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Goodbye, Sweetberry Park
WINNER, grand prize —2025 Hollywood Book Festival
WINNER, general fiction —2025 New York Book Festival
Shortlist —Georgia Novel of the Year, 2026
“A big-hearted consideration of gentrification and the erosion of time.” —Kirkus Reviews
“A dizzying belly laugh and a gut punch, rolled into one.” —Atlanta magazine
"Full of history, down-home rhythms, and unabashed hucksterism, it’s a memorable slice of Americana." — Publishers Weekly
“Wickedly funny.” —Gwinnett Daily Post
“There’s no shortage of drama in this fast-paced, comic thriller full of snappy dialogue and big, colorful characters." —Atlanta Journal-Constitution
"The wildest gentrification story ever told." —Booktasters
***
Archie “God” Johnson—so known for his flowing white hair, voluminous beard, and larger-than-life persona—is a veteran Atlanta journalist of Nigerian and Scots-Irish descent. When his racist White grandfather dies and leaves him a dilapidated Victorian house in the mostly Black neighborhood—a final curse from beyond the grave—Johnson moves to Sweetberry Park. As it happens, his life will never be the same.
Distraught after a personal tragedy and still bleary from a long drug binge he used to cope, Johnson pulls himself together and rebuilds the Victorian, finds acceptance among his new neighbors, and attempts to pick up the shards of his newsgathering career. Meanwhile, his newly beloved Sweetberry Park is threatened to its very core—the target of greedy, deceptive developers who want to knock down and gentrify the historic neighborhood where civil rights hero Martin Luther King had been looked after as a child.
Just as tensions reach a boiling point, police report that a deranged employee at the famed Atlanta Memorial Zoo has unleashed seventeen of the world’s deadliest snakes into the leafy urban enclave. The entire city panics, unleashing chaos, an accidental shooting, and an unjust incarceration.
With the help of a reclusive former blues songstress and a zany cast of old friends and millennial newcomers, Johnson attempts to save the neighborhood that saved him—with hilarious, and rather dubious, results.
WINNER, general fiction —2025 New York Book Festival
Shortlist —Georgia Novel of the Year, 2026
“A big-hearted consideration of gentrification and the erosion of time.” —Kirkus Reviews
“A dizzying belly laugh and a gut punch, rolled into one.” —Atlanta magazine
"Full of history, down-home rhythms, and unabashed hucksterism, it’s a memorable slice of Americana." — Publishers Weekly
“Wickedly funny.” —Gwinnett Daily Post
“There’s no shortage of drama in this fast-paced, comic thriller full of snappy dialogue and big, colorful characters." —Atlanta Journal-Constitution
"The wildest gentrification story ever told." —Booktasters
***
Archie “God” Johnson—so known for his flowing white hair, voluminous beard, and larger-than-life persona—is a veteran Atlanta journalist of Nigerian and Scots-Irish descent. When his racist White grandfather dies and leaves him a dilapidated Victorian house in the mostly Black neighborhood—a final curse from beyond the grave—Johnson moves to Sweetberry Park. As it happens, his life will never be the same.
Distraught after a personal tragedy and still bleary from a long drug binge he used to cope, Johnson pulls himself together and rebuilds the Victorian, finds acceptance among his new neighbors, and attempts to pick up the shards of his newsgathering career. Meanwhile, his newly beloved Sweetberry Park is threatened to its very core—the target of greedy, deceptive developers who want to knock down and gentrify the historic neighborhood where civil rights hero Martin Luther King had been looked after as a child.
Just as tensions reach a boiling point, police report that a deranged employee at the famed Atlanta Memorial Zoo has unleashed seventeen of the world’s deadliest snakes into the leafy urban enclave. The entire city panics, unleashing chaos, an accidental shooting, and an unjust incarceration.
With the help of a reclusive former blues songstress and a zany cast of old friends and millennial newcomers, Johnson attempts to save the neighborhood that saved him—with hilarious, and rather dubious, results.
364 pages, Paperback
Published March 21, 2025
About the author
Josh Green
3 books24 followersJosh Green is an award-winning journalist, fiction author, and editor whose work has appeared widely in magazines, journals, and anthologies. GOODBYE, SWEETBERRY PARK is his second novel (and hopefully, the funniest to date). It recently won the grand prize at the 2025 Hollywood Book Festival, and the New York Book Festival award for fiction.
SECRETS OF ASH, his first novel, won the IndieReader Discovery Awards (2024) for fiction and was a runner-up at the Hollywood Book Festival, among other honors. Green was also nominated as Georgia Author of the Year for that work.
His book of short stories, DIRTYVILLE RHAPSODIES, was hailed by Men's Health as a "Best Book for the Beach" and was named a top 10 book of the year by Atlanta. He lives with his wife and daughters in Atlanta.
SECRETS OF ASH, his first novel, won the IndieReader Discovery Awards (2024) for fiction and was a runner-up at the Hollywood Book Festival, among other honors. Green was also nominated as Georgia Author of the Year for that work.
His book of short stories, DIRTYVILLE RHAPSODIES, was hailed by Men's Health as a "Best Book for the Beach" and was named a top 10 book of the year by Atlanta. He lives with his wife and daughters in Atlanta.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 75 reviews
December 26, 2025
This is one of the most unique stories I’ve ever read and it definitely took me a few chapters to really get into. I came across it in my neighborhood’s Little Free Library and picked it up just because I loved the cover tbh. It touches on several important and very relevant topics (gentrification, gun violence, systemic racism) in Atlanta and the author SOMEHOW also made the story whimsical and funny. The characters are lovable (yet deeply flawed), layered, and hilarious. Bravo Josh Green!!!!
January 1, 2026
Goodbye, Sweetberry Park is, at its core, about gentrification in Atlanta and as such sits within a halfway-established literary tradition, with precedents and (one hopes) successors to come. That said, it is a satirical account written by a local journalist who has been investigating gentrification for years, which gives the book certain credibility and merit and which prompted me personally to read this too.
The narrator, Archibald Johnson—alternatively addressed 'God'—is a journalist of mixed Black and white heritage who lives in the very neighbourhood being gentrified, referred to by residents as the Sweetberry Flank and presumably bearing (unrecorded) affiliations to MLK. God being a faltering journalist, who by the end of the story loses his job among other things, shapes the novel’s tone, which can feel pretentious and, at times, irritating (as for me, 50 pages or so into the novel, I managed to get past this narrative voice). Still, for readers like myself, who are somehow obsessed with that kind of language, the novel offers a treasure of vocabulary to learn or rediscover.
The book is plot-driven, and this emphasis often prevents deeper exploration of character interiority and emotions, with only a few exceptions. The decision to synchronise the gentrification narrative with that of venomous snakes being literary unleashed on the city may not have been the author’s best choice, for it makes gentrification feel less like the very serious existential crisis it actually is. Nonetheless, it adds momentum to the plot.
I would recommend giving it a read, as it addresses one of the most pressing socio-racial issues Atlanta -among many other cities- has grappled with in its contemporary history, and because Green’s account of the role of developers, authorities, and corruption in Atlanta's gentrification is sufficiently reliable.
The narrator, Archibald Johnson—alternatively addressed 'God'—is a journalist of mixed Black and white heritage who lives in the very neighbourhood being gentrified, referred to by residents as the Sweetberry Flank and presumably bearing (unrecorded) affiliations to MLK. God being a faltering journalist, who by the end of the story loses his job among other things, shapes the novel’s tone, which can feel pretentious and, at times, irritating (as for me, 50 pages or so into the novel, I managed to get past this narrative voice). Still, for readers like myself, who are somehow obsessed with that kind of language, the novel offers a treasure of vocabulary to learn or rediscover.
The book is plot-driven, and this emphasis often prevents deeper exploration of character interiority and emotions, with only a few exceptions. The decision to synchronise the gentrification narrative with that of venomous snakes being literary unleashed on the city may not have been the author’s best choice, for it makes gentrification feel less like the very serious existential crisis it actually is. Nonetheless, it adds momentum to the plot.
I would recommend giving it a read, as it addresses one of the most pressing socio-racial issues Atlanta -among many other cities- has grappled with in its contemporary history, and because Green’s account of the role of developers, authorities, and corruption in Atlanta's gentrification is sufficiently reliable.
May 4, 2025
"Goodbye, Sweetberry Park" by Josh Green is a compelling and suspenseful read.
God Johnson, a seasoned journalist from Atlanta, inherits a Victorian house from his late white grandfather. But his life takes a dramatic turn when he learns that Sweetberry Park—his now favorite neighborhood is under threat.
The city council is considering a historic preservation project in Sweetberry Park. Fifteen homes are currently part of the proposal, and owners have already accepted generous above-market offers. The developers claim it's a preservation effort, but in reality, they need a cleared stretch of land to move forward—leaving the community at risk of erasure.
Meanwhile, another strange and chilling subplot unfolds: Gerald McCaffrey, a zookeeper, has gone rogue, stealing seventeen of the world’s most venomous snakes—including the infamous black mamba and the giant anaconda. When Johnson calls The Atlanta Beacon, he's told the black mamba poses the most serious threat.
Can the snakes be captured before they wreak havoc? And what will Johnson do to protect his neighborhood?
The plot is riveting. Just imagining the terror of living blocks away from such deadly creatures sent shivers down my spine. The story is fast-paced, tense, and deeply engaging—I couldn’t put it down. Josh Green delivers a fantastic read. Don’t hesitate—this book is absolutely worth your time.
God Johnson, a seasoned journalist from Atlanta, inherits a Victorian house from his late white grandfather. But his life takes a dramatic turn when he learns that Sweetberry Park—his now favorite neighborhood is under threat.
The city council is considering a historic preservation project in Sweetberry Park. Fifteen homes are currently part of the proposal, and owners have already accepted generous above-market offers. The developers claim it's a preservation effort, but in reality, they need a cleared stretch of land to move forward—leaving the community at risk of erasure.
Meanwhile, another strange and chilling subplot unfolds: Gerald McCaffrey, a zookeeper, has gone rogue, stealing seventeen of the world’s most venomous snakes—including the infamous black mamba and the giant anaconda. When Johnson calls The Atlanta Beacon, he's told the black mamba poses the most serious threat.
Can the snakes be captured before they wreak havoc? And what will Johnson do to protect his neighborhood?
The plot is riveting. Just imagining the terror of living blocks away from such deadly creatures sent shivers down my spine. The story is fast-paced, tense, and deeply engaging—I couldn’t put it down. Josh Green delivers a fantastic read. Don’t hesitate—this book is absolutely worth your time.
June 17, 2025
Thank you so much to the author and @booktasters_ on Instagram for sharing a copy of this book with me !!!
“In the rivers of my deepest human self I just wanted someone there with me, a sounding board for my complaints, an ally in my panic, a landing spot for my love. Instead my only partner was the darkness, that deep and wicked darkness”
I’m not totally sure about how I feel right now. This book was funny in that ironic and black humour sort of way that it leaves you hanging around for a deeper meaning you’re not so sure you’ve grasped from it. A bunch of serpents left free from the neighbourhood zoo and a manhunt on the way. A series of people on the job (both journalists and police) and a series of victims that were precisely in the wrong place at the wrong time. And God Johnson … who’s doing what he can to help his neighbours, trying to cover up and mask the loneliness he feels after experiencing a great loss. In the end, everything kinda went how it was supposed to. But the way the scenes followed one another in a sequence of events felt almost overwhelming at times. Never once loosing their fun though. But always accompanied by the small tear ready to get out and fall down your face at the first mention of grief. It was indeed a good book.
“My life’s last moments of uncaged liberty, I knew, would be better spent enjoying the church music than trying to explain idiocy, or entertaining all the stupid thoughts in my head”
“In the rivers of my deepest human self I just wanted someone there with me, a sounding board for my complaints, an ally in my panic, a landing spot for my love. Instead my only partner was the darkness, that deep and wicked darkness”
I’m not totally sure about how I feel right now. This book was funny in that ironic and black humour sort of way that it leaves you hanging around for a deeper meaning you’re not so sure you’ve grasped from it. A bunch of serpents left free from the neighbourhood zoo and a manhunt on the way. A series of people on the job (both journalists and police) and a series of victims that were precisely in the wrong place at the wrong time. And God Johnson … who’s doing what he can to help his neighbours, trying to cover up and mask the loneliness he feels after experiencing a great loss. In the end, everything kinda went how it was supposed to. But the way the scenes followed one another in a sequence of events felt almost overwhelming at times. Never once loosing their fun though. But always accompanied by the small tear ready to get out and fall down your face at the first mention of grief. It was indeed a good book.
“My life’s last moments of uncaged liberty, I knew, would be better spent enjoying the church music than trying to explain idiocy, or entertaining all the stupid thoughts in my head”
July 17, 2025
There aren't enough novels these days about the urban south and modern problems facing the region's cities. That's why I was so excited to hear about Goodbye, Sweetberry Park. The themes of gentrification and the pains of changing urban spaces is something I'm deeply interested in. Josh Green did an excellent job with this story.
By choosing something as troublesome as snakes to serve as a metaphor for fear and paranoia, Green gives the reader an entry into what could have been a dry story. Archie "God" Johnson is a compelling narrator, faced with the story of his career, while also coming to grips with changes to his neighborhood.
The writing is light and digestible, executed with just enough wit and humor to keep chapters light and engaging. The cast of characters grows quite diverse, as is the case with any urban space in the modern south. I liked how Green interspersed the present narrative crises with enough of Johnson's back story to fill in his motivations.
This was an excellent read. While some readers may be left wanting more emotional or philosophical heft, Green's style and execution were wonderfully done. Goodbye, Sweetberry Park is a great read for summer escape or for those wanting to get a deeper understanding of the changing character of 21st century urban cities in the American south.
By choosing something as troublesome as snakes to serve as a metaphor for fear and paranoia, Green gives the reader an entry into what could have been a dry story. Archie "God" Johnson is a compelling narrator, faced with the story of his career, while also coming to grips with changes to his neighborhood.
The writing is light and digestible, executed with just enough wit and humor to keep chapters light and engaging. The cast of characters grows quite diverse, as is the case with any urban space in the modern south. I liked how Green interspersed the present narrative crises with enough of Johnson's back story to fill in his motivations.
This was an excellent read. While some readers may be left wanting more emotional or philosophical heft, Green's style and execution were wonderfully done. Goodbye, Sweetberry Park is a great read for summer escape or for those wanting to get a deeper understanding of the changing character of 21st century urban cities in the American south.
September 16, 2025
You're a down and out reporter. Your family has been killed by a drunk driver, your poverty meals consist of rice with an odd condiment, you were endowed your Sweetberry property by a grandfather with a sense of humor. Suddenly, and inexplicably, Gerald McCaffrey, ace zookeeper, pilfers 17 deadly snakes and apparently unleashes them upon the public. Presto, you have a story to tell, and a person willing to pay you to tell it. In the course of your investigation, you discover another story of an investor, Lotto Livingston, so named because he made his fortune through the lottery, is attempting to purchase part of Sweetberry Park, for rather dubious reasons. Gradually the two stories become intertwined, and you, enterprising reporter ""God" Johnson, have the inside connections to reveal the tales of each, provided that you can remain sober enough, emotionally undetached enough, and unkilled by one of McCaffrey's purloined snakes, a fer de lance, to complete the job.
Author Josh Green partially explains the premise behind the oddly connected stories, and thank goodness for that, because otherwise it might be hard to imagine. It works, as does Green's crisp and often amusing writing style.
Author Josh Green partially explains the premise behind the oddly connected stories, and thank goodness for that, because otherwise it might be hard to imagine. It works, as does Green's crisp and often amusing writing style.
April 29, 2025
Author, editor, and reporter Josh Green knows Atlanta. Our nooks and crannies, our crooks, our cooks, the zoo, the landscape and the colorful characters—built and born—that comprise this city of neighborhoods.
In his new novel, Goodbye, Sweetberry Park, he lures us in through sardonic humor, dry wit, and terrifying behavior, but it's the underlying message about urban development that might strike out and bite us the best, or is it worst, with this snake tale?!
In any and all cases, there's no antidote for not taking a read of this compelling story where serpents feature prominently in both plot and metaphor. I'm glad I did, and highly recommend this colorful work to other readers of historical fiction set in Atlanta's changing neighborhoods.
In his new novel, Goodbye, Sweetberry Park, he lures us in through sardonic humor, dry wit, and terrifying behavior, but it's the underlying message about urban development that might strike out and bite us the best, or is it worst, with this snake tale?!
In any and all cases, there's no antidote for not taking a read of this compelling story where serpents feature prominently in both plot and metaphor. I'm glad I did, and highly recommend this colorful work to other readers of historical fiction set in Atlanta's changing neighborhoods.
August 16, 2025
Josh Green's tour de force, "Goodbye Sweetberry Part" doesn't really fit into any specific genre of modern literature. Is it a dark comedy, combining Ionesco like absurdity, and Kafesque bureaucratic nightmares? Is it a parable of race relations in the deep south? Is it a thriller/mystery about of psychotic zookeeper unleashing a massive amounts of deadly snakes into an Atlanta neighborhood? Is it a story of grief, depression, lost love? Or is it it a moral parable about the dark side of modern gentrification with corrupt real estate developers and corrupt municipal officials? Well, to be honest, it's all that and a bit more.
Green's narrator and protagonist, "God" Johnson is as compelling a first person narrator as I've read in some time. You feel the ups and downs of his grief and loss, his addictions, his struggling and failing career, his eccentric neighbors and most of all, his sense of hopelessness. Green's prose and descriptions are rich, but not overly complex, you can literally see, hear and even smell, Sweetberry Park. Going into anymore detail would require me to check the spoiler box, but take my word that this book is most certainly worth the ride.
Green's narrator and protagonist, "God" Johnson is as compelling a first person narrator as I've read in some time. You feel the ups and downs of his grief and loss, his addictions, his struggling and failing career, his eccentric neighbors and most of all, his sense of hopelessness. Green's prose and descriptions are rich, but not overly complex, you can literally see, hear and even smell, Sweetberry Park. Going into anymore detail would require me to check the spoiler box, but take my word that this book is most certainly worth the ride.
May 20, 2025
Better than taking a Gummie (or three).
Almost a psychedelic ride... over-the-top satire, symbolism, metaphors, colours, and words that dance. A big city, century-long story wrapped in a peach-sized box. The tongue-in-cheek absurdity – counterbalancing serious classism, racism, equity and equality issues – is PERFECT for a story about Atlanta. Loved all the quiet, smart, inside-Atlanta jokes, perfectly turned phrases, and masterfully painted sentences.
Is this the outer boundary of Josh Green's imagination, OR is he pulling in the reigns? Either way, I absolutely LOVED this book and can't wait for his next.
If you're looking for a GREAT summer read, Goodbye, Sweetberry Park is it.
Almost a psychedelic ride... over-the-top satire, symbolism, metaphors, colours, and words that dance. A big city, century-long story wrapped in a peach-sized box. The tongue-in-cheek absurdity – counterbalancing serious classism, racism, equity and equality issues – is PERFECT for a story about Atlanta. Loved all the quiet, smart, inside-Atlanta jokes, perfectly turned phrases, and masterfully painted sentences.
Is this the outer boundary of Josh Green's imagination, OR is he pulling in the reigns? Either way, I absolutely LOVED this book and can't wait for his next.
If you're looking for a GREAT summer read, Goodbye, Sweetberry Park is it.
April 29, 2025
what a ride. these types of gentrification novels are so good. this deals with increasing House prices, cities changing and to make it creepy they unleash the giant snakes into the plot.
I liked this crazy ride with some great humor.
the main character Archie god is a journalist. that adds to the flavour.
totally worth the time
I liked this crazy ride with some great humor.
the main character Archie god is a journalist. that adds to the flavour.
totally worth the time
May 13, 2025
A hot, smoldering Atlanta Summer, inhabited by reptilian predators (snakes and men, alike) navigating the sewers and halls of government to feast on their prey - sometimes due to confused and reckless abandon and others by calculated and premeditated contrivance - are the backdrop of this Southern Noir journalistic mystery novel.
Green not only paints the broad strokes of a historic Atlanta neighborhood caught between its storied past and uncertain gentrified future, delving deep into the class and race struggles of generations past, but effortlessly marries those bedrock ideas and feelings well within the 21st century of modern real estate development tyranny with the the up-close-and-personal stories of those individuals living through these tough times.
Mr. Green has proven himself an adept student of the history of Atlanta and its inhabitants, in full Technicolor. 'Goodbye, Sweetberry Park', is my favorite novel of his, so far. I look forward to his next adventure.
CPT
Green not only paints the broad strokes of a historic Atlanta neighborhood caught between its storied past and uncertain gentrified future, delving deep into the class and race struggles of generations past, but effortlessly marries those bedrock ideas and feelings well within the 21st century of modern real estate development tyranny with the the up-close-and-personal stories of those individuals living through these tough times.
Mr. Green has proven himself an adept student of the history of Atlanta and its inhabitants, in full Technicolor. 'Goodbye, Sweetberry Park', is my favorite novel of his, so far. I look forward to his next adventure.
CPT
December 6, 2025
If Carl Hiaasen and Tom Wolfe had a baby, it might look something like this inventive, laugh-out-loud funny novel about an Atlanta that residents of the city will recognize: a place defined by bizarre contrasts of old and new, extreme wealth and hardscrabble lives, a place you can't help but love even as you are rolling your eyes at its excesses. Goodbye, Sweetberry Park does this strange place justice while also offering a deeply entertaining and smart read full of clever turns of phrase and shrewd observations.
October 9, 2026
Goodbye Sweet Berry Park is an absolute delight from start to finish. It’s warm, engaging, and filled with the kind of characters and atmosphere that draw you straight in and make you want to linger just a little bit longer.
The storytelling flows so effortlessly, striking that lovely balance between heartfelt emotion and genuine charm. It’s comforting, uplifting, and leaves you with that wonderful, satisfied feeling only a truly good story can deliver.
A thoroughly enjoyable read that will brighten your day—highly recommended to anyone looking for their next heartwarming page-turner!
The storytelling flows so effortlessly, striking that lovely balance between heartfelt emotion and genuine charm. It’s comforting, uplifting, and leaves you with that wonderful, satisfied feeling only a truly good story can deliver.
A thoroughly enjoyable read that will brighten your day—highly recommended to anyone looking for their next heartwarming page-turner!
April 15, 2025
A wild story about gentrification, how cities really feel in America today, and how everyone really just wants a good home for themselves. Also snakes. It's all held together by Josh Green's deep knowledge of Atlanta and his distinctive sense of humor and voice.
June 3, 2026
Thrilling story that gets the reader deep into parts of American culture rarely portrayed in blockbusters movies or TV series. The intriguing setting moves the reader to get to the end of a page faster to see what's next in the story. As the story develops, the narrator, in first person, prepares the reader for the grand finale, with an unexpected twist. Flawed heros show a human side rarely talked about. By the end, you know and can relate to them. Solid read!
April 9, 2025
Gentrification novels have been done, yes. But not like this. What a ride. Five stars no question.
April 9, 2025
Great read and humorous take on what applies to all of metro Atlanta right now.
April 15, 2025
Housing prices, splintering community, too hot summers… and escaped zoo snakes invading our yards and homes. These are all things we worry about every day, right? Ok, maybe not the snakes. But that’s the genius of this book. It takes our real-world bs and ratchets it up to 11, making it thrilling, fun and funny, too. And the fact that this neighborhood is clearly based on Grant Park (or People’s Town?) makes it even better for the ATL crowd. A very smart book I very much enjoyed reading.
May 30, 2025
A wild and fantastic ride of a novel that was captivating all the way through.
July 29, 2025
Fun to read about the local area, but sad that the poverty, racism, and explotation by developers is all too real here.
October 3, 2025
I could not stop reading Sweetberry Park. The characters are wonderful, the plot engaging, and lots of humor.
Robert
Robert
January 18, 2026
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. The prose flowed with a distinct first person narrator voice that had me glued to its pages. The residents of Sweetberry Park while seemingly ordinary folks were portrayed so vividly,I could almost believe I have met some of them in real life. I am definitely going to be reading other books by the same author.
September 7, 2026
As a fellow Atlantan, I really enjoyed this book!
June 11, 2025
first I want to thank the author for sending me this copy.
Goodbye, Sweetberry Park by Josh Green is a compelling and suspenseful read. The story follows God Johnson, a seasoned journalist from Atlanta, who inherits a Victorian house from his late white grandfather. As Johnson navigates his new life, he discovers that his neighborhood, Sweetberry Park, is under threat from a city council proposal that would demolish 15 homes for a historic preservation project. The true intentions behind the project seem questionable, and Johnson finds himself at the center of the controversy.
Meanwhile, a chilling subplot unfolds as Gerald McCaffrey, a rogue zookeeper, steals 17 of the world's most venomous snakes, including a black mamba and a giant anaconda. The stolen snakes pose a deadly threat, and Johnson's investigation into the neighborhood's fate becomes even more urgent.
The book masterfully weaves together themes of community, identity, and the high stakes of urban development. With its suspenseful plot and complex characters, "Goodbye, Sweetberry Park" is a gripping read that explores the intricacies of neighborhood dynamics and the true cost of progress.
Goodbye, Sweetberry Park by Josh Green is a compelling and suspenseful read. The story follows God Johnson, a seasoned journalist from Atlanta, who inherits a Victorian house from his late white grandfather. As Johnson navigates his new life, he discovers that his neighborhood, Sweetberry Park, is under threat from a city council proposal that would demolish 15 homes for a historic preservation project. The true intentions behind the project seem questionable, and Johnson finds himself at the center of the controversy.
Meanwhile, a chilling subplot unfolds as Gerald McCaffrey, a rogue zookeeper, steals 17 of the world's most venomous snakes, including a black mamba and a giant anaconda. The stolen snakes pose a deadly threat, and Johnson's investigation into the neighborhood's fate becomes even more urgent.
The book masterfully weaves together themes of community, identity, and the high stakes of urban development. With its suspenseful plot and complex characters, "Goodbye, Sweetberry Park" is a gripping read that explores the intricacies of neighborhood dynamics and the true cost of progress.
September 4, 2025
True southern charm, street grit, unforgettable characters, laugh out loud one liners, and a plausible snake epidemic, you’ll get all of this and more from this hilarious tale of mischief, community activism, friendship and neighborhood issues that strike close to home in today’s inner city- super fun book with captivating characters!
November 6, 2025
As a transplant to Atlanta who recently bought a house in one of these zoo-adjacent neighborhoods I really appreciated the thought-provoking themes of gentrification, government structures and bureaucracy, and community engagement raised throughout the book, while moving through an incredibly immersive story. May want to avoid yardwork while reading!
November 12, 2025
Fantastic book by an even better author. I loved seeing my Atlanta and the complex truth of gentrification splayed out on the page. Josh combines humor, thoughtfulness, and expertise in the issues of this wild place we call home. Wish I could follow these characters for part 2!!
March 28, 2025
Josh Green knocks it out of the park with this fast paced, riveting novel. Its perfect mix of drama, mystery, and comedy will keep all readers intrigued until the very end! A good,quick,enjoyable read I highly recommend.
January 19, 2026
This is a highly entertaining love letter to the city of Atlanta, but can be relatable to folks living anywhere. Josh navigates heavy topics in a tongue-in-cheek way at times, but his reverence for his city and the subject matter is very evident in the writing. You may find yourself laughing, crying, and pondering all in one sitting with this one.
April 25, 2025
a fast-paced read with some chaos and crazy characters that keep you engaged throughout
Displaying 1 - 30 of 75 reviews