Synopsis
Presents a dual biography of Thomas Garrett, a white Quaker living in the slave state of Delaware, and William Still, a free black man living in Philadelphia, who worked together as friends on the Underground Railroad to help bring slaves north where they could then be free.
Reviews
Grade 5-9. A history of the Underground Railroad as seen through the writings of two conductors. Thomas Garrett was a Quaker storekeeper in Wilmington who led fugitives from slave-holding Delaware to the free state of Pennsylvania. He was a generous, peace-loving man, genuinely concerned about his "passengers." In Philadelphia, fleeing slaves were offered brief sanctuary by William Still, a free black. He was a clerk at the Anti-Slavery Society, and himself the son of a fugitive slave. Ironically, in the course of helping one fugitive find his family, he discovered his own long-lost brother. The two men maintained a steady correspondence, and although Still's letters were destroyed, many of Garrett's letters are quoted here. Still also kept careful records of those he helped, and his accounts are some of the few firsthand records available about the Underground Railroad. Notes cite the origins of the stories told, making this a good source of information for report writers. Black-and-white reproductions appear throughout. The writings of these two men help bring this part of history alive for readers.?Elizabeth M. Reardon, McCallie School, Chattanooga, TN
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
In a work given the expanded subtitle ``Collaborators on the Underground Railroad,'' Bentley (Harriet Tubman, 1990, etc.) offers details of the eastern line of that route through the correspondence between a white man and Quaker, Thomas Garrett, of Wilmington, and a free black man, William Still, of Philadelphia. Together they helped thousands of runaways to freedom, and fought for the abolition of slavery. Also included is information about some of the slaves as well as the political and social context for Garrett and Still's activities. They are crucial figures in the history of the Underground Railroad, but readers may not gain an appreciation for these men from this disjointed, confusing narrative. There are regular shifts in time, space, and focus, e.g., a negotiation regarding runaway slaves is interrupted for a flashback on Garrett's origins, his revelation as to the evils of slavery, the growth of his business, his first wife and their children, and his 38 years with his second wife. The most exciting parts of the stories are often given only fleeting treatment. A book that may fill out reports and other assignments on the Underground Railroad, but won't draw readers in the way the dramatic subject matter suggests. (b&w photos, prints, index, not seen, notes) (Nonfiction. 10+) -- Copyright ©1996, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
Gr. 5^-9. The Underground Railroad didn't run on rails, of course, but, rather, on the commitment of a network of people helping escaped slaves find their way to freedom. The courageous collaboration of two of these people--Thomas Garrett, a white Quaker, and William Still, a free black--is the focus of this account of the "eastern line" of the Underground Railroad. Recognizing the historical importance of the work he and Garrett were doing, Still saved the numerous letters he received from his collaborator and later wrote his own account titled The Underground Railroad. Bentley's liberal use of quotes from both sources lends an immediacy to her book that helps counterbalance its chief flaw: a lack of context and historical perspective, which makes it difficult to judge the true magnitude of Garrett and Stills' accomplishments. Some comparison of their work with that of other conductors in concert with an overall assessment of the success of the Underground Railroad and its historical importance would have made a stronger book. Michael Cart
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