I have had The Woman They Could Not Silence on my TBR shelf for several years and I can't believe it took this long to read or listen to it. This is a nonfiction book that reads like fiction. It pulled me in right from the start and wanted to learn Elizabeth Packard's story. It takes place in the 1860s, beginning just prior to the Civil War. Elizabeth is married to a minister who is threatened by his wife's intellect, independence, and unwillingness to stifle her own thoughts. At this time in history, women had little if any rights. All is takes is a man saying his wife is insane and finding two doctors who will sign an affidavit agreeing with him. Theophilus has her committed to the Illinois State Hospital in Jacksonville, Illinois. The hospital is overseen by Dr. Andrew McFarland, who seems to be a nice man at the start, but allows the patients to be treated terribly, and manipulating the patients to his liking. Elizabeth is not the only sane woman in the hospital and she is determined, not only to be freed, but to tell the story of her and the other women inside. If they remain hospitalized, called insane, no one will listen to their concerns or stories. Elizabeth refuses to be silent and eventually gets the laws changed in Illinois.

After reading The Radium Girls and now The Woman They Could Not Silence, Kate Moore is an author I will watch for. History has shown us that many women who were in asylums in the 1800s and even 1900s were not insane. Their husbands and fathers could get them committed easily to get them out of their way for various reasons. The facts of this story were heartbreaking. Elizabeth was the mother of 6 children, one just an infant, when her husband had her committed for disagreeing with him and leaving his church to attend another. She had to be insane for doing that, didn't she? When she first arrived, she played the game until she figured out what was going on. Thinking the doctor was on her side, she told him she was writing an article, then book about the situation. That was her downfall. He moved her to a dangerous floor and the situation and treatment was abhorrent. After 3 years at the facility, she was eventually released and her fight for women, their rights and equality, is well told in this book. I had never heard of EW Packard, but everyone should know about this strong, intelligent, fearless woman. She brought some of the men who treated her and others to their knees, eventually gaining custody of her children back, having the right to own property and decide about their own money. Men had to prove that the women they tried to commit were actually insane and so on. This was done in the 1860s, but of course these commitments continued on until the mid 1900s in various states. Even today, women are often portrayed as crazy, something wrong upstairs, or delusional if they challenge men. You only have to look at some well known court cases to see this defense used by men. We've come a long way baby, but men are still trying to subjugate strong, intelligent women.

Elizabeth Packard was a wife and mother of six when she made the mistake of standing up to her husband and speaking out about her religious beliefs. It was 1860 and her husband had her admitted to an insane asylum. This book tells her story of spending three years in the asylum and her fight to be released. Elizabeth spent her life working for women's rights, and the rights of the mentally ill. Kate Moore tells her story in a way that reads like a novel. This story is incredible and had me invested in the outcome. Although Elizabeth Packard was not known to me before, I will not forget her story. Powerful!

Sometimes, when looking at the way in which women's rights are currently under attack, especially in the US, it is easy to forget how far we have come. Kate Moore's The Woman They Could Not Silence brought the enormous leaps we have made in freeing ourselves, in being seen as fully autonomous human beings, in being able to live freely, into stark relief. Thanks to Sourcebooks and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. My sincerest apologies for the delay in reviewing.

The Woman They Could Not Silence tells the story of Elizabeth Packard who was committed to an "insane asylum" (as it was called then) by her husband, when she proved to be too intellectually independent for him. Throughout the book, we get a direct insight into Elizabeth's mindset through extensive quoting of her own writings from the time. Moore shows us Elizabeth's fear, her pride, her disbelief that she could be committed when she was completely sane, her horror at how entirely non-existent she was to the law as a wife. Elizabeth fights not just to be released, but to have the laws changed to protect women like herself. Moore does a good job intertwining Elizabeth's tale with those of others, showing the reader just how few avenues women had to advocate for themselves. It is hard to believe that this is only a century and a half ago, and for that it is all the more important that stories like these are told.

At a certain point, while reading The Woman They Could Not Silence, I understood the difficult balance Moore had to pull off in her book. At times, Elizabeth appears almost naive at times, which emerges from her fervent Christianity as well as her continued high expectations of the men clearly oppressing her. This was what was getting to me, and I only realised it once Moore herself addressed it. Despite Elizabeth's clear belief in female equality, she was still a product of her time and still found herself stuck in a time period where she did not have independent rights. Moore details the relationship between Elizabeth and her doctor very well, the way she considers it a relationship of equals while she is merely some woman with issues to him. It will make you enraged and, from a 21st-centry perspective, it can be too easy to blame Elizabeth for her trust in him. It is an important part of the story, however, and the way Moore explores it, is very interesting.

This was my first time reading Kate Moore, although I had heard a lot of good things already about her book The Radium Girls. From the beginning, through her Preface, it was clear how much Moore cared about the topic of women's rights and about Elizabeth Packard's story. Her extensive research was also evident and throughout The Woman They Could Not Silence she tells a very complete story not just of Elizabeth's experiences, but also the surrounding events, such as the Civil War. The writing is very detailed, so that you can picture Elizabeth's house, the state of the asylum, and her distress. At times the writing was a little too empathic for me, but that might be my own academic background interjecting. As I mentioned above, I sometimes struggled a little with Elizabeth until I came to understand her circumstances and the sheer lack of legal avenues for women. It is one thing knowing that, but it is another thing to see it play out across Elizabeth's life. While we have made enormous advancements in the journey towards equality in front of the law, we should never forget where we started.

The Woman They Could Not Silence is a powerful and important book, which gives an insight into how powerless women were once they got married less than two centuries ago. While that may feel a long time ago, it is not. Our current freedom was hard-won and we need to make sure we defend them.

After reviewing this title it was nominated on the Texas Topaz Adult Nonfiction list and voted by members include in the 2022 list.

The way women were treated by men, usually their husbands or fathers, was astonishing. I read it when it first came out and the story has still stuck with me. .

This true account of Elizabeth Packard's commitment to an insane asylum by her husband is truly shocking.
In 1860, Elizabeth's husband committed her to the Illinois State Hospital simply because he could. He had the legal right to do so, even though Elizabeth was not insane. He was unhappy with her independent nature and her political views. When she would not stop speaking out or deferring to him, he had her committed. She secretly wrote her story while in the hospital, and was able to have it published, bringing to light the mistreatment women suffered in the asylum. This lead to the beginning of changes in the care of those with mental illness.
This book is recommended for readers of American history, women's rights and the history of treatment of mental illness in this country.

The story of Elizabeth Packard & her journey from forced institutionalization at her husband’s insistence to activist for women’s rights and protection for mental health patients.

This was at times inspiring and infuriating to listen to. Elizabeth endured numerous injustices throughout her life, but also accomplished extraordinary things. I knew that things were bad for women, and I knew things were terrible in asylums in the 19th century, but I had had no idea just how horrific things were. What Elizabeth endured, and all these other women just shocked me. I had to put this book down multiple times and step away because I was so angry at the treatment Elizabeth received even after her trial. I am so grateful to have been introduced to such an inspiring woman, and I definitely want to seek out her own writings next.

The writing was a little dense & a little dry at times, but absolutely worth the read. I immediately moved to my library app to put a hold on Radium Girls.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for this arc.

I completely forgot to review this when I read it, and that was a huge oversight. This book is fascinating and essential reading for anyone interested in women's rights in America. It is gut wrenching to see how we were treated, and how much has not changed.

Elizabeth Packard was not a historical name I was familiar with but it should have been. Being one of the first influential women working for the rights of women, especially those married or committed in asylums during a period when women had no rights at all (mid to late 1800’s), makes her instrumental in creating bills and getting them passed into law that allowed women to own property and have a say in their lives. This nonfiction book is well documented and details the reality of life in an asylum and as a woman labeled insane just because she had view of religion differing from her husband.

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for the ARC to read and review.
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Stunningly written book with phenomenal research and brilliant representation of an important story in history. I'd highly recommend it to my fellow bibliophile friends.Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the arc.

I am never disappointed by the work of Kate Moore. This was phenomenally researched and written and I'm already looking forward to how I can incorporate this into some of my book clubs.

"The Woman They Could Not Silence" by Kate Moore is a stunning work of nonfiction that tells the story of Elizabeth Packard, a woman who was unjustly committed to an insane asylum by her husband in the mid-1800s. Moore's meticulous research and compelling writing bring Packard's story to life, highlighting the injustices she faced and the courage she showed in fighting for her freedom and the rights of others in similar situations. This book is a powerful reminder of the importance of standing up for what is right, and it is a must-read for anyone interested in the history of women's rights and mental health advocacy. A well-deserved five-star read.

The Woman They Could Not Silence chronicles the life of Elizabeth Packard, who was wrongfully committed to an insane asylum in 1860 by her husband, a local preacher, because she dared think differently than he did. After Elizabeth fought her way out of the asylum, she dedicated her life to freeing her friends from the same conditions and improving women's legal agency.

Kate Moore brilliantly tells Elizabeth's story in The Woman They Could Not Silence through a combination of Moore's own prose and pieces of source documents. I am typically not a fan of biographies; I often find them to be uneven as people's lives have their ebbs and flows. But I was constantly reaching to pick back up this book. I found nearly every page compelling. Despite the book's length, I was riveted until the end.

Although religion plays a large part in Elizabeth Packard's story, it is not a central theme of the book. For someone like me who is areligious, I appreciated this. I think Moore diving into the details of Elizabeth's religious arguments would have taken focus away from the nature of Elizabeth's struggles, made her story a religious fight rather than what it ultimately was, and slowed the narrative's pace.

Moore's extensive research, particularly of primary sources, is clear from the first pages of The Woman They Could Not Silence. I think some of the book's power comes from the fact we are able to hear parts of the story in Elizabeth's (other others') own words. I also really valued that Moore provided sufficient context for readers to understand the norms of the time period. This allowed me to truly appreciate Elizabeth's struggles and accomplishments. Moreover, Moore ended with a powerful post script that reminds readers that despite Elizabeth's story being over 160 years ago, it is still relevant today. Women are frequently still delegitimized by being called crazy.

I had so many visceral reactions while reading The Woman Who Could Not Be Silenced. There was a lot of cussing aloud and exasperation on my part. Elizabeth's story was frustrating and enraging at times - not the book itself, but the treatment of Elizabeth Packard. I struggle to see any woman reading this book and not being exasperated by the expected role of women in society and the extremely patriarchal laws and norms of the 1860s.

Moore's writing was filled with urgency and passion. Despite her analogies being over the top at times, Moore's prose read like a novel. And while this made reading The Woman Who Could Not Be Silenced entertaining and quick, I think it is also a key weakness of the text. I would be remiss if I did note some important criticism.

No person is wholly good or bad. But from reading The Women They Could Not Silence, you are left with the impression that Elizabeth Packard was a saint. Moore craft the story to be inspirational and praiseworthy while leaving out anything that may have been an unsavory reflection of Elizabeth, such as racist or religious views. Moore skims over Elizabeth's blatant inflated self-regard and fails to present readers with an unbiased narrative. Furthermore, Moore's writing was melodramatic at times, which made for an entertaining read, but not a neutral one by any means. The book is also filled with snippets of quotes, removed from the context in which they were written. Depending on what you are looking for in reading this book, you may be disappointed by the approach Moore decided to use. It is my understanding that this proclivity is not included in her first book, Radium Girls.

Because I read The Woman They Could Not Silence as an audiobook, I want to mention that I would recommend reading it in this manner. Moore, herself, narrated the audiobook. She has a wonderful, light British accent that was very pleasant. I will be seeking out more books that she narrates.

Overall, I really enjoyed The Woman They Could Not Silence. Elizabeth's story was inspiring and provocative. I think this is a piece of nonfiction that even the staunchest fiction readers will love. I will be relentlessly recommending this book to my friends, but as always, I encourage everyone to read critically.

As a woman, as a human, the first half of this book was absolutely infuriating. The atrocities that these women went through! The second half, however, was much more uplifting as she fought for her rights and women's rights and was at least sometimes victorious. I did find it a little slow at times but was for the most part well paced. It was well researched, and I loved the added quotes from modern times that helped illustrate that the fight is not over.

The Women They Could Not Silence by Kate Moore
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I hadn't heard the story of Elizabeth Packard before reading this book. I'm very glad I read this one, it is an important read. It was very interesting to learn about what things used to be like. Very sad but also conveys hope. I also read Radium Girls which I really liked! Hope to see more from Kate Moore in the future!
Thank you Netgalley & Source Books for this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

What a phenomenal read!!
LIKES:
1) it read like a historical fiction. Really just flew by but was long and very detailed at times… like a historical fiction
2) spotlight on mental health AND how twisted it was back in the day. If we don’t learn from history we will repeat it. Women’s health and rights is just as much of a concern now as it was then.
3) the audiobook- read by the author and was done beautifully
4) the ending… it’s a true story, but I don’t want to put anything more. It felt good.
5) I love learning new things! This is a nonfiction book that will not disappoint!

What an amazing read. It’s sad to know that many people are unaware of Elizabeth’s story, despite all she has done for women’s rights. And she went through a lot in order to help not only herself, but the other women with her in the asylum and generations of women to come. Her story would make a great film. Every time I thought it was coming to a conclusion, another twist brought me down another path.

Of course, that means The Women They Could Not Silence was a long read. As someone who struggles to consume non-fiction, it did take me longer than usual to read it. However, the wonder that was Elizabeth Packard kept me persevering and coming back for more.

This book will make you both happy and sad. Happy for what Elizabeth achieved but sad for everything she had to go through and knowing that some of the same attitudes are still at play within many people today.

A true story about Elizabeth Packard and her fight for women’s rights in America. I have read several books on this topic and continue to be appalled at the way the women who took on this challenge were treated. It’s obvious that the author did immense research on this topic. Though a historical book, the author’s writing style will pull you into the story and have you invested as you absorb the book. My heart ached at what Elizabeth endured. And yet I was thrilled at her strength and determination. She was an extremely intelligent woman and she accomplished so much for women’s rights. It’s unfortunate that her name is not well known and her achievements were buried until Heather Moore was able to share the story about this incredible woman.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

For more reviews, please visit my blog at: https://www.msladybugsbookreviews.com/. Over 1000 reviews posted!

Another great, informative read from Kate Moore. I learned so much about how poorly women were treated in the not so distant past. This book was a very eye-opening look into the way insane asylums were managed and the injustice that was doled out.

*** I have received and read an e - ARC from NetGalley in exchange for honest feedback. All thoughts and opinions are my own.***

I had heard of events like this happening, but it was great to finally read an in-depth version of one of the stories. It’s an obviously well researched and very detailed account.

Overall it’s an interesting story, but it just goes on forever. If the book had been cut by 25-40%, or had also shared stories of the happening to other women, it would have been a more enjoyable read.

Moore, once again, goes into great detail telling the true story of a woman who suffers at the hands of men. Like her earlier book, <i>The Radium Girls</i>, this is the real story of the helplessness of women as they strive to be treated fairly in a male dominated world. Elizabeth Packhard is married to a hard-nosed minister in 1860. When she dares to explore her own beliefs that don’t align with her husband’s, he becomes determined to get rid of her.

Elizabeth is institutionalized in an insane asylum by her husband, with the assistance of men in the community and doctors who are willing to confirm her insanity. She is a prolific writer who continues to advocate for her release but the men are steadfast in their desire to keep her locked up.

The head of the institution is Dr. McFarland and he patiently listens to her protestations of sanity, but is not her savior. What is remarkable is Elizabeth’s persistence and her determination to help free herself and also to get better treatment for the patients in the institution. Her entire life becomes a crusade to be freed and more importantly, to improve conditions for those committed, while exposing the inhumane treatment patients receive.

The book is saturated with factual details that the author meticulously cites in notes at the end of the book. Her research is abundantly clear and her focus on the mistreatment of women is once again, illuminating and unsettling.