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Bound for Canaan

The Epic Story of the Underground Railroad, America's First Civil Rights Movement,

ebook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available

“Well written, moving . . . stimulating,” this account of racially unified abolitionism “could provide the occasion for a constructive national conversation” (New York Times).
 
The civil war brought to a climax the country's bitter division. But the beginnings of slavery's denouement can be traced to a courageous band of ordinary Americans, black and white, slave and free, who joined forces to create what would come to be known as the Underground Railroad, a movement that occupies a romantic a place in the nation's imagination. The true story of the Underground Railroad is much more morally complex and politically divisive than even the myths suggest. Against a backdrop of the country's westward expansion arose a fierce clash of values that was nothing less than a war for the country's soul. Not since the American Revolution had the country engaged in an act of such vast and profound civil disobedience that not only challenged prevailing mores but also subverted federal law.
 
Bound for Canaan tells the stories of men and women who risked their lives to build the Underground Railroad. Interweaving thrilling personal stories with the politics of slavery and abolition, Bound for Canaan shows how the Underground Railroad gave birth to this country's first racially integrated, religiously inspired movement for social change.
 
“Utterly compelling.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review
 
“[An] engrossing account.” —The New Yorker
 
“Blending historical imagination with a novelist's sense of character, Bordewich...brings to life . . . Americans who defied popular opinion and the authority of the federal government to combat . . . a fundamental moral evil.” —Washington Post
 
“Excellent . . . as close to a definitive history as we’re likely to see.” —Wall Street Journal
 
“A profoundly American tale.” —USA Today

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  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      Starred review from January 31, 2005
      Though the Underground Railroad is one of the touchstones of American collective memory, there's been no comprehensive, accessible history of the secret movement that delivered more than 100,000 runaway slaves to freedom in the Northern states and Canada. Journalist Bordewich (Killing the White Man's Indian
      ) fills this gap with a clear, utterly compelling survey of the Railroad from its earliest days in Revolution-era America through the Civil War and the extension of the vote to African Americans in 1870. Using an impressive array of archival and contemporary sources (letters, autobiographies, tax records and slave narratives, as well as new scholarship), Bordewich reveals the Railroad to be much more complicated—and much more remarkable—than is usually understood. As a progressive movement that integrated people across races and was underwritten by secular political theories but carried out by fervently religious citizens in the midst of a national spiritual awakening, the clandestine network was among the most fascinatingly diverse groups ever to unite behind a common American cause. What makes Bordewich's work transcend the confines of detached social history is his emphasis on the real lives and stories of the Railroad's participants. Religious extremists, left-wing radicals and virulent racists all emerge as fully realized characters, flawed but determined people doing what they believed was right, and every chapter has at least one moment—a detail, a vignette, a description—that will transport readers to the world Bordewich describes. The men and women of this remarkable account will remain with readers for a long time to come. Illus. not seen by PW
      . Agent, Elyse Cheney
      . (Apr.)

      Forecast:
      A marketing push that includes a six-city tour and praise from Cornel West, James McPherson and David Levering Lewis should help put the spotlight on this deserving book.

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Languages

  • English

Levels

  • ATOS Level:10.3
  • Interest Level:9-12(UG)
  • Text Difficulty:9

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