Tough-O-Meter

We've got your back. With the Tough-O-Meter, you'll know whether to bring extra layers or Swiss army knives as you summit the literary mountain. (10 = Toughest)

(4) Base Camp

Tough-o-Meter gives Douglass's narrative a 4. Douglass tries his best to keep his book easy reading, but he sometimes has a tendency to get a little long-winded and preachy, and he often uses language from the Bible in a way that can be a little disorienting if you're not used to it. Plus, the book is over a century and a half old, and it sometimes sounds like it. Still, there's nothing too difficult here, and the narrative moves along quickly enough to keep you from getting stuck in any one particular section.