Underground Railroad / Colson Whitehead / 306 pgs

What an amazing, wonderful book! I absolutely enjoyed it all, though of course, some of the hard stuff that Cora had to deal with was just brutal to read. Though it ended on a hopeful tone, I found the climax to be particularly hard to take, so that's why it gave it only 4 stars. However, I highly recommend the book to those who love historical fiction, and especially to those who have no problem with a bit of fantasy.

Cora, a slave, escapes with fellow slave, Caesar, to find freedom in the North, and they use the Underground Railroad, which isn't the metaphor it was in real history. In this novel, it really is a railroad that has been built under the earth, the world's first real subway system. The story is told from Cora's perspective, but also includes some perspectives of Caesar, Ridgway, and other supporting characters.