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The Trials of a Scold: The Incredible True Story of Writer Anne Royall
"A role model for those of us living in the age of Trump"--Dorothy Allison
Longlisted for the PEN/Jacqueline Bograd Weld Award for Biography
Anne Royall was an American original, a stranger to fear who defied 19th century skeptics as a prolific literary force, satirist and social critic.
Drawing from Royall's largely overlooked literary works, Jeff Biggers's Trials of a Scold is a groundbreaking and passionate biography of Anne Royall, America's first female muckraker, who was convicted as a "common scold" in 1829 in one of the most bizarre trials in the nation's history.
Publishing her first book in 1826 at the age of 57, Royall reinvented herself as a "women politico" a generation before the Women's Suffrage Movement. She was a pioneering travel writer and satirist who broke ground on the wagon trails a generation before Mark Twain, and an investigative journalist who took on bankers and prison conditions a half century before muckrakers Ida Tarbell and Nellie Bly. She was the author of 10 original books, and publisher of a newspaper in Washington, DC for 25 years until the age of 85.
One of the most famous, sharp-witted and controversial women of her times, Royall was raised in the backwoods of the South but educated herself in one of the great libraries in the region. She openly cohabitated with her husband prior to their wedding, but was then left widowed and destitute after her husband's family declared their marriage invalid. Turning to writing, Royall acquired fame and then enemies for her scathing and hilarious denouncements of corruption, incompetence and the blurry lines between church and state.
Longlisted for the PEN/Jacqueline Bograd Weld Award for Biography
Anne Royall was an American original, a stranger to fear who defied 19th century skeptics as a prolific literary force, satirist and social critic.
Drawing from Royall's largely overlooked literary works, Jeff Biggers's Trials of a Scold is a groundbreaking and passionate biography of Anne Royall, America's first female muckraker, who was convicted as a "common scold" in 1829 in one of the most bizarre trials in the nation's history.
Publishing her first book in 1826 at the age of 57, Royall reinvented herself as a "women politico" a generation before the Women's Suffrage Movement. She was a pioneering travel writer and satirist who broke ground on the wagon trails a generation before Mark Twain, and an investigative journalist who took on bankers and prison conditions a half century before muckrakers Ida Tarbell and Nellie Bly. She was the author of 10 original books, and publisher of a newspaper in Washington, DC for 25 years until the age of 85.
One of the most famous, sharp-witted and controversial women of her times, Royall was raised in the backwoods of the South but educated herself in one of the great libraries in the region. She openly cohabitated with her husband prior to their wedding, but was then left widowed and destitute after her husband's family declared their marriage invalid. Turning to writing, Royall acquired fame and then enemies for her scathing and hilarious denouncements of corruption, incompetence and the blurry lines between church and state.
272 pages, Hardcover
First published November 7, 2017
8 people are currently reading
210 people want to read
About the author
Jeff Biggers
14 books48 followersJeff Biggers is a cultural historian, journalist, playwright and novelist. He is the coauthor of the novel DISTURBING THE BONES with filmmaker Andrew Davis, and author of numerous nonfiction works, including IN SARDINIA: An Unexpected Journey in Italy (Melville House), TRIALS OF A SCOLD (St. Martin's), longlisted for the PEN Bograd Weld Award. Recipient of the David Brower Award for Environmental Reporting, Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Award, Biggers has worked as a freelance journalist, radio correspondent, playwright, historian and educator across the US, Europe, Mexico and India. His stories have appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, The Guardian, The Atlantic, Al Jazeera America, Salon, The Nation and on National Public Radio and Public Radio International. He blogs regularly for the Huffington Post. Contributing editor at Bloomsbury Review.
His nonfiction works include State Out of the Union, selected by Publishers Weekly as a Top Ten Social Science Book in 2012; Reckoning at Eagle Creek, recipient of the Delta Award for Literature and the David Brower Award for Environmental Reporting; In the Sierra Madre, winner of the Foreword Magazine Travel Book of the Year Award; and The United States of Appalachia, praised by the Citizen Times as a "masterpiece of popular history." He also served as co-editor of No Lonesome Road: Selected Prose and Poems of Don West, which won the American Book Award, and wrote the foreword to the re-issue of Huey Perry's classic, They'll Cut Off Your Project.
Biggers founded the Climate Narrative Project, a media arts and advocacy project.
For more info: www.jeffbiggers.com
His nonfiction works include State Out of the Union, selected by Publishers Weekly as a Top Ten Social Science Book in 2012; Reckoning at Eagle Creek, recipient of the Delta Award for Literature and the David Brower Award for Environmental Reporting; In the Sierra Madre, winner of the Foreword Magazine Travel Book of the Year Award; and The United States of Appalachia, praised by the Citizen Times as a "masterpiece of popular history." He also served as co-editor of No Lonesome Road: Selected Prose and Poems of Don West, which won the American Book Award, and wrote the foreword to the re-issue of Huey Perry's classic, They'll Cut Off Your Project.
Biggers founded the Climate Narrative Project, a media arts and advocacy project.
For more info: www.jeffbiggers.com
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
March 20, 2018
An important book, although challenging to read at times, certainly not one read in one or two sittings. I finally realized this challenge may well be due to the era, and to the styles of expression, exposition & writing in which she lived: between the American Revolution and the American Civil War, which take some getting used to and sometimes almost require deciphering skills. She also provided considerable observation about the effects of the expansion movements of settlers westward across the country, in addition to her later descriptions of the political, social & religious systems and proponents and opponents of them.
The introduction and epilogue, written in contemporary style, bookend the more dense text which includes many direct quotations and citations from various sources of the era as evidence , and provide context for the importance of Anne Royall's life, philosophy, and public actions in her era. They also evoke and provoke reflections on similarities between her era and more contemporary eras and situations, both for women and for all of society.
I rated the book 4 stars for its' importance, although it was tempting to give it less for readability. Some of that may be my own issue, given the length of time I took to read it, and the other books I read in the intervals. However, looking at the cover, I believe the author and publisher tried to recreate the style of the era within which Anne Royall lived and wrote. That is foreign country to us now.
The introduction and epilogue, written in contemporary style, bookend the more dense text which includes many direct quotations and citations from various sources of the era as evidence , and provide context for the importance of Anne Royall's life, philosophy, and public actions in her era. They also evoke and provoke reflections on similarities between her era and more contemporary eras and situations, both for women and for all of society.
I rated the book 4 stars for its' importance, although it was tempting to give it less for readability. Some of that may be my own issue, given the length of time I took to read it, and the other books I read in the intervals. However, looking at the cover, I believe the author and publisher tried to recreate the style of the era within which Anne Royall lived and wrote. That is foreign country to us now.
June 11, 2018
Had never heard of Anne Royall (1769-1854) and had no idea what a 'scold' was. In effect, Anne was our nation's first blogger or late night show satirist. Hers was a colorful life from the earliest days of this country. She had lived out west (Indiana territory), was captured by Indians, scandalously cohabited with an older Revolutionary War officer, lost everything multiple times, founded a newspaper, and knew several of our presidents personally. She is one of the few people I have ever heard of connected with both the Revolutionary War and the American Civil War. Ultimately she died in an unmarked grave.
She told it like she saw it. Unconventional and bold, she did not like how immigrants were treated, was conflicted over slavery, and did not like having men seize all the power for important national decisions. Journalist, travel writer, and muckraker extraordinaire, she did not begin her writing career until age 57 at a time when most people did not live very long lives. She called out corruption and insisted on the separation of church and state.
Her books were extraordinarily popular at a time of low literacy when people had little money to spend of luxuries such as books. Very interesting, readable book.
She told it like she saw it. Unconventional and bold, she did not like how immigrants were treated, was conflicted over slavery, and did not like having men seize all the power for important national decisions. Journalist, travel writer, and muckraker extraordinaire, she did not begin her writing career until age 57 at a time when most people did not live very long lives. She called out corruption and insisted on the separation of church and state.
Her books were extraordinarily popular at a time of low literacy when people had little money to spend of luxuries such as books. Very interesting, readable book.
April 12, 2018
While fascinating, it begins a lot like my mother would tell a story—with lots of time jumps, repeats, and a feeling that maybe she’s talking about something entirely different. Also, there were probably half a dozen times I had to stop and look a word up, which is a lot for me.
November 25, 2017
This is an excellent book introducing contemporary readers to a woman who deserves to be known and whose perspective remains relevant two centuries later. I was alerted to this book by Howard Dorre's review on the "Plodding through the Presidents" blog, to which I direct your attention. Anything positive I have to say about it has already been said there, and better.
I hate leaving critical feedback, so please note that I rate this book five stars despite what I'm about to say. The work would have benefited from providing more interpretive background information about the religious controversies of the day. Most of my graduate research was in American religion of this time period, especially in Appalachia and the Western Reserve. (I gave an unrequited high-five to nobody in particular when my homie Alexander Campbell got a shout out.) Despite that, the intricacies of mission versus anti-mission movements confused me, and may have been indecipherable to folks who haven't studied the denominational scene of the day.
I hate leaving critical feedback, so please note that I rate this book five stars despite what I'm about to say. The work would have benefited from providing more interpretive background information about the religious controversies of the day. Most of my graduate research was in American religion of this time period, especially in Appalachia and the Western Reserve. (I gave an unrequited high-five to nobody in particular when my homie Alexander Campbell got a shout out.) Despite that, the intricacies of mission versus anti-mission movements confused me, and may have been indecipherable to folks who haven't studied the denominational scene of the day.
May 21, 2018
At times interesting, but very repetitive. The language differences, the social structures and the way of living between the era Anne Royall lived in and now made this book difficult to read. It was great for making me stop and look up references or to research (the ducking stool - mentioned many times - was new information to me the first time I came across it...horrible human behavior.) Overall the book could have been half it's length, and more emphasis of helping the reader of today understand the world of Annes time would have been helpful....and perhaps made it more interesting.
May 24, 2018
Very funny page-turner. I enjoyed the free-flowing style. Royall's defiance of the times is truly notable.
November 23, 2022
Before reading this book, I had never even heard the name of Anne Royall. I’m glad that I had the opportunity to change that. She was a remarkable woman, a pioneering journalist who entangled herself in the pressing issues of her day and used her considerable wit to speak truth to power from the rugged mountains of Virginia to the marble halls of Washington, DC. Despite innumerable risks to her reputation and, on more than one occasion, to her physical safety, she was a fierce defender of both the freedom of the press and the separation of church and state at a time when, much like today, those storied values were under serious attack.
The treatment she received as an outspoken women in a man’s world will also resonate with modern readers. Her trial as a common scold was an absolutely astonishing injustice, but in many ways it was only one of the many incidents of derision and danger that she faced throughout her career. She had to fight for respect and recognition and she didn’t get enough of either in life or in death.
While the narrative did seem to jump around in time a little (at least partially because Anne herself tended to write about her life out of order, revealing embarrassing or upsetting details sometimes decades after the fact), Jeff Biggers did a good job of using both Anne’s own words and the works of other contemporary writers to tell her tumultuous story. A light and easy read, this book is a great way to introduce Anne to a wider audience. We all deserve the sort of heroine who responds to attempts to silence her by defiantly founding her own newspaper and this “literary wildcat from the backwoods” definitely deserves some long overdue recognition.
The treatment she received as an outspoken women in a man’s world will also resonate with modern readers. Her trial as a common scold was an absolutely astonishing injustice, but in many ways it was only one of the many incidents of derision and danger that she faced throughout her career. She had to fight for respect and recognition and she didn’t get enough of either in life or in death.
While the narrative did seem to jump around in time a little (at least partially because Anne herself tended to write about her life out of order, revealing embarrassing or upsetting details sometimes decades after the fact), Jeff Biggers did a good job of using both Anne’s own words and the works of other contemporary writers to tell her tumultuous story. A light and easy read, this book is a great way to introduce Anne to a wider audience. We all deserve the sort of heroine who responds to attempts to silence her by defiantly founding her own newspaper and this “literary wildcat from the backwoods” definitely deserves some long overdue recognition.
March 14, 2018
A very engaging read about a woman almost lost to history. She helped set a precedent of independent news reporting as well as independent critiquing of society in the early part of the 19th century. Much of what she foretold for the middle part of the 19th century America certainly repeated and rebounded in the 20th and 21st centuries. Well worth a read!
Want to read
September 25, 2017Note: I received a digital review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.
December 6, 2017
Fascinating!
February 6, 2018
Damn! It's a good story but this book doesn't put it together very well.
March 29, 2018
***Will be picked up and finishing reading on a latter date. As of 3/29/2018 I stopped on page 110/Chapter 5.***
January 31, 2020
This was pretty interesting, although I wish it hadn't jumped around chronologically so much
July 11, 2018
According to Biggers, Anne Royall established an important tradition in American life: the journalist who takes on bigotry and oppression at great personal risk. Biggers even suggests she is something of a "gonzo journalist." I had not heard of Royall before reading Biggers's book, but her courage is certainly impressive. Royall's exposes included the hypocrisy of organized relIgion (the Second Great Awakening was going on), the outrage of poverty, the power of finance capital, the bigotry of ignorant people (a bit like H.L. Mencken a century later, but much bolder), and the oppression of women (decades before organized feminism). She championed immigrant rights and freedom of the press. She fearlessly took on all elements of the establishment--all as a middle-aged impoverished woman, and she kept at it until age 85!
However, she also exaggerated and (it's likely) invented many scenes on which she reported, engaged in self-promotion using questionable ethics, and acted aggressive toward her enemies. She was also inconsistent in opposing slavery and the violations of Native American peoples.
Stylistically speaking, Biggers's book can be obscure because its references are not always understandable to those of us in the 21st century, and he does not always fill in background that would help us understand the debates. His chronology is also muddy, making it hard sometimes to know the actors and their significance.
But this is still a history worth reading about. For instance, I did not know before that there had been a powerful anti-Masonic movement in this country. At that time, I guess, it was no longer cool to hang Quakers, whereas there weren't yet enough Catholics, Mormons, or Jews to incite opposition, and religious fanaticism needed to have some kind of target. I also didn't realize before that in the early nineteenth century, the Eighth Amendment was given scant heed.
Hanging over the whole narrative is the hatred and fear of women expressed by the religious right, expressed more openly then but still in force today. The 1820s counterpart to #MeToo consisted of testimonials from men casting aspersions on a woman's chastity.
However, she also exaggerated and (it's likely) invented many scenes on which she reported, engaged in self-promotion using questionable ethics, and acted aggressive toward her enemies. She was also inconsistent in opposing slavery and the violations of Native American peoples.
Stylistically speaking, Biggers's book can be obscure because its references are not always understandable to those of us in the 21st century, and he does not always fill in background that would help us understand the debates. His chronology is also muddy, making it hard sometimes to know the actors and their significance.
But this is still a history worth reading about. For instance, I did not know before that there had been a powerful anti-Masonic movement in this country. At that time, I guess, it was no longer cool to hang Quakers, whereas there weren't yet enough Catholics, Mormons, or Jews to incite opposition, and religious fanaticism needed to have some kind of target. I also didn't realize before that in the early nineteenth century, the Eighth Amendment was given scant heed.
Hanging over the whole narrative is the hatred and fear of women expressed by the religious right, expressed more openly then but still in force today. The 1820s counterpart to #MeToo consisted of testimonials from men casting aspersions on a woman's chastity.
April 23, 2023
Anne Royall..what an interesting woman. I find her fervor for separation of church and state and her assertion that she does not belong to either political party to be pretty similar to my views on politics.
She was witty and bold...and wouldn't shut up...my kind of lady.
She was witty and bold...and wouldn't shut up...my kind of lady.
November 15, 2018
The writing isn’t fantastic, but Anne Royall’s story (or really stories) sure is. I really enjoyed this book and the author’s desire to bring it to the world.
September 1, 2020
My first foray into non fiction (In years) was not a success lol. Timeline jumped around and rambled a lot. Very dry.
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September 16, 2024A woman who lived right after 1776 who traveled alone and was a journalist.
September 20, 2024
Such an incredible life indeed. Really enjoyed this book!
March 18, 2025
Anne Royall was a fascinating woman. The book had a wonderful subject and great themes, but the writing itself was a bit haphazard and the timeline got confusing.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews