Description: With stunning historical detail, Wilkerson tells the story of the decades-long migration of black citizens who fled the South for northern and western cities, from 1915 to 1970, through the lives of three unique individuals.
Review Quotes: "A landmark piece of nonfiction . . . [Isabel Wilkerson's] closeness with, and profound affection for, her subjects reflect her deep immersion in their stories and allow the reader to share that connection."--Janet Maslin, The New York Times
"A brilliant and stirring epic, the first book to cover the full half-century of the Great Migration . . . Wilkerson combines impressive research . . . with great narrative and literary power. Ms. Wilkerson does for the Great Migration what John Steinbeck did for the Okies in his fiction masterpiece, The Grapes of Wrath; she humanizes history, giving it emotional and psychological depth."--John Stauffer, The Wall Street Journal "[A] massive and masterly account of the Great Migration . . . a narrative epic rigorous enough to impress all but the crankiest of scholars, yet so immensely readable as to land the author a future place on Oprah's couch."--David Oshinsky, The New York Times Book Review "[A] deeply affecting, finely crafted and heroic book . . . This is narrative nonfiction, lyrical and tragic and fatalist. The story exposes; the story moves; the story ends. What Wilkerson urges, finally, isn't argument at all; it's compassion. Hush, and listen."--Jill Lepore, The New Yorker "Told in a voice that echoes the magic cadences of Toni Morrison or the folk wisdom of Zora Neale Hurston's collected oral histories, Wilkerson's book pulls not just the expanse of the migration into focus but its overall impact on politics, literature, music, sports--in the nation and the world."--Lynell George, Los Angeles Times"[An] extraordinary and evocative work."--The Washington Post "Mesmerizing."--Chicago Tribune "Scholarly but very readable, this book, for all its rigor, is so absorbing, it should come with a caveat: Pick it up only when you can lose yourself entirely."--O: The Oprah Magazine "[An] indelible and compulsively readable portrait of race, class, and politics in twentieth-century America. History is rarely distilled so finely."--Entertainment Weekly "Astonishing . . . Isabel Wilkerson delivers! . . . With the precision of a surgeon, Wilkerson illuminates the stories of bold, faceless African-Americans who transformed cities and industries with their hard work and determination to provide their children with better lives."--Essence "Profound, necessary and an absolute delight to read."--Toni Morrison "A sweeping and yet deeply personal tale of America's hidden twenteith-century history. This is an epic for all Americans who want to understand the making of our modern nation."--Tom Brokaw "A seminal work of narrative nonfiction . . . You will never forget these people."--Gay Talese "This book will be long remembered, and savored."--Jon Meacham "A masterful narrative of the rich wisdom and deep courage of a great people. Don't miss it!"--Cornel West