More than any book I've read, Overground Railroad made me understand the endless, malicious obstacles put in the way of basic living, solely because of skin color. Most importantly, this book is a smart and deeply affecting look at black people's long and agonizing struggle to get basic respect and justice. Taylor is adept at using the past as a context to understand race in America today and what we can do to fight for equal treatment.

It's also personal for her, inspired by her stepfather Ron, a decorated Vietnam marine whose stories amazed her and moved her to travel across the country while searching for Green Book businesses and photographing them herself. She's created an impressive history of the African American economic progress which grew from having and working with automobiles, and from the increasing mobility and business opportunities they afforded. Taylor’s details about the development and use of the book are fascinating, but her work entails so much more. In its later days, it also became a voice for demanding civil rights. It allowed them a degree of the safety and support they needed to enjoy travel despite the constant potential for being targeted with racial hatred and violence. The Green Book, published from 1936 to 1967, was a guide for black travelers, showing businesses that welcomed African Americans. Taylor has done America a great service by documenting the history of The Green Book and what remains today of the locations it listed.

Overground railroad the green book