Colson Whitehead: author’s slavery novel speaks to contemporary America

It was a network of safe houses that helped slaves in America escape the brutality of the south, but in the author Colson Whitehead’s latest novel, the underground railroad takes on physical form: a steam train delivering runaways through secret tunnels to the safety of the north. His magical realist take on one girl’s struggle for freedom has won him a plethora of awards and accolades, not least from Barack Obama.