A review of The Woman They Could Not Silence by Kate Moore

For seeming to skate on the edge of fiction: This is hard to do well. After the first chapter of Moore’s biography of Elizabeth Packard (1816-1897), a reader could mistakenly judge it as fiction. Not only are Packard’s experiences immensely disturbing – a highly intelligent American woman legally committed to an insane asylum by her husband for having her own ideas – but Moore dared to write what Packard thought, felt, and said, throughout her life. How could Moore do that? Because, as Moore wrote in the Author’s Note, ‘everything in it is based on careful historical research. Every line of dialogue comes from a memoir, letter, trial transcript of some other record.’ Packard’s prolific writing plus Moore’s use of fictional techniques has produced an immersive read. It has also brought attention to a complex and courageous woman who changed the laws of a nation. It can’t be coincidental that two years after the publication of Moore’s book, the hospital in Illinois which honoured one of Packard’s former abusers was renamed after Packard instead. This is the power of good biography.

Available to buy at The Woman They Could Not Silence by Kate Moore | Waterstones