Uncle Tom, Topsy, Sambo, Simon Legree, little Eva: their names are American bywords, and all of them are characters in Harriet Beecher Stowe's rema...
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Jun 25, 2011
Stephen
rated it: 
ONE READER'S CONFUSION ABOUT WHY "UNCLE TOM" MEANS ANYTHING BUT HERO
3.0 stars. First, I am glad I have finally read this book given its historical significance and the very positive impact that it had on American history. That said, from a literary perspective, I didn't find this book to be particularly well written and am doubtful of whether it would be much remembered or considered a "classic" but for the aforementioned historical significance and the creation o More...
3.0 stars. First, I am glad I have finally read this book given its historical significance and the very positive impact that it had on American history. That said, from a literary perspective, I didn't find this book to be particularly well written and am doubtful of whether it would be much remembered or considered a "classic" but for the aforementioned historical significance and the creation o More...
13 comments
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(43 people liked it)
Dec 17, 2009
Jessica
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O.k. so I was supposed to read this in my high school a.p. class. I think my friend and I may even have taken turns reading parts of it, but it never really happened. But, this last semester I actually read it twice, because that's what my Amer. Romanticism professor suggested we do, and, to be honest I was kind of scared of him for a while...
But, here's the deal. It really isn't a great book. It started out as bed time tales for her kids, progressed to installments in a magazine, More...
But, here's the deal. It really isn't a great book. It started out as bed time tales for her kids, progressed to installments in a magazine, More...
5 comments
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(14 people liked it)
Jan 11, 2008
Laura
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Wow. I wish this was still required reading in schools. Can you imagine: a book that was credited by President Lincoln with bringing about the Civil War, and is known to have so effected the hearts of readers that it changed their opinions of slavery is hardly read in the country whose face it changed?
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(17 people liked it)
Jul 06, 2008
Ann Marie
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Life-changing book. This was a great read-aloud with my kids. We finished it on Easter Sunday - very appropriate.
2 comments
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(8 people liked it)
Sep 08, 2008
Tammy
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This book is one of the most moving, provocative pieces of literature I've ever read, and it's the first time that I can recall being moved to tears from a book. As long as I live, I will never be able to remove from my mind the vision of Eliza, panicked and frenzied, in the dead of the night with her baby boy in her arms, leaping across the frozen ice of the Ohio river to escape the trader her baby had been sold to. And if anyone wants to read a profound and well written narrative for the view
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(14 people liked it)
Apr 25, 2008
Brooke
rated it: 
I know, I know, it's a monumental artifact in American history, and the catalyst to the spread of the abolitionist movement to the masses. I totally appreciate the historical and cultural significance of this book. No question.
But seriously, y'all? This book SUCKS as a piece of literature. For real. I just can't get past how bad the writing is--the reason why I'm such a voracious reader is simple: I read books for aesthetic pleasure. That's it. I really don't give a shit about anythi More...
But seriously, y'all? This book SUCKS as a piece of literature. For real. I just can't get past how bad the writing is--the reason why I'm such a voracious reader is simple: I read books for aesthetic pleasure. That's it. I really don't give a shit about anythi More...
19 comments
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(9 people liked it)
Oct 05, 2011
Sierra
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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9 comments
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(1 person liked it)
Oct 10, 2011
Sarah
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I admit I was supposed to read Uncle Tom's Cabin in my 11th grade History class...and though I am sure I did read little bits and pieces, I can hardly remember it. So, when I saw it was a free selection for Kindle, I downloaded it and started reading it. Of course I had lots of precoceived notions about the book before I started it. I've alalways heard the term "Uncle Tom" used to describe a black person who has "turned on" his race in some way. And I had heard, and und
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(1 person liked it)
Aug 28, 2011
Allison
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I LOVED this book. Sure... it's a classic, we all should have read it in high school or what have you but I never did. I checked it out when it came up as a free Kindle book and it is honestly one of the best books I have ever read. I absolutely loved it and recommend it to anyone and everyone. It's a must read; no doubt about it.
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(3 people liked it)
Mar 29, 2009
Marie
rated it: 
Wow. An important book, surely, historically, and I found the forward more interesting than most as it argued about the book's place in American Literature. (Though, sadly, like most academic forwards, rife with spoilers. Lady! I'm reading this for the first time, don't tell me who dies and who gets married and who goes to Africa!)
Stowe's strength is in her more merry passages, particularly when she can put her bible down for five seconds and turn a wry, Twain-like eye on popular c More...
Stowe's strength is in her more merry passages, particularly when she can put her bible down for five seconds and turn a wry, Twain-like eye on popular c More...
Jan 04, 2012
Sulaiman
rated it:
أعجبني في هذه الرواية بعض المقاربات فيما بين بعض المشاهد و مايحدث على الساحة من أحداث و خصوصاً الربيع العربي ، ولكن أكثر ماشدني هو هذا المقطع من حوار بين شخصيتين من شخوص الرواية والذي أسقطته على الوضع الراهن:
ـ وما رأيك في قضية الإسترقاق عموماً: ومالمصير الذي ستؤول إليه؟
ـ لا يمكنني الإحاطة بما سيؤول إليه الرق ولكن لاريب في أن الجماهير ستتكتل ذات يوم وتتحفز للوثوب في جميع بقاع الأرض ولا بد أن يأتي يوم تغضب فيه الجماهير الواعية غضبتها القصوى إن عاًجلاً أو آجلاً. وقد بدأت تبا More...
ـ وما رأيك في قضية الإسترقاق عموماً: ومالمصير الذي ستؤول إليه؟
ـ لا يمكنني الإحاطة بما سيؤول إليه الرق ولكن لاريب في أن الجماهير ستتكتل ذات يوم وتتحفز للوثوب في جميع بقاع الأرض ولا بد أن يأتي يوم تغضب فيه الجماهير الواعية غضبتها القصوى إن عاًجلاً أو آجلاً. وقد بدأت تبا More...
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(1 person liked it)
Sep 12, 2011
Tara
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While I'll definitely call this book a classic, and say that it most certainly has a place in shaping the foundations of American perception during a dark moment in history, I won't call it great.
It's largely propganda, sensationalist to an extreme, and so rigidly stereotyped that it's almost painful to read.
From Wikpedia.com:
Uncle Tom's Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly is an anti-slavery novel by American author Harriet Beecher Stowe. Published in 1852, the More...
It's largely propganda, sensationalist to an extreme, and so rigidly stereotyped that it's almost painful to read.
From Wikpedia.com:
Uncle Tom's Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly is an anti-slavery novel by American author Harriet Beecher Stowe. Published in 1852, the More...
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(1 person liked it)
Feb 26, 2009
Karen
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Having had an abiding interest in studying the Civil War, I have been surprised at myself that I have not previously read Uncle Tom's Cabin. I have now remedied that failure. I found the book riveting in parts. Harriett Beecher Stowe is a better writer than I expected. Her powerful character development makes the book all the more heartwrenching. I loved Uncle Tom's Christ-like character. I also loved the religious allusions and overtones in the book. In 1852, when the book was published,
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(5 people liked it)
Sep 12, 2008
Nightfalltwen
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The first exposure I ever had to this story was the musical number within the movie The King and I.
You can obviously tell that this isn't a modern book by any standards. Although the best selling novel of the 19th century and the second best-selling book after the Bible, it is completely dated. Some say even offensive for the stereotypes that it helped to create.
I say that when you're reading a book that was published in a different era you need to take into considerati More...
You can obviously tell that this isn't a modern book by any standards. Although the best selling novel of the 19th century and the second best-selling book after the Bible, it is completely dated. Some say even offensive for the stereotypes that it helped to create.
I say that when you're reading a book that was published in a different era you need to take into considerati More...
Jun 08, 2007
Sarah
rated it:
I normally like Harriet Beecher Stowe's style of writing but the other stories I've read were written for fun. She made a comfortable living as a writer of boys adventure novels (under the pen name "Christopher Crowfield") and was a neighbor and mentor of Mark Twain. Uncle Tom's Cabin had a definite political agenda and while it proved to be a significant and influential story (as well as a best seller) it is a flawed story.
Harriet Beecher Stowe was inspired to write Uncle More...
Harriet Beecher Stowe was inspired to write Uncle More...
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(4 people liked it)
Apr 04, 2008
Bryan
rated it:
ok ok this book is totally melodramatic, writhes in its own excess, and features several of those characters that are not characters at all, but rather are just embodiments of some trait or characteristic. avatars if you will. i don't really like that. i like my characters to have a little more meat on their bookish bones. notwithstanding, eva totally melted my heart. what a dear.
concerning the historical import: i doubt you can find a copy of this book today that doesn't have at least 50 More...
concerning the historical import: i doubt you can find a copy of this book today that doesn't have at least 50 More...
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(2 people liked it)
Jan 22, 2008
I know it may shock some of you that I'm so behind on my reading list, but this was the first time I'd read Uncle Tom's Cabin. One of my profs warned me that it may take some getting used to and that students found it difficult to engage with the text. Therefore, I was taken by surprise when the narrative ended up speaking into contemporary issues of social injustice and discrimination with profound clarity and fervor. If you haven't read it, I highly recommend that you pick up a copy. It is wel
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Jan 11, 2009
Beth
rated it:
Aside from the important and sensitive subject matter: Yes, the writing is sometimes overblown. Like Charles Dickens novels, Harriet Beecher Stowe wants to impart (very!) important moral lessons, prodding with scenes of heartwarming carrots and heartwrenching sticks of degradation. Stowe's literary talents don't quite match Dickens', so the overdone kitch is kind of like a Precious Moments figurine compared with a rare Meissen figurine from Dickens.
But I'm not immune, and I did sob. More...
But I'm not immune, and I did sob. More...
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(1 person liked it)
Jan 05, 2009
Dave
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There are some books which one gets to know by reputation before one actually reads them. "Uncle Tom's Cabin (or, Life Among the Lowly)" by Harriet Beecher Stowe is one of them. Whether from studying American History and slavery, and hearing the pejorative term "Uncle Tom", one gets a strong sense for certain aspects of the book. For whatever reason, I had not read the book until recently, when studying in more detail the history of slavery in the U.S. made this a necessity i
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(2 people liked it)
Dec 05, 2008
J
rated it:
The main character of Uncle Tom's Cabin, and at least one of the minor characters, are frequently mocked by modern black activists, rappers and comedians. Therefore, when I began reading this novel, originally published in 1852, I was expecting a woefully-outdated story with painful, outrageous stereotypes and archaic language, and had prepared myself for a real struggle to navigate through it in order to see how this book mobilized people in the USA against slavery.
The story, its de More...
The story, its de More...
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(6 people liked it)
Jan 22, 2012
Jeff
rated it:
Though not necessarily the most innovatively written book, and certainly of the more (as popular critics have noted) sentimental genres, Uncle Tom's Cabin is a book that, for me, illustrates the social and moral effects literature has on responsible readers.
Like most who encounter a "Classic" novel, I entered my reading with certain comprehensions of the novel and its characters, namely the epithet "Uncle Tom" given to African Americans who are servile and accommo More...
Like most who encounter a "Classic" novel, I entered my reading with certain comprehensions of the novel and its characters, namely the epithet "Uncle Tom" given to African Americans who are servile and accommo More...
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(1 person liked it)
Jan 09, 2012
ميّ أحمد
rated it:
كتبت الروائية هذه الرواية بعاطفة صادقة وقوية ومؤثرة كونها عاشت أحداثها لذلك كان لها تأثيرا كبيرا على تغيير مسار الحياة في ذلك الزمن ولعل هذا يثبت كم هو تأثير القلم حين يكون بهذا الوعي في زمن ساد به التخلف وعربد فيه الجهل إنني للأتذكر دائما هذه الرواية حين يقولون لماذا تُقرأ الروايات ويسخرون
إتذكر أني قرأت كتاب هو نساء رائدات للكاتبة اللبنانية أميلي نصر الله وقد وضعت هارييت ستو في مصاف هؤلاء النسوة اللاتي خلّد التاريخ أعمالهن ولعل هذه الرواية أكبر ردّ على من يقللون من أهمية الروايات وقراء ا More...
إتذكر أني قرأت كتاب هو نساء رائدات للكاتبة اللبنانية أميلي نصر الله وقد وضعت هارييت ستو في مصاف هؤلاء النسوة اللاتي خلّد التاريخ أعمالهن ولعل هذه الرواية أكبر ردّ على من يقللون من أهمية الروايات وقراء ا More...
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(1 person liked it)
Jan 05, 2012
Nicholas
rated it:
http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/1803470.ht...
This is a very effective narrative, written by a white Northern Christian woman for white Northern Christian women, and pushing all the buttons - the slaves are devout, their owners are not; the system operates to break up slave families at the behest of the law; parents helplessly watch their daughters being debauched by their owners. These days of course the central moral point is redundant but the outrage remains fresh.
I was surpr More...
This is a very effective narrative, written by a white Northern Christian woman for white Northern Christian women, and pushing all the buttons - the slaves are devout, their owners are not; the system operates to break up slave families at the behest of the law; parents helplessly watch their daughters being debauched by their owners. These days of course the central moral point is redundant but the outrage remains fresh.
I was surpr More...
Dec 22, 2011
Matt
rated it:
This book is an example of how beauty can save the world (to understand what that means, read my review on the book Beauty Will Save the World by Gregory Wolfe).
In the first part of the 19th century, abolitionists were a fringe, minority sect of the American populace. Their primary methods for conversion were to lecture people on the evils of slavery using statistics and numbers. They failed to gain a critical mass. Then, in 1851, Mrs. Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote Uncle Tom's Cabin.
More...
In the first part of the 19th century, abolitionists were a fringe, minority sect of the American populace. Their primary methods for conversion were to lecture people on the evils of slavery using statistics and numbers. They failed to gain a critical mass. Then, in 1851, Mrs. Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote Uncle Tom's Cabin.
More...
Dec 14, 2011
Ensiform
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With an Afterword by John William Ward. A once wealthy man is forced to sell his beloved slave, Uncle Tom, to get out of debt. And a female slave escapes with her small child, joining her impetuous, proud husband George in flight. And from there the two plot points continue and diverge in an episodic fashion, and we meet a whole host of characters, including the benevolent, effeminate St. Clare and the brutish Simon Legree.
There are some very stunning passages in the book, some powe More...
There are some very stunning passages in the book, some powe More...
Sep 29, 2011
Brian
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It is hard to imagine that Uncle Tom's Cabin helped move the United States toward civil war. Then again The Turner Diaries inspired Timothy McVeigh to blow up a building and that wasn't much of a book either. Obviously the people who were moved by this book had little grasp of the reality of the situation. It is also interesting to note that an "Uncle Tom" has become a racial slur when the Uncle Tom in the book was an incredible man with a heart of gold.
I read the book b More...
I read the book b More...
Sep 01, 2011
Pamela
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I'm really sorry that I didn't enjoy the book which was the first to outsell the Bible and started the Civil War, but I didn't. I'm not religious in any way, so all the Christianity didn't make much impression on me. And since it's much of the book, I think it was wasted. On me, at least.
It was also quite believable, really, until the end, when (spoiler alert) Mme. Thoux turns out to be George's brother and Cassy turns out to be Eliza's mother. On the same day!! I ask you: is this reasonab More...
It was also quite believable, really, until the end, when (spoiler alert) Mme. Thoux turns out to be George's brother and Cassy turns out to be Eliza's mother. On the same day!! I ask you: is this reasonab More...
Aug 31, 2011
Jc
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This edition of the early 19th c. classic is introduced and annotated by Henry Louis Gates and Hollis Robbins. The edition is well illustrated, and Gates and Robbins’ comments really help the reader understand the context. As with most annotated editions of classic works, I found many of the notes superfluous, adding nothing to the text. But many do either clarify now archaic ideas and phrasings, or bring up interesting points of discussion. As to the work itself, it is often hard to read due to
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Aug 28, 2011
Truly
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"...the enslaving of the African race is a clear violation of the great law which commands us to love our neighbor as ourselves" Harriet Beecher Stowe
Sebuah kalimat yang berbunyi, "Jadi, Andalah wanita mungil yang menulis buku yang memicu perang besar ini?" Membuat saya penasaran. Apa hebatnya buku ini sehingga bisa memicu perang besar di Amerika, perang yang dikenal dengan sebutan Perang Sipil yang terjadi antara tahun 1861-1865. Untuk mengetahuinya maka saya ha More...
Sebuah kalimat yang berbunyi, "Jadi, Andalah wanita mungil yang menulis buku yang memicu perang besar ini?" Membuat saya penasaran. Apa hebatnya buku ini sehingga bisa memicu perang besar di Amerika, perang yang dikenal dengan sebutan Perang Sipil yang terjadi antara tahun 1861-1865. Untuk mengetahuinya maka saya ha More...
Aug 18, 2011
Emily
rated it:
**My Review for http://homespunlight.blogspot.com/**
It is rumored that Abraham Lincoln met Harriet Beecher Stowe at the beginning of the Civil War and said, "So this is the little lady who started this great war."
Despite changing the course of America's history, this is a book many people have heard of, but far fewer have read.
Well-drawn characters are interwoven in a web of stories that portray life in the slave states. Through unimaginable trials, most o More...
It is rumored that Abraham Lincoln met Harriet Beecher Stowe at the beginning of the Civil War and said, "So this is the little lady who started this great war."
Despite changing the course of America's history, this is a book many people have heard of, but far fewer have read.
Well-drawn characters are interwoven in a web of stories that portray life in the slave states. Through unimaginable trials, most o More...
