Bound for the Promised Land

Harriet Tubman, Portrait of an American Hero

By: Kate Clifford Larson

Narrated by: Pam Ward

Harriet Tubman is one of the giants of American history - a fearless visionary who led scores of her fellow slaves to freedom and battled courageously behind enemy lines during the Civil War. And yet in the century since her death, next to nothing has been written about this extraordinary woman aside from juvenile biographies. The truth about Harriet Tubman has become lost inside a legend woven of racial and gender stereotypes. Now at last, in this long-overdue biography, historian Kate Clifford Larson gives Harriet Tubman the powerful, intimate, meticulously detailed life she deserves. Drawing from a trove of new documents and sources as well extensive genealogical research, Larson reveals Tubman as a complex woman - brilliant, shrewd, deeply religious, and passionate in her pursuit of freedom.

The descendant of the vibrant, matrilineal Asante people of the African Gold Coast, Tubman was born into slavery on the Eastern Shore of Maryland but refused to spend her life in bondage. While still a young woman she embarked on a perilous journey of self-liberation - and then, having won her own freedom, she returned again and again to liberate family and friends, tapping in to the Underground Railroad. Yet despite her success, her celebrity, and her close ties with Northern politicians and abolitionists, Tubman suffered crushing physical pain and emotional setbacks.

Stripping away myths and misconceptions, Larson presents stunning new details about Tubman's accomplishments, personal life, and influence, including her relationship with Frederick Douglass, her involvement with John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry, and revelations about a young woman who may have been Tubman's daughter. Here, too, are Tubman's twilight years after the war, when she worked for women's rights and in support of her fellow Blacks, and when racist politicians and suffragists marginalized her contribution. Harriet Tubman, her life, and her work remain an inspiration to all who value freedom. Now, thanks to Larson's breathtaking biography, we can finally appreciate Tubman as a complete human being - an American hero, yes, but also a woman who loved, suffered, and sacrificed. Bound for the Promised Land is a magnificent work of biography, history, and truth telling.

©2015 Kate Clifford Larson (P)2015 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

hard to follow

book was good, I learned a lot, but as it progressed it got very hard to follow.

Enjoyable Book, Worthy Subject for Sure

The book was not bad for a narrative on a person that loved over a hundred years ago. Of course I wanted to know more but I don't know how much more there is we can learn. Most assuredly, I chose this biography over the other because it was included in my membership as the other had better reviews. Some of the reviews for this book were puzzling because they objected to the word 'slave' and the term 'hired out.' I don't understand how you can listen to a narrative about someone who was enslaved if your sensibilities are so easily offended. The narrator, in my opinion, did a very good job. Her accent changed when she read quotes directly from Harriet which was amusing and sometimes comical but I didn't have a problem with it. I wanted more 'meat' to the story, this is why I gave it a 4 star rating. If it helps you to know this: I am a black woman and I enjoyed the book. We're not going to figure out how we got to where we are now without going through some of the discomfort of looking at our past, folks! Best wishes!

A Great Story Well Told

Great story well told. Starts a little slow with a best effort of a genealogy and an explanation of the difficulty putting this bio together and the failures of past bios. But once into her life, it's great.

Thorough and long overdue

An excellent biography of a towering figure in African American history. Well researched, well written and well read!

My opportunity to read/listen to this book is timely especially since critical race theory has surfaced now highly discussed).

The author provides a platform to assist the reader in maintaining objectivity as we read about other historical topics (both about Harriet Tubman , other historical figures and events.
. I can also now read other stories about Mrs. Harriet Tubman and better form my opinion about who she was and what she contributed to the United States of America and her contributions as a role model for people whose lives she touched.

Think you know Harriet Tubman's story?

Think again - or better yet, listen to this amazing book. Her exploits with the Underground Railroad are astonishing enough, but it is only a fraction of the work of this extraordinary woman. Her story is made all the more remarkable by the fact that, throughout her life, she suffered from the effects of a brain injury that would have incapacitated most people. She is truly an American hero and is finally treated like one here.

Outstanding Book

I’m very glad that I purchased the book from and I highly recommend this book for any one interested in the history of America and black history

awesome story about a real hero very beautiful wom

i really enjoyed this great history! always forgive never forget! just found audible really digging it

Excellent biography on an exceptional woman

I've listed to a few accounts of Harriet Tubman. The sad fact is most only know her work as a conductor of the Underground railroad. That is but a bump of her faith filled, dangerous extremely generous life. Very enlightening

A solid bio of a fascinating figure.

A solid biography of a fascinating figure that goes beyond elementary-school level mythmaking.

One of the only Tubman biographies aimed at adults (as opposed to most that are aimed at elementary school students), Larson's biography marshals an impressive array of primary sources and scholarship to present a life that deserves more than children's books. While Tubman's life is fascinating and she is deservedly known primarily for her contributions to the Underground Railroad, her struggles as a slave, confidante of John Brown, Union scout (including leading a raid in South Carolina), spy, and nurse all make for fascinating reading.

Larson describes Tubman's life story as "malleable" insofar as different groups used or mythologized her for different purposes. Obviously, abolitionists found value in her story but later in life, Tubman's story found purchase among elements of the suffragist movement in their quest for voting rights for women (I say "elements" because there was a definite split among female suffragists with a sizable number seeking to exclude blacks from their efforts).

The one real critique is that Tubman's post-war life feels condensed. She lived until 1913 but those 50 years take up a comparatively smallish portion of the book. It's a minor criticism and insofar as Tubman's post-war life was primarily just that of a woman trying to make her way with all the obstacles (minor and major) that people face rather than momentous events, it's weirdly appropriate, but still unfortunate.

Overall, "Bound for the Promised Land" is an outstanding biography that paints a far more complete picture than the children's coloring books that dominate the shelves.