The Underground Railroad in Overdue Podcast

Aug 22, 2017 Sarina M rated it liked it

I read this book for a book club. This book was basically a worse Roots. I am not sure why Whitehead felt the need to make the Underground Railroad a litteral railroad; it made me question everything else about the story. I couldn't tell what aspects of the story accurately reflected the period or were simply imagination. Besides that the story was exciting (but the excitement was a bit clouded by the gruesomeness). ...more

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Jul 25, 2018 Kaylie rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: lit-cred, home, set-america

The Underground Railroad was a gift from A, and I'm fairly sure she said she chose it because it had won a load of prizes. It also fits in well with other things I've read — books like The Floating Theatre and Sugar Money. I was a bit worried, because of all the prizes, that The Underground Railroad was going to be dense and difficult to read, but it pleasantly surprised me on that score. I found the early chapters very intriguing, especially when the narrative shifted away from Cora's perspecti The Underground Railroad was a gift from A, and I'm fairly sure she said she chose it because it had won a load of prizes. It also fits in well with other things I've read — books like The Floating Theatre and Sugar Money. I was a bit worried, because of all the prizes, that The Underground Railroad was going to be dense and difficult to read, but it pleasantly surprised me on that score. I found the early chapters very intriguing, especially when the narrative shifted away from Cora's perspective to that of a slave-catcher called Ridgeway. It took me way longer than it should have to realise The Underground Railroad was set in an alternate history, and I admit I don't know enough about the details of the America of this period to be sure what pieces are off the rails, if you'll excuse the pun.

I can see why people liked The Underground Railroad, especially the first third or so. It reminded me of The Handmaid's Tale in the way it built the story out of both things that did happen and things which didn't. Certain things that happened to Cora also reminded me of Offred — she was dehumanised in ways that were probably fictional, but felt like they could have been real.

Unfortunately, the middle of the book really let it down, as far as I was concerned. I expected to see more of Ridgeway after we got a taste of his perspective, and I was disappointed he was featured for such a limited amount of time. As for Cora, it's perfectly understandable that a slave character would have limited agency in the society we're presented, but there are long sections of the book where Cora doesn't do anything, and those didn't really push the story forward in any satisfying way. Even when Cora does take action, it didn't have much of an emotional impact on me as a reader.

The end picked up, a bit, in that it was certainly interesting to read about the Valentine Farm, and wonder how much of it was based on true historical fact. Sadly, I didn't really connect to any of the characters. I'd recommend this to readers who enjoyed The Handmaid's Tale because I do think it has some interesting similarities in style, though I have to admit I think The Handmaid's Tale is probably the better book. ...more

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Aug 13, 2017 Arathy rated it really liked it

I give it 4 not 5, because the writing style was not up to my liking. It was quite difficult to get through for me- in a good way and in a bad way. Bad way, because it wasn't doing well for me writing wise (which is completely subjective, so).
In a good way, because...
1. I read 75% of it today. And whatever is happening in Charlottesville is making me wonder about timeliness of this book (for me). I'm not saying I didn't think of racism as a major crisis, but today makes me wonder how much has c ...more

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Jun 14, 2020 Kathleen Mullins rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

I really enjoyed this book, especially the real but surreal way Cora's search for freedom is manifested--I am always here for a little surrealism/magical realism. Each new location felt like a place out of time representing the variations of oppression that Black people have faced in America. ...more

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