Jeff Biggers

Focused on marginalized regions and recovering hidden histories, Biggers has written cultural histories, travel memoir and journalistic reportage based in Appalachia, the American Midwest, the US-Mexico borderlands, Mexico, India and Italy.

United States of Appachia

Published in 2006, The United States of Appalachia argues that beyond its mythology in the American imagination, Appalachia has long been a vanguard region in the United States-—a cradle of U.S. freedom and independence, and a hotbed for literature and music. Some of the most quintessential and daring American innovations, rebellions, and social movements have emerged from an area often stereotyped as a quaint backwater, he says, and in the process, immigrants from the Appalachian diaspora have become some of America's most famous leaders. The Asheville Citizen-Times reviewed it as a "masterpiece of popular history...revelations abound." One reviewer said the book is "full of historical insights...debunking stereotypes is one of the driving motivations behind Biggers' writing."[6]

In the Sierra Madre

Published in 2006, In the Sierra Madre is a memoir and narrative nonfiction history that chronicles the life and times in one of the most famous, yet unknown, regions in the world. Based on his one-year sojourn among the native Rarámuri/Tarahumara of Mexico, Biggers examines the ways of a resilient indigenous culture in the Americas, the exploits of the Mexican mountaineers, and the parade of argonauts and accidental travelers that has journeyed into the Sierra Madre over centuries. From African explorers, Bohemian friars, Confederate and Irish war deserters, French poets, Boer and Russian commandos, hidden Apache and Mennonite communities, bewildered archaeologists, addled writers, and legendary characters like Antonin Artaud, B. Traven, Sergei Eisenstein, George Patton, Geronimo and Pancho Villa, Biggers searches for the legendary treasures of the Sierra Madre (Mexico's Copper Canyon). In the Sierra Madre won the Gold Medal in Foreword Magazine's Book of the Year Awards (Travel Essays) in 2006, and the Illinois Arts Council Nonfiction Award. The memoir was called by Booklist "an astonishing sojourn" in 2006.

Reckoning at Eagle Creek

Published in 2010, "Reckoning at Eagle Creek: The Secret Legacy of Coal in the Heartland" is a family saga, part memoir, cultural history, and journalistic investigation, examining the impact of coal mining on Biggers' native region of southern Illinois. The book examines the loss of his family's 200-year-old homestead to strip mining, and the historical parallel impact of coal mining on communities and their environment. It won the Sierra Club's David Brower Award in 2010, and the Delta Prize for Literature. Looking back to the removal of Native Americans, the book laces the history of Biggers' own family, including the destruction of their 200-year-old historic community in the Shawnee forests into the development of the coal industry, African slavery and coal mining, the history of workplace safety and labor union struggles, and environmental and heritage movements against strip-mining and coal-fired plants. Publishers Weekly called it "part historical narrative, part family memoir, part pastoral paean, and part jeremiad against the abuse of the land and of the men who gave and continue to give their lives to (and often for) the mines, [Reckoning at Eagle Creek] puts a human face on the industry that supplies nearly half of America’s energy…it offers a rare historical perspective on the vital yet little considered industry, along with a devastating critique of the myth of ‘clean coal.’ ”

State Out of the Union

Published om 2012, Publishers Weekly selected "State Out of the Union: Arizona and the Final Showdown Over the American Dream," as a Top Ten Title in Social Science. "State Out of the Union" was described by Kirkus Reviews as "masterful at showing how the past is prologue… A timely book, especially with immigration policy playing a major role in the upcoming presidential campaign.” In reviewing "State Out of the Union," Progressive Magazine said: “the title of Jeff Biggers’s sweeping chronicle of Arizona, State Out of the Union, fittingly evokes Lincoln’s ominous words at the outset of the Civil War… Biggers’s lesson for his readers is that throughout its century of turmoil, Arizona’s cycles of conflict move in a progressive trajectory. While many political movements have put down roots in the state, the paths their struggles collectively blaze for the country ultimately point toward emancipation.” Another critic said, "for Jeff Biggers what the immigration policy of this country should be is as clear as unpolluted, smog-free air, and crystal clean, unchemicalized water. Biggers, an author, journalist, storyteller, and playwright is not typical, however. His knowledge and writings about vital trending issues ... run far and wide. He is a discerning advocate. He has followed and joined the immigration movement in Arizona before and after the fashioning of SB1070."[7]

Trials of a Scold

Published in 2017. "Trials of a Scold: The Incredible True Story of Writer Anne Royall" was longlisted for the PEN/Jacqueline Bograd Weld Award for Biography (2018),[8] and chronicles the life and times of pioneering writer and muckraker Anne Royall.

Resistance: Reclaiming an American Tradition

Published in 2018, Resistance is a "widely ranging history of intellectual and moral resistance within American politics," according to Kirkus Reviews. It includes portraits of Native American and early American figures, and the American legacy of resistance to duplicitous authority for civil rights, women's rights, immigrant rights, environmental protection, free speech. In an interview with PEN American, Biggers said, "In dealing with the most challenging issues of every generation, resistance to duplicitous civil authority and its corporate enablers has defined our quintessential American story." Social critic Jeff Chang called his most recent book, "Resistance: Reclaiming an American Tradition", "powerful, urgent essays."

In Sardinia

Published in 2023, In Sardinia is a cultural history and travelogue based on Biggers' sojourn in Sardinia, and his travels around the island. Kirkus Reviews called the book "a fascinating journey." According to Frances Mayes, New York Times bestselling author of Under the Tuscan Sun: “At last, a grand companion to the mysterious and enchanting island of Sardinia. Known to most travelers for its beaches, Sardinia’s complex archeological heritage extends back to neolithic times. Jeff Biggers, the consummate traveler/ scholar, starts in beautiful Alghero and begins exploring the entire island, delving into the rich traditions of music, arts, dialects, crafts, and literature. Along the way, he and his family revel in local lore, festivals, food, and wine. Written with verve and love, In Sardinia is the book I’ll be taking on future trips.”

Biggers is also a playwright, and performer of monologues.

Biggers has appeared on campuses and in cities across the country, performing adaptations of his "Ecopolis" monologues.

He has turned many of his books, including In the Sierra Madre and State Out of the Union, into monologue performances.

In Italy, Biggers co-founded the Mare Nostrum Theatre Project and has worked with Teatroaperto and other theatre groups in Italy.

Across the Stones of Fire

His first play, "4½ Hours: Across the Stones of Fire," explores the fate of a family threatened by an impending strip mining operation in their community. The play toured nationally and appeared on Off-Broadway at the Gene Frankel Theatre in New York City on June 4–13, 2010.

Damnatio Memoriae

His published play, "Damnatio Memoriae: A Play, Una Commedia,'" (2015) was described by author Rilla Askew as "a timeless examination of human rights, human dignity, and what it means to be a "citizen," the play reveals forgotten stories while bringing to life the dilemmas of our modern world, reminding us that, in so many ways, they are one and the same." The play was produced in Bologna and Florence, Italy in 2017 and 2019.[9] In Italy, Biggers founded the Mare Nostrum Theatre Project.

Kaminski's Lot

His play, "Kaminski's Lot," commissioned by Indiana University Northwest, deals with climate change and environmental justice. The play was produced at Theatre Northwest in Gary, Indiana in 2021.