Lillian Ryan’s Reviews > The Underground Railroad > Status Update
Lillian Ryan
is on page 31 of 306
The novel begins with a slave named Cora, who lives in Georgia and works in a cotton plantation. The beginning describes the harsh treatment of slaves in plantations, including the crude actions white owners would perform on women. Cora then struggles to recall her age. Like any slave, her birthday was worth forgetting. Soon, Cora considers escaping with Caesar, a slave from Virginia, into the Underground Railroad.
— Sep 08, 2025 11:27AM
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Lillian Ryan
is finished
POINT OF VIEW: the point of view is third person limited, focusing mostly on Cora. For example, the narrator says, “Cora had heard Michael recite the Declaration of Independence … ‘created equal’ was not lost on her” (p. 6). This shows that the story is told using “she” while still sharing Cora’s thoughts and feelings. This helps readers know what Cora is thinking while still telling the story from the outside.
— Oct 06, 2025 11:09AM
Lillian Ryan
is on page 238 of 306
PROTAGONIST: The protagonist of the story is Cora, a young girl who is a slave on a Georgia plantation. She escaped the plantation with Caesar, survived a house fire, saw bloody sights, undergone many deadly encounters with white people, and lost close friends, all in hopes of freedom. This shows she is brave, resilient, and a resourceful enslaved teenager.
— Sep 29, 2025 11:29AM
Lillian Ryan
is on page 152 of 306
SETTING: The story takes place in the time of slavery in America, in the early 1800s. The most current scene takes place at a train station in North Carolina, where the past train stopped. Cora finds the train she had been waiting for was cancelled, so she and Caesar had to explore the station, looking for a train headed to a safe place.
— Sep 22, 2025 11:35AM
Lillian Ryan
is on page 90 of 306
GENRE: The genre of the story is historical fiction. I know this because it mentions historical events, such as slavery, plantations, and the Underground Railroad. However, there is no historical evidence of the characters and their journey, such as Cora and her friends' escape to freedom. This novel presents facts in history, while also creating a fictional, climactic story to keep you entertained the entire time!
— Sep 15, 2025 11:26AM
