Summary
Summary
The Trials of a Scold , by American Book Award-winning author Jeff Biggers, is a well-researched and passionate biography of Anne Royall, one of America's first female muckrakers, who was convicted as a "common scold" in 1829 in one of the most bizarre trials in the nation's history.
Anne Royall was an American original, a stranger to fear, and one of the nation's most daring, impassioned, and indomitable social critics. A servant in the house of the man she would later marry, Royall read constantly and pursued an education that few women at that time had access to. When fifteen years later she was left widowed and destitute after her husband's family declared their marriage invalid, she turned to her writing, and to her political interests.
Travelling from Alabama to Washington DC to Pennsylvania, Royall was a fiercely dedicated journalist. Her tenacity earned her the first presidential interview ever granted to a woman, but she acquired enemies for her scathing denouncement of the increasingly blurry lines between church and state.
Royall's pioneering role as a chronicler, publisher, muckraker, and social commentator brought to light the timeless issues that still define the great American experience: religion and politics.
Author Notes
JEFF BIGGERS is an American Book Award-winning journalist, cultural historian and playwright. He is the author of several works of memoir and history, including Reckoning at Eagle Creek , which was the recipient of the David Brower Award for Environmental Reporting. His award-winning stories have appeared in The New York Times , Washington Post , The Atlantic , and on National Public Radio. Biggers is a regulator contributor to Al Jazeera America , Huffington Post, and Salon .
Reviews (2)
Publisher's Weekly Review
Biggers (State Out of the Union), an American Book Award-winning journalist, resurrects the astonishing life story of the pioneering muckraker Anne Royall (1769-1854). Though now little known, Royall was a groundbreaking traveler, agitator, and journalist, known for her cutting commentary on both church and state and on the blurred boundaries between the two. Biggers sets his larger-than-life subject in the context of her times, showing how her infamous trial for being a "common scold" resulted from her passion for "free thought, free speech and a free press" colliding with the surge of evangelicalism in the late 1820s. A lively and witty chronicler, Biggers covers Royall's trial as well as her upbringing in the woods of Appalachia; her marriage to a wealthy landowner and Revolutionary war veteran (they openly lived together before their nuptials); her growth as a writer; and her reinvention as a publisher after her conviction when, at age 62, she launched her own newspaper in Washington, D.C., assisted by orphans-a venture that lasted over two decades. Captivating and thoroughly researched, this work also delves into why Royall was forgotten, noting that "her place in history has not been crafted by her own prolific pen, but by the largely scolding interpretation of others." (Nov.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Booklist Review
Anne Royall was not the first woman in the United States to be tried as a common scold, but her trial was a national spectacle. Royall was a journalist who started her writing career after her husband's death left her destitute in 1812. Through extensive writing and travel, she became a critic and satirist advocating for the separation of church and state in an era of increasing influence for Evangelical Christian leaders. Her sharp wit earned her enemies among the powerful men she mocked in her columns. In 1829 she was charged with being a common scold, a term used to describe a troublesome woman who refused to be silenced. Royall became an early symbol of both First Amendment rights and women's rights. Her impact on journalism and American culture endured long after her last publication in 1854. Biggers creates a detailed portrait of this dynamic writer and provides historical context for Royall's life and adventures while maintaining a flowing narrative. Readers will appreciate the depth of his research and greatly enjoy learning Royall's fascinating story.--Chanoux, Laura Copyright 2017 Booklist