Trial and Triumph

Trial and Triumph (1888-1889) is a novel by Frances Ellen Watkins Harper. One of the first novels published by an African American woman, Trial and Triumph is a story of family, faith, and sacrifice that advocates for education and equality for all African Americans. Originally published in serial format in the Christian Recorder, an important and historical periodical connected to the African Methodist Episcopal Church, Trial and Triumph was rediscovered in the late twentieth century and has since been recognized as a groundbreaking work of fiction by the first African American woman to publish a novel.

At her modest home, Mrs. Harcourt discusses a recent controversy involving her granddaughter and an irate neighbor. Having sent Annette out to the grocery store for oil, she unwittingly gave the young girl an opportunity for mischief―on her way home, Annette managed to spill oil on Mrs. Larkins’ stoop, causing the particularly diligent housekeeper to curse the girl for her carelessness. Embarrassed but unsurprised, Mrs. Harcourt has grown accustomed to Annette’s wayward nature. Ever since her mother’s death, Annette―who was abandoned by her father at birth―has struggled to find purpose in life. With few opportunities for education, and despite her affinity for reading, Annette faces prejudice and indifference from her community, who remain either cautiously protective of their children or too involved with their own problems to pay heed to another struggling youth. Written in straightforward prose, Trial and Triumph is a politically conscious novel concerned with an African American community doing its best to overcome with love what little their lot is in life.

This edition of Frances Ellen Watkins Harper’s Trial and Triumph is a classic of African American literature reimagined for modern readers.

Since our inception in 2020, Mint Editions has kept sustainability and innovation at the forefront of our mission. Each and every Mint Edition title gets a fresh, professionally typeset manuscript and a dazzling new cover, all while maintaining the integrity of the original book.

With thousands of titles in our collection, we aim to spotlight diverse public domain works to help them find modern audiences. Mint Editions celebrates a breadth of literary works, curated from both canonical and overlooked classics from writers around the globe.

Frances Ellen Watkins Harper (1825-1911) was an African American abolitionist, suffragist, poet, and novelist. Born free in Baltimore, Maryland, Harper became one of the first women of color to publish in the United States when her debut poetry collection Forest Leaves appeared in 1845. In 1850, she began to teach sewing at Union Seminary in Columbus, Ohio. The following year, alongside chairman of the Pennsylvania Abolition Society William Still, she began working as an abolitionist in earnest, helping slaves escape to Canada along the Underground Railroad. In 1854, having established herself as a prominent public speaker and political activist, Harper published Poems on Miscellaneous Subjects, a resounding critical and commercial success. Over the course of her life, Harper founded and participated in several progressive organizations, including the Women’s Christian Temperance Union and the National Association of Colored Women. At the age of sixty-seven, Harper published Iola Leroy, or Shadows Uplifted, becoming one of the first African American women to publish a novel.