Overground Railroad: The Green Book and the Roots of Black Travel in America

Product Description The first book to explore the historical role and residual impact of the Green Book, a travel guide for black motorists Published from 1936 to 1966, the Green Book was hailed as the “black travel guide to America.” At that time, it was very dangerous and difficult for African-Americans to travel because black travelers couldn’t eat, sleep, or buy gas at most white-owned businesses. The Green Book listed hotels, restaurants, gas stations, and other businesses that were safe for black travelers. It was a resourceful and innovative solution to a horrific problem. It took courage to be listed in the Green Book, and Overground Railroad celebrates the stories of those who put their names in the book and stood up against segregation. It shows the history of the Green Book, how we arrived at our present historical moment, and how far we still have to go when it comes to race relations in America. Review "Candacy Taylor not only examines the history of the Green Book, but also dives into what its impact means for Black individuals and families today." - Bustle-- "Bustle" "...a fascinating history of black travel.. telling the sweeping story of black travel within Jim Crow America across four decades."-- "The New York Times Book Review" "...her book is a moving and needed history. The overt white nationalism of our era highlights the covert racism that never went away."-- "Bookforum" "A fascinating look at a groundbreaking guide."-- "The New York Post" "An enriching look at African American history through the lens of the black motorist, and as one of the few books on the subject, this is essential for most collections."-- "Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW" "In offering tangible actions readers can take, Taylor has created a valuable document that, like The Green Book itself, serves as a bittersweet handbook of resilience in the face of injustice."-- "Chapter16.org" "In scope and tone, "Overground Railroad" recalls Isabel Wilkerson's "The Warmth of Other Suns...At its center, the book is a nuanced commentary of how black bodies have been monitored, censured or violated, and it compellingly pulls readers into the current news cycle."-- "The Los Angeles Times" "Overground Railroad is an eye-opening, deeply moving social history of American segregation and black migration during the middle years of the 20th century."-- "BookPage, STARRED review" "Overground Railroad reorients the narrative of allure surrounding Route 66 in order to account for the grim reality of the violence that black people faced on that old American road." -- "The Atlantic" "Taylor, previously a Harvard fellow, gives the topic the context and meticulous research it deserves, while keeping an eye on current race relations."-- "National Geographic" "The overarching story of the Green Book reminds us that individual acts of bravery contributed immeasurably to standing up to segregation."-- "The Daily Beast" "The strength of this book about a book lies in the street-level views through which the American road unspools in all its compromised glory."-- "The Economist" "Overground Railroad is an extraordinary reckoning with the America that whites have always believed existed, and with the America that blacks actually experienced, navigated, and made theirs despite every barrier."--Heather Ann Thompson "Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Blood in the Water: The Attica Prison Uprising of 1971 and Its Lega" "Candacy Taylor's cleverly titled, heroically researched Green Book travelogue should be indispensable reading. The Underground Railroad carried tens of thousands of slaves to freedom. Taylor's Overground Railroad transports their twentieth-century descendants to the Jim Crow reality of a hypocritical country. Her stunning book compels us to wonder where the ride is taking all of us now."--David Levering Lewis "author of two Pulitzer Prize-winning biographies of W. E. B. Du Bois" "If 'making a way out of no way' is a theme that runs through