![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/PageT-Ap26.jpg?resize=200%2C309\")
<\/a>In 1972, when workers in Pottstown, Pennsylvania were digging foundations for a new development, the last thing they expected to find was a skeleton at the bottom of the well. Who the skeleton was and how it got there were two of the long-held secrets kept by the residents of Chicken Hill, the dilapidated neighbourhood where Jewish immigrants and African Americans lived side by side.<\/p>\nIn this novel about small town secrets and the people who keep them, James McBride shows us that even in dark times it is love and community that sustain us. The novel has been described by some as historical fiction and by others as a historical mystery.<\/p>\n
The majority of the Page Turners almost forgot about the \u2018body in the well\u2019 and felt that the murder mystery element of the story was inconsequential. Instead, they enjoyed the description of life in a small community, the melting pot of cultures and ethnicities. There were many characters described in the book and it was difficult at times to keep up with them all and remember where they fitted into the story. Indeed, it was felt that many of the characters could have been the subject of a book in themselves!<\/p>\n
A lively discussion was generated from the historical element and the effects of the Jim Crow laws on discrimination; to the delights of living in a community that felt at times like Wenvoe. Overall, the book was given a score of 7.<\/p>\n
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\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" “The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store ” By James McBride In 1972, when workers in Pottstown, Pennsylvania were digging foundations for a new development, the last thing they expected to find was a skeleton at the bottom of the well. Who the skeleton was and how it got there were two of the long-held secrets kept by the residents […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[432,41],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6cWjO-4mu","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":16578,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=16578","url_meta":{"origin":16770,"position":0},"title":"Page Turners Reading List","author":"Alan Williams","date":"29th January 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0 Page Turners Reading List. \u00a0 Secret Santa did an excellent job in giving preloved books to all the Page Turners. At the first meeting of the year, everyone was asked to provide a brief synopsis of their book (with no spoilers) and a recommendation for its inclusion (or exclusion)\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "New Items for February 2026"","block_context":{"text":"New Items for February 2026","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=430"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":14912,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=14912","url_meta":{"origin":16770,"position":1},"title":"The Life And Times Of Saint Nicholas","author":"Alan Williams","date":"10th December 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"THE LIFE AND TIMES OF SAINT NICHOLAS Should you wish to make a pilgrimage to honour the life of Saint Nicholas you would not be going to Lapland. Firstly because according to popular culture he is still alive and kicking up there in the frozen wastes. Secondly you would be\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General Interest Articles"","block_context":{"text":"General Interest Articles","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=334"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":4978,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=4978","url_meta":{"origin":16770,"position":2},"title":"Llangorse Lake","author":"Alan Williams","date":"18th September 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0 \u00a0Llangorse Lake - \u00a0 Parking at the lake, we set off to circumnavigate it. We headed across fields to a solid bridge allowing us to cross a feeder stream. We spotted well constructed bird hides at the edge of a group of trees; three of the oaks here were\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Footsteps"","block_context":{"text":"Footsteps","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=38"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":8386,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=8386","url_meta":{"origin":16770,"position":3},"title":"Top Tips for October","author":"Alan Williams","date":"5th October 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"THE VILLAGE GARDENER Top Tips for October Top horticultural show judge Mr Gwyn Williams's tips for October. Ripen green tomatoes by cutting off along with the vine, place on cardboard and put on windowsill. Sow winter lettuce and meteor peas. Use the mower on a high setting to pick up\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "The Village Gardener"","block_context":{"text":"The Village Gardener","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=77"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":14492,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=14492","url_meta":{"origin":16770,"position":4},"title":"Sully Island","author":"Alan Williams","date":"31st July 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"SULLY ISLAND \u00a0 Most people in Wenvoe will know of Sully Island and many will have visited it, but for those who do not know it, here are some facts about it. It is a small tidal island of 14.5 acres by the hamlet of Swanbridge. It is located 400m\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Readers Articles of Interest"","block_context":{"text":"Readers Articles of Interest","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=228"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":8291,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=8291","url_meta":{"origin":16770,"position":5},"title":"Footsteps on Blorenge","author":"Alan Williams","date":"4th September 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Footsteps on Blorenge Blorenge - We began at Keepers Pond (officially Pen-ffordd-goch Pond) in the south-eastern corner of the Black Mountains which is nestled in the hills of the area. Keepers was the final of three reservoirs built to supply water for the forges and works of Garn Ddyrys foundry.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Footsteps"","block_context":{"text":"Footsteps","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=38"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Picture1-e1599259609377.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Picture1-e1599259609377.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Picture1-e1599259609377.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/Picture1-e1599259609377.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16770"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=16770"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16770\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16772,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16770\/revisions\/16772"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=16770"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=16770"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=16770"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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