Flight to Canada
by Ishmael Reed

Atheneum (New York): 1976. Trade paperback: x, 181 pages. ISBN-10: 0-68484-750-7 ISBN-13: 987-0684847504 Suggested retail price: $11.00 (US) Tags: Mainstream; war Tactical strength: [6/10]

---

Reed conflates our present on the Civil War era, especially the elements surrounding Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin. Reed questions the modern myths of freedom for all men -- implying that the civil rights movement is far from finished. He seems to point out that people are the same today as they were in previous eras. In spite of new technologies, we still tolerate slavery and oppression.

Reed's writing is good, but he relies on the reader to catch on -- saying he starts in medias res is an understatement. He provides little background information and leaves the reader to research the many references to the history of the Civil War without any explanation.