Reviews

The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead

alogalbo's review against another edition

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challenging emotional medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

katnortonwriter's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I was going to say that I had no notes, but right at the end there’s some information that changes the whole shape of Cora’s story and it’s a punch to the gut. Great writing.

Read this on audiobook, which may have added something, as each character’s voice really stands out in this performance. I see a lot of other people had trouble with the narrative distance, which may have struck me differently if I was reading text.

dcunitz's review against another edition

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4.0

"It was a bother to be stopped on the road in a Free State when the lost property turned out to have a silver tongue. Get them off the plantation and they learned to read, it was a disease."

rerudis's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

peyton_mae's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark reflective sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

really solid book! just not my favorite ever

claudia_fitall's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

ryszardovi's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

meekoh's review against another edition

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3.0

3.5★

evert_homan's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

ritaralha's review against another edition

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4.0

A Estrada Subterrânea de Colson Whitehead explora a desumanização, a violência e a brutalidade da escravatura, retratando as realidades cruéis que os escravizados enfrentavam. Mergulha fundo no peso psicológico e físico da escravatura da Cora e das outras personagens, mostrando a resiliência e a força que era preciso ter para buscar a liberdade mesmo com todas as adversidades.

(…) ela só é um ser humano durante um breve momento da eternidade da sua servidão.

Ao contar a história de Cora, o romance também aprofunda temas como raça, identidade e a busca pela liberdade. Ele confronta o legado da escravidão e seu impacto duradouro na sociedade americana, desafiando os leitores a refletirem sobre o racismo sistêmico que perdura.

(…) à medida que os anos iam passando, a violência racial ia assumindo uma expressão cada vez mais viciosa. Não iria amainar nem desaparecer, nos tempos mais próximos, e muito menos no Sul



Imagem retirada de National Geographic

Underground Railroad foi a rede utilizada pelos afro-americanos escravizados para obterem a sua liberdade nos 30 anos anteriores à Guerra Civil (1860-1865). A Estrada Subterrânea utilizava muitas rotas a partir dos estados do Sul, que apoiavam a escravidão, até aos estados "livres" no Norte e Canadá.
As rotas eram organizadas por abolicionistas. A terminologia utilizada era a dos caminhos-de-ferro. Os que rumavam aos estados do sul à procura de escravizados em busca da liberdade eram chamados “pilots”, os que guiavam os escravos para a liberdade eram os “conductors”, os escravos os “passengers” e os locais seguros eram “stations”.
As estações eram adicionadas ou removidas da Estrada Subterrânea à medida que a propriedade da casa mudava. Se um novo proprietário apoiasse a escravidão ou se o local fosse descoberto como uma estação, os passageiros e condutores eram obrigados a encontrar uma nova estação.
As informações relativas à Estrada Subterrânea eram sigilosas, e eram passados boca-a-boca. Não havia muitos registos desta actividade de forma a proteger os proprietários das casas e os fugitivos que precisavam de ajuda.