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A review by bklassen
The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Wow, what a powerhouse novel. This was talked about all over the book internet (bookosphere? Bookternet? Lit net? Someone needs to brand this part of the internet) when it first came out and I’ve been meaning to read it ever since. The story of Cora is fantastic, and she’s a fantastic character. While she meets a plethora of people along her way, some good, some bad, some well intentioned but ultimately flawed (hey, who among us isn’t?), every character is well rounded and fleshed out. People have a reason for their beliefs and behaviors (though it doesn’t always excuse it) and Whitehead did a fantastic job of doing so.
There are so many suspenseful moments in this book, which should come as a no brainer since it’s about a black girl fleeing slavery in the South, as well as moments of horrific human behavior and untenable cruelty, and yet there are moments of connection and peace, as well as little vignettes that capture the tremulous and unjust world to be black in America, especially during the antebellum South. Again, Whitehead captures the struggle perfectly.
It feels strange to write this, but there are some hauntingly beautiful phrases and descriptions in a book about slavery. The way Cora describes how black bodies are used as an unending source of fuel for the engine that is the American cotton economy and slavery, and how it’s a machine to manufacture blood and death is so visceral and just a perfect metaphor.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who appreciates a good tale and some absolutely stellar turns of phrase and writing. I truly could not guess at where the book was going to go, but I was happy to root for Cora all the same.
There are so many suspenseful moments in this book, which should come as a no brainer since it’s about a black girl fleeing slavery in the South, as well as moments of horrific human behavior and untenable cruelty, and yet there are moments of connection and peace, as well as little vignettes that capture the tremulous and unjust world to be black in America, especially during the antebellum South. Again, Whitehead captures the struggle perfectly.
It feels strange to write this, but there are some hauntingly beautiful phrases and descriptions in a book about slavery. The way Cora describes how black bodies are used as an unending source of fuel for the engine that is the American cotton economy and slavery, and how it’s a machine to manufacture blood and death is so visceral and just a perfect metaphor.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who appreciates a good tale and some absolutely stellar turns of phrase and writing. I truly could not guess at where the book was going to go, but I was happy to root for Cora all the same.