Book: The Underground Railroad
Author: Colton Whitehead
Publication Date: 2016
Pages: 313
Completion Date: 4/4/25
This fictional novel starts by discussing Ajarry, a black woman captured in Africa and transported to Georgia as a slave. It was in Georgia that she had her daughter Mabel. There is not much told about Mabel except that she grew up on the Randall plantation, she is the mother of Cora and that she ran away when Cora was ten years old, never to be heard from again. Cora grew up from there on her own with an endearing spirit and stubborn resolve. When she was about 23, she was approached at a Sunday birthday party by Caesar, a field slave indicating that he was going to run away and wanted her to come with him. She declined, but agreed to several weeks later after a brutal whipping.
When they were running away, they were spotted by another young female slave (Lovey) who saw them going and she tagged along. On the third day, they were found by three white men. During the fight, Lovey was carried away and one young man was killed by Cora. They found their way to the Fletcher Farm, the first stop on the Underground Railroad (UG), which was 28 miles from the Randall plantation. Here the story starts to divert from actual reality because each transport on the UG is an actual underground rail tunnel with room for a miniature locomotive and attached car that the slaves ride to their next stop. From the Fletcher farm, they go to a town in South Carolina. This is a model black society supported financially from money up north and the free and escaped slaves are taught in classes, work in factories and taught a trade. During her time there, she is hunted by a professional slavecatcher, Ridgeway, who also hunted her mom to no avail. After about three months there, Ridgeway catches up to them, catching Caesar who is ultimately killed by a lynch mob. Cora hides in the cellar of a house owned by Sam (a sympathetic white man) that has an adjoining tunnel to the UG. After two days of hiding, she finds her way to the UG, flagging down a train going by in the tunnel. From there, she goes north to North Carolina where she hides in the attic of Martin & Ethel Wells for about six months. Ultimately, Ridgeway finds her, taking her to Georgia on his way through Tennessee to pick up an escaped slave in Missouri. The Wells are hung in the courtyard by a mob for violating the law prohibiting the hiding of escaped slaves. It should be stated that during these various journeys that Cora is constantly asking about information regarding her mother, who she hates for leaving her alone on the plantation.
While traveling through Tennessee, just as Cora is about to be raped by the slavecatcher’s assistant, they are rescued by a traveling group of three black men – Royal, Red and Justin. They shoot the assistant who dies, tie up the slavecatcher and his other assistant (a dwarf named Homer) runs off. They proceed via the fictional UG to the Valentine farm in Indiana, where they are staying for about six months. This large farm is worked by a large number of escaped slaves all working together. The white neighbors are becoming jealous/resistant and along with Ridgeway, attack the farm at night during a monthly meeting after the corn harvest & shucking. Many people, including Cora’s boyfriend Royal, are killed. Ridgeway is fascinated with seeing the UG, observing its sources and destinations and various feeder lines and has Cora take him to one that is nearby. In the process, she causes Ridgeway to fall down the ladder, breaking his leg and fatally harming him. She escapes by running/crawling down the tunnel for almost two full days before she finds an exit out a cave. When exiting, she sees three wagons heading to California. The third wagon is commandeered by a black man. She climbs up on the wagon to join him. This is basically the end of the story. During the epilogue, we learn that Mabel died in the swamp from a snake bite near the Randall plantation after deciding to head back to get Cora soon after her initial escape. No one ever finds her, so they always assumed she escaped to Canada.
That I learned from this book that will help increase my prospects for success after prison:
1) When going on an important adventure like escaping from slavery, it is better to go as a team. That is what Caesar saw in Cora. When I get out, I am going to need someone on my team to help me along the way. Fortunately, I have a very supportive wife, brother and children. They will make the transition relatively seamless.
2) Because this was a fictional novel, I did not really pick up much more that could help me. Still, it was an enjoyable read and I am glad to have had the opportunity to read it.
