THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

by Colson Whitehead
 
Ever since I read this New Yorker article last August, I have been dying to readThe Underground Railroad.  Then last month it won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction, and it jumped to the top of my list.  And I will candidly say, it lived up to the anticipation.  Whitehead’s writing is masterful, evocative and brutal, as befits this story of a runaway slave from Georgia.
 
The main storyline follows Cora from the time her mother left her behind on the hideously violent Randall plantation, through her own escape attempts.  Amid the brutality, blood and injustice, Whitehead has given us a small dose of fantasy as he imagines the famed slave network is an actual railroad, with stations in each state, and boxcars carrying those lucky enough to find them, to freedom.
 
If you are squeamish about violence, this is not the book for you. To everyone else, I highly recommend this book for the beauty of its prose, the frankness of its politics and the truly gripping story. (Lily)

A SECOND HELPING

I also highly recommend The Underground Railroad.  Whitehead succeeds in telling the dark story of slavery in this country in a gripping and original way. (Liz)