Overground Railroad

by Lesa Cline-Ransome Narrated by Shayna Small, Dion Graham

Overview

From the award-winning author and illustrator of BEFORE SHE WAS HARRIET comes an original and moving perspective of the Great Migration, as seen through the eyes of the young girl Ruth Ellen, whose family journeys from North Carolina to New York City.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

★ "Warm portraiture and vivid writing by married collaborators Cline-Ransome and Ransome (Before She Was Harriet) mark this story of a family’s journey north during the Great Migration. . . . The journey is seen through the eyes of richly developed characters drawn with care and sympathy."—Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

★ "Ransome's watercolor-and-collage illustrations effectively capture both the historical setting and the trepidation of a family who though not enslaved, nevertheless must escape as if they were. Cotton bolls throughout the images accentuate cotton's economic dominance in the sharecropping system. A beautiful portrayal of a historic and arduous family journey northward."—Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review

★ "Ransome’s beautiful illustrations feature detailed and expressive faces and layers of bright patterned paper that add colorful accents to the muted palette. . . . An author’s note gives readers historical context, placing the story in the era of the Great Migration, inspired by just one story of the many who were, 'running from and running to at the same time.'"—School Library Journal, Starred Review 
 
★ "Cline-Ransome’s carefully cadenced ragged-right prose, suitable for reading aloud or reading alone, offers sharply observed details . . . . James Ransome’s line, watercolor, and collage scenes move fluidly from epic landscape scenes, often dotted with the deceptively beautiful cotton, to eloquent facial portraiture; the movement of the gleaming train through the landscapes is paralleled occasionally by glimpses of a young Frederick Douglass heading North on foot. There’s something about the Great Migration that brings out talent"—The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books, Starred Review
 
"A tour de force from a writer/illustrator duo that is a national treasure."— The Historical Novel Society
 

"Through handsome collage, pencil and watercolor illustrations and lyrical free verse, the family's hopeful journey to find better jobs, homes and rights shows readers a major moment in the large scope of African American history. . . . Young readers will likely be drawn in by the author's riff on a familiar phrase in the title, as well as the spare but poetic language in which Ruthie narrates her long day's journey"—Shelf Awareness

"Ruth Ellen is reading Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass on the train, and Cline-Ransome generalizes the details of Douglass’s own escape to emphasize the similarities in the two situations . . . Ransome does an admirable job of setting mood as well as establishing time and place."—The Horn Book

Kirkus Reviews

★ 2019-10-23
One family's experience of the Great Migration.

Cline-Ransome and Ransome, a husband-and-wife author-and-illustrator team, have again collaborated on an important story from African American history. Narrator Ruth Ellen, Mama, and Daddy awaken early to travel to New York without the permission or knowledge of the landowner on whose land they sharecrop. (The author's note mentions that landowners often used threats and violence to keep sharecroppers on the land and perpetually in debt.) The family boards the train with luggage, tickets, and food in a shoebox—since black folks cannot eat in the dining car and must sit in the colored section of the train. The conductor calls out the cities as they progress North. When the conductor removes the "whites only" sign near Baltimore, African Americans can sit wherever they want—though it takes some time before Ruth Ellen and her family find white riders who smile a welcome. Ruth Ellen reads Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass aloud to Mama on the train ride, a gift from her teacher that parallels her own family's journey. Ransome's watercolor-and-collage illustrations effectively capture both the historical setting and the trepidation of a family who though not enslaved, nevertheless must escape as if they were. Cotton bolls throughout the images accentuate cotton's economic dominance in the sharecropping system.

A beautiful portrayal of a historic and arduous family journey northward. (Picture book. 4-8)

Product Details

BN ID:	2940178622551
Publisher:	Live Oak Media
Publication date:	07/31/2020
Edition description:	Unabridged
Age Range:	8 - 11 Years

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