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Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass

Frederick Douglass

Start date: August 1, 2020

Finish date: August 31, 2020

Discussion: Old School Classics, Pre-1915

Why we're reading this: August 2020 Old School Classic Group Read
[close] August 2020 Old School Classic Group Read

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Old School Classics, Pre-1915

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What Members Thought

Aug 23, 2020 Heather L rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, group-read, 2020

I generally dislike biographies and shy away from them, but as this was chosen as a classic group read and I had a free ebook version, I gave it a go. Douglass’ narrative is quite readable and easy to digest in a day—though it may be all you are able to digest as he depicts the life and hardships of a slave.

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Jul 03, 2022 Richard Subber rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Narrative is a devastatingly calm account of the life of Frederick Douglass as a slave and then a free man.
It’s very hard to read, let alone imagine the reality, of the whippings that Douglass describes. It’s horrifying to recognize that some human beings brutalized other human beings with a whip.
Douglass taught himself to read and write.
He informs us about history that we don’t want to know, but must accept as true.
Read more of my book reviews and poems here:
www.richardsubber.com ...more

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May 15, 2013 spoko rated it it was amazing

Shelves: race, non-fiction, history, memoir

I don't know that this book needs any praise from me to bolster its reputation or anything, but I'll just say that it's beautifully written and even more beautifully direct in its assessments and depictions of life under slavery--and of the hypocrisy which buttressed the institution. It should also go without saying that this is a timeless piece, as relevant today as it ever was, but I'll say it anyway. ...more

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