(2) YA Heiligman’s newest work of nonfiction touches on a long list of hot-button contemporary issues: due process, free speech, gender equity, economic inequality, pacifism, prison reform, reproductive freedom, political violence, and sexual mores. So, naturally, it’s a biography of Emma Goldman (1869–1940). The prominent anarchist was born into a Jewish family in what is now Lithuania and endured an extremely difficult, abusive childhood. She immigrated to the United States at the age of sixteen, and after a tumultuous early marriage moved from upstate New York to New York City and fell in with the anarchists, drawn to their righteous indignation over the plight of the working class. Here she found friends, lovers, and mentors. She also found an extraordinary talent for public speaking. Over the ensuing decades, Goldman’s speeches and writing frequently got her in trouble with the law, especially because of her powerful influence on others. Eventually her citizenship was stripped from her, and she lived in exile for the last twenty years of her life. But despite an antagonistic relationship with America, Goldman loved her adopted country fiercely. True to form, Heiligman (Torpedoed!, rev. 9/19) distills this remarkable, complex legacy for a new generation with a sure hand, using a conversational voice that draws readers into her meticulously researched narrative. Source notes, a selected bibliography, and an index are appended.

Reviewer: Jonathan Hunt | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2025