Scan barcode
purplepierogi's review
5.0
okay, y'all know I'm not a ra ra girlboss person (rbg is not my idol), I was prepared to hate or seriously judge Sandra Day O'Connor's life work. she was a Reagan appointee and I didn't know much about her before listening to the book, and honestly a lot of "intimate portrait" biographies can be straight propaganda -- but that being said, this book was so well researched and so informative, I really really enjoyed it and learning about her. it offered a full picture of her personal, social and professional lives, drawing on her diaries, her husband's unpublished memoir, all her documents and correspondence, and interviews with everyone from family to clerks to fellow justices.
yes, the book goes to great lengths to justify her bush v gore decision, and I did grow a little tired of the throwbacks to her ranch upbringing as a primary formative experience, but I really am awed how she adapted to this kind of impossible job. maybe it's just where I am in life that I really marvel at how much ppl can balance and get done in a day (this makes me never want to clerk lmao) and it was cool to hear her do it all w acerbic wit and swing dancing etc. the line where she said she never took a job that didn't feel like a stretch, no one tells you how to be a supreme court justice, so just do it -- I really connect w that. and for all her really fucked decisions (georgia sodomy case
yes, the book goes to great lengths to justify her bush v gore decision, and I did grow a little tired of the throwbacks to her ranch upbringing as a primary formative experience, but I really am awed how she adapted to this kind of impossible job. maybe it's just where I am in life that I really marvel at how much ppl can balance and get done in a day (this makes me never want to clerk lmao) and it was cool to hear her do it all w acerbic wit and swing dancing etc. the line where she said she never took a job that didn't feel like a stretch, no one tells you how to be a supreme court justice, so just do it -- I really connect w that. and for all her really fucked decisions (georgia sodomy case
bargainsleuth's review
5.0
See this and more book reviews at www.bargain-sleuth.com
Sandra Day O'Connor was selected to the Supreme Court when I was eight years old, so I remember it in the news, but not much else. I didn't even know when she retired. Therefore, almost everything I read was new to me.
Thomas does a good job with the narrative, although at a certain point I found myself getting annoyed (or maybe jealous) at how good Sandra Day O-Connor was at everything she tried.
Too often biographies only concentrate on the work life, but I'm always curious about the home life as well. One of the most impressive things I found in reading the book is how well her three sons turned out. Often you read stories of very successful people and find that their home life suffered. But that's not the case here. She had a very supportive and equally successful husband, and by all accounts their kids turned out great.
I disagree with the reviewers who say the book got bogged down with court cases. I thought they fit the narrative Thomas was writing. They showed how Day O'Connor slowly moved to the left on issues, and how many times she was the swing vote during her tenure.
Sandra Day O'Connor was selected to the Supreme Court when I was eight years old, so I remember it in the news, but not much else. I didn't even know when she retired. Therefore, almost everything I read was new to me.
Thomas does a good job with the narrative, although at a certain point I found myself getting annoyed (or maybe jealous) at how good Sandra Day O-Connor was at everything she tried.
Too often biographies only concentrate on the work life, but I'm always curious about the home life as well. One of the most impressive things I found in reading the book is how well her three sons turned out. Often you read stories of very successful people and find that their home life suffered. But that's not the case here. She had a very supportive and equally successful husband, and by all accounts their kids turned out great.
I disagree with the reviewers who say the book got bogged down with court cases. I thought they fit the narrative Thomas was writing. They showed how Day O'Connor slowly moved to the left on issues, and how many times she was the swing vote during her tenure.