Where to buy a kindle

(This is a review of the print edition, not the e-book version. I cannot comment on the electronic formatting of this edition.)

A few coworkers and I started an informal book discussion group, where we’d read a couple chapters then meet over breakfast or lunch to discuss. None of us had ever been in a discussion group before. We had a quite diverse set of viewpoints and backgrounds among us, and were looking for something that would be enjoyable to read, but also provide material for discussion and debate.

After a lot of searching and voting, we settled on Uncle Tom’s Cabin as our first book. It ended up filling the bill perfectly.

Knowing that it’s taught in many schools, I expected a heavy literary “masterpiece” full of symbolism and arcane references. Instead I found it to be a fast-moving, easy to read page turner, and almost all of us in the club tended to read far ahead of the “assignments” for our meetings because we couldn’t put it down. Yet it also prompted some great discussion about morality, social and personal responsibility, identity, religion, etc. Mrs. Stowe does not simply convey that “slavery is bad.” She explores the ways in which all Americans were complicit in the institution by “turning the other cheek;” by claiming not to approve yet investing financially in companies that relied on slavery for profit; simply by not speaking out against it or supporting those who did. Again, great topics for group discussion.

As a group we’ve read a half dozen other books since Uncle Tom’s Cabin, but none have provided the same combination of simple enjoyment and fodder for good discussion.

Uncle Tom’s Cabin is one of those books that I had always heard about since I was a child but had never read. I finally read it in my 60’s and am glad that I did. It was not only interesting from an historical perspective but also from a Christian perspective. You can see by what the author says at the end of the book that it was written primarily to the Christian Church to inspire them to do something about the deplorable condition of slavery in the United States. I checked to see if there was a movie made from the book but found out that there was only one silent one from the 1920’s. I can understand why this is the case because of the heavy emphasis on Christianity. As a born again reformed believer I would highly recommend this book but would also understand if not everyone enjoyed it because of the religious emphasis.

After hearing about this book for decades, finally read it on Kindle. The book is WAY more than I expected, and would suggest that it be recommened reading. It is an eye opener.