The Private War of Mrs. Packard

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

In 1861, when Elizabeth Packard dared to question the Calvinistic extremism of her husband, Theophilus, a minister in Illinois, he had her committed to an insane asylum. After a lengthy, publicized trial, Elizabeth was pronounced sane and began an arduous, national battle to effect changes in treatment of the mentally ill and in the rights of women. In this first biography of an overlooked pioneering feminist, Elizabeth, who never divorced her abusive husband, and who retained the love of her children, remains an enigmatic figure. Sapinsley, a freelance writer, who examined family journals and medical records to reconstruct the life of a woman who attempted to make a difference, fails to convey the temper of the times against which readers might appreciate Elizabeth's audacity. Photos not seen by PW. (July)

Library Journal

This is a fascinating biography of a pioneering crusader who heretofore has been ignored by historians. Popular journalist and author Sapinsley uses family records and an assortment of other primary materials to tell the story of Elizabeth Packard, an otherwise conventional 19th-century wife and mother who was committed to an insane asylum by her husband because of her unorthodox ideas on religion and child-rearing. After winning her freedom in a highly publicized trial, Packard spent the rest of her life lobbying for changes in state laws governing the commitment of individuals to mental institutions. Although geared to general readers, this volume should interest historians as well because it details the sorts of tensions that inspired the fledgling feminists of the same period. Recommended for history and women's studies collections.-- Marie Marmo Mullaney, Caldwell Coll., N.J.