This book was fantastic, and I felt like I learned more from it than just how to pass the time. Long after I had finished reading, I still found myself considering the problems it brings up. It also sent me on a quest to learn more about history and pottery. The plot revolves around racial and familial issues, and it is impossible to finish this book without considering how racial relations have changed over time.

This book is unlike anything I've ever read. It is a slow read but it is meant to be savored. This book makes you think you are following Ebby and her life but as you start to dive in you realize how every one persons story is part of a tapestry. This tapestry is the weaving of everyone in our lives past and present and then we start to weave for those in our future. This was beautiful!

This story is a mesmerizing read about the history of the freeman family and the good dirt they come from. The book covers generations of family from the human theft in Africa to the traumatized woman Ebony in present day. The story is told from the perspective of different characters and flows seamlessly from past to present. Throughout this gorgeously narrated history is a large food jar “old mo”, made by an enslaved potter. The jar was an anchor in the family and each character has their own special relationship with it. The plot weaves past and present together and tells of the pain and losses, loves, births and deaths of this family. The perseverance and strength of the characters shines through the chapters. I loved the story and am excited to have the chance to read it early. Thank you NetGalley for the digital copy.

Ebony Freeman lives under the shadow of a home invasion that brought about her older brother’s murder and the destruction of a family treasure. This heirloom is a ceramic jar made by a slave and brought to the North by a runaway. The tragedy is deepened when years later Henry, her fiancé, calls off their wedding at the last minute. Through flashbacks Charmaine Wilkerson shares the history of the Freeman family through the generations who protect their precious jar and the secret that lies in the inscription carved into its bottom. These people are fascinating and so, too, is the piecing together of the motive for the murder of Ebony’s brother. Unfortunately, the pace of this novel drags at times and becomes repetitive; I found it difficult to stay engaged..

This is the story of what happens after a tragedy. The family’s stories are enter twined throughout. I loved it. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I received a complimentary copy of this book and the opinions expressed are my own. Good Dirt by Charmaine Wilkerson had a good and interesting storyline, however I tended to lose interest because the book jumped around between the characters and different years. This made keeping on point with the story a little difficult. You really need to be focused to enjoy this book.

🅑🅞🅞🅚 🅡🅔🅥🅘🅔🅦 📙
4⭐️
Publication date: 1/28/25

@charmspen1 i didn’t know I needed the freeman family in my life until I finished this book. I was so excited when I got approved by @netgalley and saw it premiered on @readwithjenna . This book was so rich in family history. The plot covered numerous topics like Slave trade, grief, mental health, love, loss, growth, murder and black socialites. I loved how important the preservation of family history was to the freemans. The book is told from the POV of Ebby Freeman. She was 10 years old when a break in gone wrong left her an only child. News media made her a target as a child after her brothers murder and then years later she is another source of news by being left at the alter on her wedding day. The fiancé I didn’t like from the get go. He was not the person you bring to the family cookout. The trauma from her life was overwhelming at times to even read. Despite all the loss she rallied around herself which I loved. She chose her and she rebuilt her life and her families rich history from there. It was a really good read. This read was a reminder of how important preservation of history and antiques are to our culture. The ending for this family and the peace that came with it I loved🥰.

Thank you at @netgalley for the ARC.

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This is a powerful saga of an African American family that perseveres through tragedy, fueled by an ancestral legacy. Ebby was just 10 when she saw her 15-year old brother murdered by two home invasion robbers. Equally as tragic was the fact that a family heirloom, a pottery pot named Old Mo, was shattered in the commission of the crime. The pot had been made by a slave during the 1800s and has been passed along in the family through the generations. An inscription on the bottom of the pot was the rallying cry for everyone who saw it. The family sought to pick up the pieces of their shattered hearts and move forward into the future.

I received Good DIrt from NetGalley and the publisher for an honest review. Good Dirt is a story of Ebby and her family that features different timelines and characters. I enjoy Charmaine Wilkerson's writing and enjoyed the story as a whole. However, I found the timelines and all of the characters difficult to follow at points.
Good Dirt follows Ebby, the daughter of a wealthy black family in Connecticut who has a long history in the country. When she was 10 years old, her brother was murdered in her home during a robbery to steal a family heirloom, a jar. The jar is a large focus of the story and is what ties the various timelines together. I found the characters to be flawed and well developed and wanted to know more about them. i think the story could have been a bit shorter and edited in terms of the timelines and characters a bit more, but overall it was an enjoyable read.

Wilkerson is the NYT Bestselling author of Black Cake, a favorite book of mine. Good Dirt is an even better with a storyline of heritage and heartache that will resonate with many. A young girl witnesses her brother’s death during a home invasion/robbery, her story is told along side the stories of her ancestors and contemporaries in a manner that weaves the best aspects of storytelling. Running through the familial stories is the story of a simple earthen jar made by her enslaved ancestor that had descended down through the generations. Amazing writing, great storyline.

The second half of this book was significantly more engaging and interesting than the first. If only the character interactions in the beginning could have been less about emotional relationships and more about the characters' engagement with the jar! The jar was almost another character in the book, which was great!

Good Dirt by Charmaine Wilkerson is a beautifully layered exploration of family, heritage, and the power of untold stories. The novel dives deep into the lives of its characters, uncovering the hidden connections and histories that bind them. Wilkerson’s writing is lush and evocative, drawing readers into a narrative that seamlessly weaves between past and present, allowing the characters’ stories to unfold at a gentle, steady pace. The way she captures the complexities of family relationships and the weight of legacy is masterful, making the book feel both intimate and universal.

One of the novel’s strengths lies in its ability to handle themes of cultural identity, generational trauma, and resilience without feeling heavy-handed. Each character is meticulously crafted, their struggles and triumphs resonating long after the story ends. While the pacing can be slow at times, the depth of emotion and rich storytelling make it worth savoring. Good Dirt isn’t just about the past; it’s about how the past shapes who we are, how we grow, and what we choose to pass on. Fans of character-driven, introspective narratives will find much to love in this thoughtful, poignant novel that leaves you reflecting on the stories buried beneath the surface of our lives.

Good Dirt is another great read by Charmaine Wilkerson. I really enjoyed her previous novel Black Cake and this too did not disappoint.

We meet Ebby Freeman and learn that at 10 years old she witnessed her older brother Baz’s murder over the attempted theft of a family heirloom. The murder goes unsolved and the family is in the spotlight for many years. The story is told from multiple points of view with many characters and is multigenerational. Time hops between early 1800’s to present day and deals with family trauma, love and loss.

This multigenerational story shifts POVs and timelines inconsistently, but overall is a compelling story. There is also a bit of anticipatory fatigue. Too many people have secrets; wouldn't life be easier if everyone could just be honest from the get go?

I Loved Charmaine Wilkerson's first book that I read, Black Cake, so much so that I did expect this book to be as good. Good Dirt is a terrific story,

I loved reading the history of the Freeman family. The night of the attempted burglary was horrifying to read and to think about and all the gathering stories after that which seemed to fall into specific categories made so much sense. Ms. Wilkerson's timeline of the Jar, the attempted robbery, Baz's murder, and all that happens after is breath taking. I fell in love with Ebby and her family! This is a book of history in America, its true history and should be read by all.

But I have so many questions, namely what was the name of the man who wanted to steal Big MO? What was his wife's name...why were they never charged for hiring burglars to break into the Freeman home? . Sorry about the spoilers, but these questions only add to my review of the story.

Oftentimes, with books spanning generations and covering so much ground, stories and characters become either convoluted or watered down, but Good Dirt packs a punch. Every one of its story threads is potent in its own way; Ebby's childhood and the death of her brother, the threads of her ancestral roots as Old Mo is created and passed through the family, and Ebby's present, in which she's grappling with being abandoned by her fiancé. This story is primarily a meditation on trauma in all its various forms: how it's encoded into one's DNA, how it manifests and follows people throughout their lives. But even with this, Wilkerson manages to make the book engaging and emotionally resonant without making it depressing or dreary. It is rich with detail, but never gets lost in its own reverie. It feels deeply personal, without being gratuitous. Having previously read Black Cake, which was similarly historically rich, I have to say Wilkerson is quickly becoming a 'must read' author for me. Fans of Yaa Gyasi will surely love this, as it bears many of the same hallmarks, though I think is even more accessible.

This is an interesting story that I would recommend especially if you enjoy African American generational stories. As I read the book, I wondered about the title. Numerous references were made to dirt, mud, earth, clay or soil and ultimately pottery or stoneware. There’s a deep meaning to the title that ties to the roots of a clay, pottery jar called Old Mo. The jar, Old Mo, has been a part of the Freeman family for six generations. It developed a life of its own and became a key character in the plot. It is associated with enslavement, fugitives, robbery, murder, marriage, breakup, and familial love. I believe Old Mo is a symbol of freedom. This is a book about escape and freedom.

I found the book thought provoking and well written. Ebony (Ebby) is left at the altar by a white man, Henry and the death of her brother, Baz. These themes thread throughout the book but are tightly tied to events surrounding the “life” of the jar. The challenges of an elite African American family in the white American culture and society are clearly understood. This is not an ordinary “generational” or African American novel. I felt it runs much deeper and is very well done. While at times it was difficult but realistic, it felt like a true portrayal of African American people.

The reason I gave the book four and not five stars is because of the character Avery. Ebony’s interaction with Avery just did not feel plausible. I’m unsure what purpose Avery served the story. I’d be interested in knowing if the author would share! Overall, it is an excellent book and was a page turner. I think it probably will win some awards and be a bestseller. Read it, you won’t regret it.

I received a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley. Thanks to the publisher, Ballantine Books, an imprint of Random House, and the author for the privilege to read this advanced copy. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This novel is a spectacular read. It has themes we are quite familiar with —loss, grief, family trauma, the long reach of slavery into a family’s DNA— but is told with a compelling twist.

This is not the story we are accustomed to. It is the tale of a well-educated, affluent Black family living in an exclusive residential area on the Connecticut coast. The tropes are familiar yet there are new perspectives Each of the chapters is told from a different character’s point of view giving the reader a close connection with the thoughts that lie beneath the action.

The nuclear Freeman family is comprised of Ed and Soh, the parents, murdered son Baz, and daughter Ebby. The book opens when Ebby, given no reason, is jilted on her wedding day. She flees to a village in France and stays at her friend’s house. There is a rental cottage on the property and while she is there, her white ex-fiancé, Henry, shows up for the rental with his new girlfriend, Avery. Ouch! Add insult to injury. But, Ebby may be struggling, but she has an innate confidence in herself.

The crisis in the contemporary family occurred when Ebby was still a child, She and her fifteen-year-old brother were home playing hide and seek when two masked gunman broke in. She not only witnessed the shooting but along with the entire family has been beseiged by never ending publicity.

The family suffered two major losses that afternoon— the death of Baz and the loss of a large stone mason jar symbolic of the family’s history. The jar was brought to New England by an enslaved ancestor on his flight to freedom from the South. Ebby, understandably traumatized by the murder, still suffers its impact. The jar might be the way she finds her way to a future.

The stories of the slave characters were fully wrought. Willis and Moses became my favorite people. The cruel history is there but the personalities and skills of that characters rise above that. The making of pottery was an important skill acquired by slaves. The title of the book, Good Dirt, comes from the basic material of stoneware. The travels up north, the whaling industry, the flight to freedom. All of it was expertly woven into the story and clearly showed the courage, resilience, and forward thinking of every member of this family.

Choosing to tell the story from all points of view was very effective. What Wilkerson has done by this is given the reader entry to this colorful, interesting, resourceful family from past to present.

The story is compelling, its themes significant, and the writing is superb. I haven't read Wilkerson's previous novel, Black Cake, but will move it to the top to my list.

Many thanks to Penguin and Netgalley for the opportunity to honestly review this advanced readers copy.

Good Dirt is so good and kept me entertained throughout! Black Cake (Charmaine's amazing first novel) is such a tough act to follow, but she managed to make Good Dirt nearly as enjoyable. I did find myself confused a few times with the different pov's, but it all came together in the end. Definitely recommend for a sweeping enjoyable novel.

Thank you to net galley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ecopy for my Kindle.
If you enjoyed Black Cake, you'll like this one, too!