Reviews
Extraordinary. . . . Blight has certainly written, in the book's texture and density and narrative flow--one violent and provocative incident arriving right after another--a great American biography., A stunning achievement. Blight captures an icon in full humanity. From riveting drama in slavery and Civil War, his Douglass rises into clairvoyant genius on the blinkered centrality of race in our struggle for freedom., Absorbing and even moving . . . Mr. Blight displays his lifelong interest in Douglass on almost every page, and his own voice is active and eloquent throughout the narrative. It is a book that speaks to our own time as well as Douglass's. . . . A brilliant book., Extraordinary. . . . In Blight's pages, [Douglass's] voice again rings out loud and clear, melancholy and triumphant -- still prophesying, still agitating, still calling us to action., A consistently engrossing book that is likely to remain the definitive account of Douglass's life for many years to come., David Blight has written the definitive biography of Frederick Douglass. With extraordinary detail he illuminates the complexities of Douglass's life and career and paints a powerful portrait of one of the most important American voices of the 19th century. . . . Magisterial., The first major biography of Douglass in nearly three decades. . . . Blight isn't looking to overturn our understanding of Douglass, whose courage and achievements were unequivocal, but to complicate it -- a measure by which this ambitious and empathetic biography resoundingly succeeds.
CLASSIFICATION_METADATA
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Synopsis
**Winner of the Pulitzer Prize in History** "Extraordinary...a great American biography" ( The New Yorker ) of the most important African American of the 19th century: Frederick Douglass, the escaped slave who became the greatest orator of his day and one of the leading abolitionists and writers of the era. As a young man Frederick Douglass (1818-1895) escaped from slavery in Baltimore, Maryland. He was fortunate to have been taught to read by his slave owner mistress, and he would go on to become one of the major literary figures of his time. His very existence gave the lie to slave owners: with dignity and great intelligence he bore witness to the brutality of slavery. Initially mentored by William Lloyd Garrison, Douglass spoke widely, using his own story to condemn slavery. By the Civil War, Douglass had become the most famed and widely travelled orator in the nation. In his unique and eloquent voice, written and spoken, Douglass was a fierce critic of the United States as well as a radical patriot. After the war he sometimes argued politically with younger African Americans, but he never forsook either the Republican party or the cause of black civil and political rights. In this "cinematic and deeply engaging" ( The New York Times Book Review ) biography, David Blight has drawn on new information held in a private collection that few other historian have consulted, as well as recently discovered issues of Douglass's newspapers. "Absorbing and even moving...a brilliant book that speaks to our own time as well as Douglass's" ( The Wall Street Journal ), Blight's biography tells the fascinating story of Douglass's two marriages and his complex extended family. "David Blight has written the definitive biography of Frederick Douglass...a powerful portrait of one of the most important American voices of the nineteenth century" ( The Boston Globe ). In addition to the Pulitzer Prize, Frederick Douglass won the Bancroft, Parkman , Los Angeles Times (biography), Lincoln, Plutarch, and Christopher awards and was named one of the Best Books of 2018 by The New York Times Book Review, The Wall Street Journal, The Boston Globe, The Chicago Tribune, The San Francisco Chronicle, and Time., Winner of the 2019 Pulitzer Prize in History Winner of the Bancroft, Parkman , Los Angeles Times (biography), Lincoln, Plutarch, and Christopher Awards Named one of the Best Books of 2018 by The New York Times Book Review, The Wall Street Journal, The Boston Globe, The Chicago Tribune, The San Francisco Chronicle, and Time As a young man Frederick Douglass (1818-1895) escaped from slavery in Baltimore, Maryland. He was fortunate to have been taught to read by his slave owner mistress, and he would go on to become one of the major literary figures of his time. His very existence gave the lie to slave owners: with dignity and great intelligence he bore witness to the brutality of slavery. Initially mentored by William Lloyd Garrison, Douglass spoke widely, using his own story to condemn slavery. By the Civil War, Douglass had become the most famed and widely travelled orator in the nation. In his unique and eloquent voice, written and spoken, Douglass was a fierce critic of the United States as well as a radical patriot. After the war he sometimes argued politically with younger African Americans, but he never forsook either the Republican party or the cause of black civil and political rights. In this "cinematic and deeply engaging" ( The New York Times Book Review ) biography, David Blight has drawn on new information held in a private collection that few other historian have consulted, as well as recently discovered issues of Douglass's newspapers. "Absorbing and even moving...a brilliant book that speaks to our own time as well as Douglass's" ( The Wall Street Journal ), Blight's biography tells the fascinating story of Douglass's two marriages and his complex extended family. "David Blight has written the definitive biography of Frederick Douglass...a powerful portrait of one of the most important American voices of the nineteenth century" ( The Boston Globe )., Frederick Douglass was the most important African American of the nineteenth century and one of most significant writers and orators in American history. Douglas was born a slave and escaped at the age of twenty. He was fortunate to have learned to read as a boy, and he would develop this skill forbidden to slaves to become one of the great writers of his era, in addition to becoming the most celebrated orator of the abolition movement. Over his lifetime he wrote three versions of his autobiography, all of which are classics of the slave narrative and of American memoir. This former slave met with Lincoln in the White House and rejoiced in the victory of emancipation. He saw the promise of Reconstruction dashed by the resistance of former slaveholders and their allies, and he fought this betrayal as ferociously as he had fought slavery itself. As a lecturer he likely reached more listeners than any American of his century, and he lived with a modern dilemma of fame like few others of his era. Based in part on papers never seen by previous biographers, Blight's magnificent biography is sure to be the standard life of Douglass for many years. Book jacket., **Winner of the 2019 Pulitzer Prize in History** *Winner of the Bancroft, Parkman , Los Angeles Times (biography), Lincoln, Plutarch, and Christopher Awards* Named one of the Best Books of 2018 by The New York Times Book Review, The Wall Street Journal, The Boston Globe, The Chicago Tribune, The San Francisco Chronicle, and Time "Extraordinary...a great American biography" ( The New Yorker ) of the most important African-American of the nineteenth century: Frederick Douglass, the escaped slave who became the greatest orator of his day and one of the leading abolitionists and writers of the era. As a young man Frederick Douglass (1818-1895) escaped from slavery in Baltimore, Maryland. He was fortunate to have been taught to read by his slave owner mistress, and he would go on to become one of the major literary figures of his time. His very existence gave the lie to slave owners: with dignity and great intelligence he bore witness to the brutality of slavery. Initially mentored by William Lloyd Garrison, Douglass spoke widely, using his own story to condemn slavery. By the Civil War, Douglass had become the most famed and widely travelled orator in the nation. In his unique and eloquent voice, written and spoken, Douglass was a fierce critic of the United States as well as a radical patriot. After the war he sometimes argued politically with younger African Americans, but he never forsook either the Republican party or the cause of black civil and political rights. In this "cinematic and deeply engaging" ( The New York Times Book Review ) biography, David Blight has drawn on new information held in a private collection that few other historian have consulted, as well as recently discovered issues of Douglass's newspapers. "Absorbing and even moving...a brilliant book that speaks to our own time as well as Douglass's" ( The Wall Street Journal ), Blight's biography tells the fascinating story of Douglass's two marriages and his complex extended family. "David Blight has written the definitive biography of Frederick Douglass...a powerful portrait of one of the most important American voices of the nineteenth century" ( The Boston Globe ).
