Born in 1857 and raised in oil country, Ida M. Tarbell was one of the first investigative journalists and probably the most influential in her time. Her series of articles on the Standard Oil Trust, a complicated business empire run by John D. Rockefeller, revealed to readers the underhanded, even illegal practices that had led to Rockefeller's success. Rejecting the term "muckraker" to describe her profession, she went on to achieve remarkable prominence for a woman of her generation as a writer and shaper of public opinion. This biography offers an engrossing portrait of a trailblazer in a man's world who left her mark on the American consciousness. Notes, bibliography, index. "Though Tarbell rejected the term, this will appeal primarily to those interested in the history of muckraking journalism."
—Kirkus

* "Readers will not only get a feel for Tarbell, but they'll also get a sense of the changing world she inhabited."
—School Library Journal, starred review

* "Illustrated with many period photos, this informative title brings Tarbell and her times into sharper focus for readers today."
—Booklist, starred review