As the title suggests, Song Yet Sung is a story of what is and what is to come. Set in Maryland in the mid-Nineteenth Century, James McBride tells a gripping tale of fugitive slaves, free slaves, and of others bound by different circumstances. This is the story of Liz Spocott, who escapes from brutal captivity only to be ensnared by the vicious Patty Cannon, an infamous slave stealer. While being held in a cramped attic with a dozen other slaves, Liz is recognized as "the Dreamer," a long-awaited seer who provides glimpses into a future the slaves can hardly believe. An ancient old woman chained next to Liz introduces her to "the code," a fairly intricate and, at times, baffling set of rituals for fleeing slavery on "The Gospel Train." Liz is not interested in fleeing to the north, but nonetheless manages to find the means to free herself and the other slaves held by Patty Cannon. From here, the race is on. Liz' owner hires a seasoned slave hunter who gives Patty Cannon some competition in the quest to recapture Liz. The chase is a page turner. The reader is treated to intimate glimpses of the Chesapeakers' hard-scrabble life, regardless of their skin color. Liz encounters all range of hindrance and aid. Her chilling, beautiful visions of the future plant the seeds of freedom in America.

There is a redemptive air to this tale, as there was in McBride's memoir, the Color of Water, an homage of sorts to his white, Jewish mom. McBride is a gifted story teller, and this novel pays tribute to the likes of Harriet Tubman and the thousands of people who relentlessly marched forward to heal the sickness of slavery in America. ( )

Set on the east coast of Maryland, in the mid 1800s, Song Yet Sung's main character is Liz Spocott, a runaway slave, running away from the attentions of her sexually abusive master. When we first meet her, she's been shot, and ends up chained in an attic of a tavern belonging to Miss Patty Cannon, a notorious slave stealer who also picks up runaways and sells them to slaveowners in the south. (as an aside, Miss Patty was a real person.) Liz comes to be known as "the dreamer," because she has prophetic visions of the future. While in the attic, an older slave woman tells her bits and pieces of "the code," an intricate set of signals and words by which slaves can communicate and which also may offer the way to freedom. Eventually, all of the captives break away from the attic, and Patty Cannon decides to go after them to recoup her monetary losses. But there's also another person who is hired by Liz's owner to track her down, so the stakes become higher for Liz and for the slaves that help her after her escape. It is only while she is on the run that she begins to understand the code, and she realizes, with the help of her dreams (visions of what freedom - or the lack of it - means in the future for slavery's descendants) that it is not yet complete.

What really sticks out in this novel is the notion that no one even remotely connected with slavery was free. For example, Denwood, the white slave tracker hired by Liz's owner has his own reasons for doing what he does; Miss Kathleen, the owner of slaves that help Liz is tied to her land and wholly dependent on her slaves after the death of her husband; even the villainous Miss Patty is dependent on slavery to make her living.

Overall, this was a fine novel, one that I can definitely recommend. ( )

Liz Spocott escapes from the grips of Patty Cannon, a fbrutal fugitive slave trader. She and thirteen other slaves escape, though many are caught or killed. Liz is called "the dreamer" because of her visions of the future.
She is hidden in Maryland, in the Chesapeake Bay area, when she is helped by Amber, a slave on a nearby homestead. She is on the "gospel trail" Underground Railroad, when she decides to turn back because of her visions. ( )

Since I read Kindred earlier this year I was drawn to this book because I wanted a bit more of the sci-fi. This story is about a runaway slave named Liz who dreams the future. The dreams are about people and about events. Even though Liz doesn't want to be saved (she refuses to get on the underground railroad, and maintains that she is free right where she is) we learn that she does have a purpose, a purpose that is connected to her dreams and the dreams of the singer of the song yet sung.

Liz, a beautiful slave in pre-civil war eastern shore Maryland,
who is haunted by dreams of the future. She meets Amber, a handsome, young, male slave, who is inspired by her dreams.

There is a wonderful, vivid sense of place and history in this bittersweet novel with all of the sounds and visual language -- from the evil slave traders who prowl the marshes to the special code pounded on the freedman blacksmith's anvil to warn others of impending trouble.