKeukY!0I0j_UvwV2JlUlhAOzx_WW1wg8lEyZPiT9eKGsjeaqjAhHqznbDLTwWlCELdKURoO9_GkPdduIcrDiJlutUoQg$> https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://jweekly.com/2023/09/28/author-james-mcbrides-anti-mormon-remarks-contradict-spirit-of-his-new-novel/__;!!KGKeukY!2Rl_2NWGjjhp5G5LCtD1U-Penam3bvtH1Qpb6HUL4jAe096Q3JOZY-4j4ixsfeYcfsc6TkPj-rejSq-OdmXZkA$ <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/jweekly.com/2023/09/28/author-james-mcbrides-anti-mormon-remarks-contradict-spirit-of-his-new-novel/__;!!KGKeukY!0I0j_UvwV2JlUlhAOzx_WW1wg8lEyZPiT9eKGsjeaqjAhHqznbDLTwWlCELdKURoO9_GkPdduIcrDiJ4T2UKrA$> Shabbat Shalom, Rebecca Levitan President, Schools, Synagogues, Centers, & Public Libraries Division Association of Jewish Libraries https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://jewishlibraries.org/__;!!KGKeukY!2Rl_2NWGjjhp5G5LCtD1U-Penam3bvtH1Qpb6HUL4jAe096Q3JOZY-4j4ixsfeYcfsc6TkPj-rejSq_vW4Xbvw$ <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https:/jewishlibrariesorg/__;!!KGKeukY!0I0j_UvwV2JlUlhAOzx_WW1wg8lEyZPiT9eKGsjeaqjAhHqznbDLTwWlCELdKURoO9_GkPdduIcrDiIwbxdBOw$> <https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://ci3.googleusercontent.com/mail-sig/AIorK4zrC2qsAiiwmlOypOoFhkDy2ox5x3WqmaeCgVfU7ottSqu56Z_-cC0SYYZBO2hckj9R0zGYZOA__;!!KGKeukY!2Rl_2NWGjjhp5G5LCtD1U-Penam3bvtH1Qpb6HUL4jAe096Q3JOZY-4j4ixsfeYcfsc6TkPj-rejSq844fMrHg$ > On Fri, Jan 5, 2024 at 10:44 AM Joel Bresler via Hasafran <hasaf...@listsosu.edu <mailto:hasafran@lists.osu.edu> > wrote: Hello, can anyone suggest reviews or commentary with a Jewish lens or from a Jewish perspective on James McBride’s novel, "Heaven & Earth Grocery Store”? FWIW, it’s been named a best book of the year by NPR/Fresh Hello, can anyone suggest reviews or commentary with a Jewish lens or from a Jewish perspective on James McBride’s novel, "Heaven & Earth Grocery Store”? FWIW, it’s been named a best book of the year by NPR/Fresh Air, Washington Post, The New Yorker, and Time Magazine. Also one of Barack Obama's favorite books of 2023. I am only ~35 pages in but some of the Yiddishkeit feels “off” to me. I can’t tell yet whether (IMO) it just needed a closer read by an editor very familiar with Jewish immigrant culture of that time...or the issues run deeper. If you’ve read it I’d also value your own opinions, offline if you prefer (or if you don’t think they would be of interest to the list.) Thanks for your consideration. Joel Joel Bresler (he/him/his) Consultant, Bresler Associates 250 E. 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