Customer Reviews

Harriet Tubman: Conductor on the Underground Railroad

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Harriet Tubman is a wonderful book that begins slow but soon you won't want each chapter to end. Ann Petry has made detail part of the story. I personally stay up reading as late as my mother will let me. I highly recommend this tale of Harriet Tubman, a woman who's courage and faith in God made a difference in the world.

Wow, a book that is worth hundreds of awards. Harriet Tubman comes alive in this book. Born as a slave in Tidewater maryland, Hariet grows to become a young woman whose first resistsance of slavery starts when a plantation overseer tries to punish a slave for trying to escape. Hariet adquires a huge gash on her forehead from a brick the overseer threw at the slave. However it missed and hit Harriet. Harriet's nickname Minta becomes Harriet which fits the woman she has become. Harriet's dream for freedom never ceases as her first attempt to espace is proven useles with the denial of her brothers. Then her second attempt to escape with her husband proves successful but without here husband who feared the overseers and plantation owners. the underground railroad which served as a passageway for slaves stopping at certain houses(stations) for food and support; helped Harriet escape to the North in Philadelphia.Along the way she meets a man named Thomas Garret, a Quaker who helps God's poor, or the slaves. In Philadelphia she meets William Still who helps here get settled in the North. From this, Harriet returns to the plantation to lead other slaves to freedom. Though her main mission was to free her relatives, she frees other slaves who were about to be sold to chain gangs on other plantations. She rescued babies,men,women, and children. In the end she rescued a total of over 300 fugitive slves with the help of William Still, Thomas Garret,Gerrit Smith, along with the friendly families of the undergroung railroad. Through this accomplishment she became known as Moses. In 1861-1865 during the civil war, she contributed invaluable service as a scout, spy and nurse at a fugitive slave hospital. When the slaves were freed, in 1863, and the war was over, in 1865, Harriet turned her efforts to women's sufferage, giving speeches, and becoming involved in raising money for schools. Still, Harriet would send vegetabels to different houses for work and people invited her to come in and tell them stories of her life. She would tell them about the life on the Railroad, John Brown, and General Montgomery in the civil war who commanded the Black Regiment. Two books were published about her life written by Ms. bradford but told by Harriet Tubman. When she finished with her stories, Harriet would always say she never ran her train off the track and she never lost a passenger. Harriet died on March 10, 1913 in Auburn N.Y. Her tombstone is erected with her quote at the end of her stories. I appreciate this book greatly because it brought me even closer to my heritage. It taught me the true power of a person who didn't give up even though those around her doubted it. People talk about heroes and Harriet Tubman is definetly on that list of heroes and should be first. I deeply honor and respect Harriet Tubman along with the other slaves and leaders who fought for the advancement of African Americans. Freedom and happiness is a God-given right that no man can ever take away, this is God's Law not human law. I hope hat one day I can do great things for poeple like Harriet Tubman.

The southern United States, in the 1800's was a land of the tobacco and cotton industry, and a land of slaves. Born in 1821, Harriet Tubman was born a slave in Maryland, and then she never thought that she would be the most famous conductor on the Underground Railroad. Early as a child, Harriet, or Minta, as she was called, was often sold from person to person, after getting a blow to the head from her master, because she wouldn't help capture an escaped slave. In her later years, she escaped to the north and became a free person. Then, after she beomes free, she helps the slaves that she knows from her old home escape through the hidden passes thus becoming a conductor for the Underground Railroad. All was well until a new law is passed: The Fugitive Slave Law, a law in which any runaway slave in the free states can be brought back to their original masters. Because of this, Harriet Tubman starts to take her runaway passengers to St. Catherines, Canada, where all former slaves would be free from the Fugitive Slave Law. Soon, after taking large numbers of slaves to Canada, Harriet makes a huge decision to take her parents along with her on her next journey. After a hard, back-breaking journey, they finally make it to St. Catherines. However, after transporting close to 300 runaway slaves on the Underground Railroad, Harriet Tubman ended her journey and started a new one serving as a spy and a nurse. Before and after dying in 1913, Harriet Tubman was recognized as a great person and as a "Moses" to many of the escaped slaves that she rescued. Harriet Tubman: Conductor on the Underground Railroad, by Ann Petry, is a great biography that has suspense, adventure, and tells a great and accurate version of Harriet Tubman and her life.

Harriet Tubman: Conductor on the Underground Railroad, is an excellent historical biography, full of suspense as to what will happen to the slaves. One good example of this is when Tubman is facing her master, ordering her to catch an escaped slave, and waiting to see what will happen should she not do so. Also, when Harriet tries to rescue her parents, Old Rit and Old Ben, you can't wait to find out what becomes of them. While stealing a horse and wagon to help her parents, Harriet comes face to face with the keeper of the horse stable. The reader will wonder what will happen next. Will she escape or will the keeper catch her?

This book also had a great portion of adventure. When Harriet had started out on her journey, she wandered out into a land that she had never saw before. She never knew what lied beyond a few miles or so. She ventured out and was always on guard of being caught by the slave patrols. The hardest part of Tubman's journeys and escapes was convincing her parents to flee, but eventually they are convinced and Tubman takes them as far as Canada.

Harriet Tubman: Conductor on the Underground Railroad, by Ann Petry, does a good job in accurately describing and presenting the right dialogue for Harriet Tubman. Petry described Tubman as she is known from history, a short, muscular woman who had the strenght and heart to set her people free. Being called "Moses" for setting her people free from slavery, earned her name in history. The use of dialogue from the period also served in making the book more interesting.

Harriet Tubman: Conductor on the Underground Railroad, by Ann Petry, is a great biography to read for not only the history, but for the adventure, the suspense, and the satisfaction that one person can make a difference. I rate this book a total of five stars out of five.

A. Chappell

It is very dramatic and help you understand how it was for a salve and especialy a brave slay like Harriet Tubman. Anny Petry demonstrated the book very carefully.It tells the effort and the risk that a salve had to go through to get his or her freedom .It is a very good book, I recomand it .

The book is about a girl who had an unusual life as a child. Harriet Tubman suffered a lot during her life time. She risked her life to help slaves and take them to the North. If you like adventure and a very descriptive book you should read it. You learn and experience what it was like during her time.Harriet Tubman never gave up. I especially liked how the book had historical facts at the end of each chapter to explain what was going on during her events. It was an interesting and exciting book, a page turner. You don't have to like history to read this book. You'll get hooked anyway.

I got this book for my 3rd grade daughter who is reading slightly above grade level. The stories of Tubman's life were a bit dry (not really a dramatic telling), and the historical fact segments inserted into each chapter lacked context. But the general sense of the scope of her work on the railroad, her personal commitment, and the additional things she did in her life were generally well communicated. Readers certainly come away with a greater appreciation for Tubman's contribution despite numerous personal challenges.

I love civil war history and this book will become one of my favorite on the subject. I thought I knew about Harriet Tubman and what she did helping others escape slavery; I was wrong. I had no idea "who" she was and what she went through. I didn't know what drover her, what inspired her and what she sacrificed until I read this book.

Once when Petry was talking about Harriet and another female character in another book she said, "These women were slaves. I hoped that I had made them come alive, turned them into real people. I tried to make history speak across the centuries in the voices of people--young, old, good, evil, beautiful, ugly." Believe me she did just that. She makes Harriet come back alive and real again. It was as if I was walking the miles between underground safety houses, I felt the pain of the stone that hit her head and almost killed her, and I understood the stubborn need to not just be free but to go back again and again to help others over and over again.

Harriet Tubman was a wonderful American woman that not only helped others to be free but shaped history. I especially loved the notes at the end of each chapter telling what was happening at the same time in history, It gives just a little bit more of information and shows how special Harriet was and how it was a miracle that she was never caught.

The best part about this book is that it is very easy to read. I cant wait to get a hold of more books by Petry.

Harriet Tubman was a fascinating book. I personally like to read history novels and books about people's lives, but this is more than a history book. This book tells all about the horrifying life she had as a child; secretly learning how to read then seeing her mother get beaten for it. This is one of the most interesting books I have read so far about slaves and freeing them. What Harriet Tubman did for the huge amount of slaves was amazing and not reccognized enough until now. Harriet Tubman is a savior not only for the 300 black slaves but also for letting white people know what it was like during the time when there were slaves. Anyone who likes exciting books should really read this.

I enjoyed this book very much. Harriet Tubman is a great woman. The author of this book, Ann Lane Petry, is a wonderful writer. The life of Harriet was hard. She grew up as a slave who craved freedom. She decided that everyone should be free. Her goal was to help everyone to freedom and she acheved her goal. She has given lots of people freedom. She was the conductor of the underground railroad that was not really underground at all. This book is among the best I have ever read.

This is the best ever published biography on Minty/Harriet Ross/Tubman! I loved it! I learned so many things on Harriet. I don't want to spoil the book so that is all I will say. If you don't like the begining, KEEP READING! I hated how slow this book started! That's how slow it started. KEEP READING ALL THE TIME!