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The Underground Railroad
- Narrated by: Bahni Turpin
- Length: 10 hrs and 43 mins
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The Underground Railroad
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Summary
Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, 2017
National Book Award Winner 2016
Amazon.Com Number One Book of the Year 2016
Number One New York Times Best Seller
Cora is a slave on a cotton plantation in Georgia. All the slaves lead a hellish existence, but Cora has it worse than most; she is an outcast even among her fellow Africans, and she is approaching womanhood, where it is clear even greater pain awaits. When Caesar, a slave recently arrived from Virginia, tells her about the Underground Railroad, they take the perilous decision to escape to the North.
In Whitehead's razor-sharp imagining of the antebellum South, the Underground Railroad has assumed a physical form: a dilapidated boxcar pulled along subterranean tracks by a steam locomotive, picking up fugitives wherever it can. Cora and Caesar's first stop is South Carolina, in a city that initially seems like a haven. But its placid surface masks an infernal scheme designed for its unknowing black inhabitants. And even worse: Ridgeway, the relentless slave catcher sent to find Cora, is close on their heels. Forced to flee again, Cora embarks on a harrowing flight, state by state, seeking true freedom. At each stop on her journey, Cora encounters a different world.
As Whitehead brilliantly recreates the unique terrors for black people in the pre-Civil War era, his narrative seamlessly weaves the saga of America, from the brutal importation of Africans to the unfulfilled promises of the present day. The Underground Railroad is at once the story of one woman's ferocious will to escape the horrors of bondage and a shatteringly powerful meditation on history.
Critic reviews
"Luminous, furious, wildly inventive." ( The Observer)
"Hands down one of the best, if not the best, book I've read this year." ( Stylist)
"Dazzling." ( New York Review of Books)
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What listeners say about The Underground Railroad
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Hoops
- 02-06-20
Superb and challenging storytelling
I was both desperate and disappointed to complete this audiobook. It was hard to tear myself away from this enthralling story, I just had to know what was going to happen next. And then, when I reached the end, what can I possibly listen to next that will match this literary masterpiece? As you follow this story (as a white privileged listener) you cannot fail to be struck by the horrors and sheer cruelty of slavery and white supremacy. As I watch the news, with the death of another young black man at the hands of white American police, you have to wonder how much has really changed. Some progress yes, but still so far to go. I'm also struck by the dignity consistently portayed by the main character and those who fight injustice. The narration is excellent.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Dohm64
- 10-01-21
Aggressively Sad, Beautiful & Painful
The horrors of slavery and anti-Blackness have never been more painfully and poetically described.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- RoMay
- 21-09-22
Goosebumps
Anger and sadness when listening to this but yet a very important part of African Americans gruesome past.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Antonio Konitsiotis
- 03-02-17
Powerful storytelling
incredible acting and an amazing and heart wrenching story means this is a must. Especially poignant with the rampant bigotry and racism some factions of politics want to spread in the world.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Lorraine
- 31-05-18
Brilliant
Thought provoking, well written and beautifully read. A journey of emotions. Worth reading. Great story.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Stephen reid
- 01-03-21
Fabulous story
I was absolutely riveted to this story and how the cruelty of man against his fellow human is harrowing all in the pursuit of money.. There are many victims in this story and like nowadays the pursuit of money and power keeps individuals shackled to their own chains be that of race, colour ,class ....
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Kindle Customer
- 23-11-22
Deeply affecting
I've known about slavery in the American South all my life, but never engaged emotionally until listening to this book on Audible.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- C. Davies
- 21-09-17
Excellent reading of unforgettable book
This is a very powerful story that was read with great intensity and clarity. Thanks
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- bookylady
- 13-06-17
A spellbinding, heartbreaking tale of slavery.
I always know when I have read a truly great book - I am bereft at its end and want to tell everyone about it. This was such a book. One of my top five reads of 2017, so far.
Beautifully written, well-paced, great plot and characters. The lives and fate of slaves and runaways have always made for shocking reading and this novel is no exception . But the clever concept and depiction of the Underground Railroad gave this novel it's unique edge and kept me wondering if Cora, the main character, would ever reach the Free States.
Excellent and sympathetic narration.
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11 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- V Hendry
- 09-09-17
Strangely Disappointing
Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?
This book could have been improved with editing it down and sticking more to how slaves really escaped. I had little patience with the idea that the "Underground Railroad", as the slave escape network was dubbed, was an actual railroad under the ground.
I had read a review saying this was better than the factual "12 Years a Slave", but I would absolutely disagree.
No doubt the writer blended a lot of good research on the topic with his artistic license about the railroad and the fictional stories of the characters, but I found the artistic license annoying and the characters could have been better developed.
What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?
The most interesting aspect for me were the weekly "festivals" with lynchings the main character witnessed while holed up in an attic on her way north - simply because I had no idea that sort of thing went on for general consumption.
The least interesting: the concept of the Underground Railroad being a real railroad.
Which character – as performed by Bahni Turpin – was your favourite?
Cora.
Did The Underground Railroad inspire you to do anything?
No.
Any additional comments?
If you want your writing to sing... edit it down and tighten it up.
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3 people found this helpful