Call number
BIO SOTOMAYOR
Collection
Publication
Knopf (2013), Edition: First Edition, 336 pages
Description
"An instant American icon--the first Hispanic on the U.S. Supreme Court--tells the story of her life before becoming a judge in an inspiring, surprisingly personal memoir. With startling candor and intimacy, Sonia Sotomayor recounts her life from a Bronx housing project to the federal bench, a progress that is testament to her extraordinary determination and the power of believing in oneself. She writes of her precarious childhood and the refuge she took with her passionately spirited paternal grandmother. She describes her resolve as a young girl to become a lawyer, and how she made this dream become reality: valedictorian of her high school class, summa cum laude at Princeton, Yale Law, prosecutor in the Manhattan D.A.'s office, private practice, federal district judge before the age of forty. She writes about her deeply valued mentors, about her failed marriage, about her cherished family of friends. Through her still-astonished eyes, America's infinite possibilities are envisioned anew in this warm and honest book, destined to become a classic of self-discovery and self-invention, alongside Barack Obama's Dreams from My Father"--… (more)
Media reviews
But if the outlines of Justice Sotomayor’s life are well known by now, her searching and emotionally intimate memoir, “My Beloved World,” nonetheless has the power to surprise and move the reader. Whereas the justice’s legal writings have been described by reporters as dry, methodical and
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technical, this account of her life is revealing, keenly observed and deeply felt. Show Less
Wall Street Journal
My Beloved World is filled with inspiring, and surprisingly candid, stories about how the Supreme Court's first Hispanic justice overcame a troubled childhood to attend Princeton and Yale Law School, eventually earning a seat on the nation's highest court. But readers hoping to gain insight from
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the book into how Ms. Sotomayor might rule in key cases will have to dig deep for hints of her legal philosophy. The book, which covers he life prior to becoming a judge, barely says a word about the Constitution and even less about ideology. Yet one doesn't get the sense that politics were scrubbed from the text; it is rather that the topic isn't of much interest to the author. Show Less
User reviews
LibraryThing member froxgirl
This is such a pleasant read from such a down-to-earth author. Gives a fine view of a childhood surrounded by a large loving family, despite the black cloud of the early death of a beloved alcoholic father.
Some highlights are of Justice Sotomayor's undergrad years at Princeton and her visits to her
Actually, the whole book is a highlight. One doesn't even miss her Supreme Court tenure, which I'm sure will come eventually and should only be as enjoyable as this one.
Some highlights are of Justice Sotomayor's undergrad years at Princeton and her visits to her
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Puerto Rico family.Actually, the whole book is a highlight. One doesn't even miss her Supreme Court tenure, which I'm sure will come eventually and should only be as enjoyable as this one.
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LibraryThing member banjo123
I highly recommend this book, even though I think it’s good that Sotomayar is a Supreme Court Justice, rather than a writer. Her prose is serviceable, but seldom lyrical. Also, she is somewhat circumspect in wrting this book, and some topics (for example her marriage and divorce) are told in 2-D,
However, her story is interesting and pulled me right along. Sonia Sotomayar grew up in the South Bronx; Spanish was her first language; her father was an alcoholic who died when she was young; she developed juvenile diabetes at a time when that was considered a death sentence. She also had support from a loving extended family and an amazing amount of grit. She is a poster child for affirmative action, having gone to Princeton and the Yale Law School.
I often find Sotomayar irritating politically, but this book gave me admiration for her integrity and spunk. I also liked the way she identified the strengths she received from her family, especially her mother and grandmother, as assets that helped her in her law career. She has a nuanced understanding of her family dynamics. An example from the book, she is reflecting on life after the death of her father:
“A hug from Papi would have been nice just then. I couldn’t deny that our life was so much better now, but I did miss him. For all the misery he caused, I knew with certainty that he loved us. Those aren’t things you can measure or weigh. You can’t say: This much love is worth this much misery. They’re not opposites that cancel each other out; they’re both true at the same time. “
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rather than in full living color.However, her story is interesting and pulled me right along. Sonia Sotomayar grew up in the South Bronx; Spanish was her first language; her father was an alcoholic who died when she was young; she developed juvenile diabetes at a time when that was considered a death sentence. She also had support from a loving extended family and an amazing amount of grit. She is a poster child for affirmative action, having gone to Princeton and the Yale Law School.
I often find Sotomayar irritating politically, but this book gave me admiration for her integrity and spunk. I also liked the way she identified the strengths she received from her family, especially her mother and grandmother, as assets that helped her in her law career. She has a nuanced understanding of her family dynamics. An example from the book, she is reflecting on life after the death of her father:
“A hug from Papi would have been nice just then. I couldn’t deny that our life was so much better now, but I did miss him. For all the misery he caused, I knew with certainty that he loved us. Those aren’t things you can measure or weigh. You can’t say: This much love is worth this much misery. They’re not opposites that cancel each other out; they’re both true at the same time. “
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LibraryThing member tangledthread
Sonia Sotomayor's memoir gives us a candid peek into the early life of the first Hispanic, female Supreme Court Justice of the U.S. The first portion of the book deals with her diagnosis with Type I diabetes at age 7, the dysfunctional marriage of her parents and her father's struggle with and
She shares the joys and heartaches of belonging to a large extended family of Puerto Rican descent growing up in the Bronx in the 1960's. A central figure in her life was her mother, who placed a high value on education. She demonstrated this to her children by earning her LPN despite language difficulties, and by sacrificing to send both of her children to private Catholic schools. Though Sonia experienced her mother as an emotionally distant person, her paternal grandmother's expansive love and personality filled that void.
Nancy Drew Mystery books and Perry Mason television shows are cited by the author as her inspiration toward a career in law. Her constant awareness of the implications of her diabetes also influenced her career and other life decisions.
As a carry over from her mother's influence, much of this memoir focuses on the author's educational experiences and achievements, which are truly remarkable. Including a full undergraduate scholarship to Princeton followed by law school at Yale. She was married from 1976 to 1983 to her high school sweetheart, but the demands of her work in the district attorney's office and her husband's graduate school created a divide that could not be bridged and the marriage failed.
Her early law career in the district attorney's office, then later in private practice are chronicled in an almost case study style. The author seems to use these cases to explain how her style as a judge has been formed by experience.
In some ways the book is surprisingly revealing for a Supreme Court Justice. And yet, once the book is finished, one can't help but feel that she has also been quite reserved. I greatly appreciated (and derived some hope) from a section at the end of the memoir where she discusses the importance of making decisions based on the context of a situation rather than rigidly sticking to some ideology.
I listened to the audio version of this book which was beautifully narrated by Rita Moreno.
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demise from alcoholism. She shares the joys and heartaches of belonging to a large extended family of Puerto Rican descent growing up in the Bronx in the 1960's. A central figure in her life was her mother, who placed a high value on education. She demonstrated this to her children by earning her LPN despite language difficulties, and by sacrificing to send both of her children to private Catholic schools. Though Sonia experienced her mother as an emotionally distant person, her paternal grandmother's expansive love and personality filled that void.
Nancy Drew Mystery books and Perry Mason television shows are cited by the author as her inspiration toward a career in law. Her constant awareness of the implications of her diabetes also influenced her career and other life decisions.
As a carry over from her mother's influence, much of this memoir focuses on the author's educational experiences and achievements, which are truly remarkable. Including a full undergraduate scholarship to Princeton followed by law school at Yale. She was married from 1976 to 1983 to her high school sweetheart, but the demands of her work in the district attorney's office and her husband's graduate school created a divide that could not be bridged and the marriage failed.
Her early law career in the district attorney's office, then later in private practice are chronicled in an almost case study style. The author seems to use these cases to explain how her style as a judge has been formed by experience.
In some ways the book is surprisingly revealing for a Supreme Court Justice. And yet, once the book is finished, one can't help but feel that she has also been quite reserved. I greatly appreciated (and derived some hope) from a section at the end of the memoir where she discusses the importance of making decisions based on the context of a situation rather than rigidly sticking to some ideology.
I listened to the audio version of this book which was beautifully narrated by Rita Moreno.
Show Less
LibraryThing member brewbooks
Justice Sotomayor has lead a remarkable life. She is very cerebral, my sense is that it was very difficult for her to open up about some hard areas of her life but she did. One observation of hers touched me deeply:"Each death of someone close to me has come as a slap, reminding me again of my own
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mortality, compelling me to ask: What am I accomplishing? Is my life meaningful?" Show Less
LibraryThing member HadriantheBlind
It is a rare event for any political memoir to exhibit anything like true honesty, feeling, and candor. This book was a pleasure to read. I'd even pass it along to my mother.
Justice Sotomayor's legal opinions and courtroom style are a tough, 'just-the-facts' approach, and it is easy enough to see
Perhaps another sign of the book's quality is that it is not too political (with the exception of a whole-hearted defense of affirmative action, but this is entirely understandable). Instead, it is more empathetic and personal, offering courtroom banter and the stories of friends and family as a more background look at her view of life. Empathy is a quality which is only too rare in the higher echelons of power and law these days. In "su mundo adorado", perhaps those who have been at the very darkest valley can be fit to judge at the top of the highest mountain.
Justice Sotomayor's legal opinions and courtroom style are a tough, 'just-the-facts' approach, and it is easy enough to see
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the roots of this toughness in her own upbringing. South Bronx, juvenile diabetes, Catholic education, father died young. Yet instead of becoming wholly cynical from this or her later trials, this feeling of personal drive and self-reliance continues to the present day. Perhaps another sign of the book's quality is that it is not too political (with the exception of a whole-hearted defense of affirmative action, but this is entirely understandable). Instead, it is more empathetic and personal, offering courtroom banter and the stories of friends and family as a more background look at her view of life. Empathy is a quality which is only too rare in the higher echelons of power and law these days. In "su mundo adorado", perhaps those who have been at the very darkest valley can be fit to judge at the top of the highest mountain.
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LibraryThing member nyiper
I'm sure this is going to be my favorite book of the year and it's only the middle of February! What an inspiration she is. I feel as though I know Sonia Sotomayor better than many of the people I have as family and friends. It's difficult to absorb the incredible extent of her knowledge of herself
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and her place in this world---just tremendous accomplishments and yet she is so generous but honest with the appreciation of all the people and experiences that have happened to her along the way. I could not be happier that she is sitting as a Supreme Court Justice---I feel much better knowing that she is there with her wisdom. Show Less
LibraryThing member BarnesBookshelf
I knew very little about Sotomayor when I started reading this book. I knew she was a Latino woman who served on thr Supreme Court. So reading her autobiography was very interesting!! I think its pretty amazing how she describes her successes in a frank way that isn't bragging. I find it
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fascinating how many times she contributes part of her success to other people. She seems very humble and self-aware. Overall, I enjoyed reading this book. Show Less
LibraryThing member lanewillson
How did the Saturday Night Live Point – Counter Point skits of the 1970’s, where each view point started with a personal insult grenade “Jane you ignorant slut!”, somehow take the place of real political dialogue in this country? What kind of insane CGI wizardry has morphed Walter Cronkite
All these questions rattled through my mind as I read Justice Sonia Sotomayor memoir “My Beloved World”. She is an incredible lady whose life path, driven by excellence, is the personification of the opportunities possible through America’s freedom. The difficulty and obstruction of her journey took many forms, but even with all those walls that had to be scaled she never doubted the path’ existence. Justice Sotomayor recognized that America’s greatness and power was not due to it’s achievements such as men on the moon, defeating fascism, military might, or technological invention. America’s greatness is born out the ideals to which she aspires. Even when our country was nowhere near living up to these ideals, as is seen in the huge percentage of delegates to the Continental Congress who were slave owners, they remained her compass.
I was also struck by how similar Justice Sotomayor’s life is to that of Condoleezza Rice. Clearly these women are on opposite ends of the political spectrum. This leads me back to Point – Counterpoint. It seems to me that while we often disagree with one another’s understanding our ideals, each philosophy is strengthened by the necessity to compete with differing viewpoints. It is often a messy or even horrifying process, as with the Civil War. Ultimately it is a process that continues to find ways to liberate from darkness those who do not yet share the full measure of freedom.
My fifteen year old daughter answered the Facebook profile question about her political views by saying “Politics are corrupt”. I believe this level of cynicism, especially from those so young, is the greatest threat to our continued freedom. This is why Justice Sotomayor’s memoir, like that of Dr. Rice and so many others, is an important inspiration in the ever present fight for liberty.
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into Jon Stewart? How far down the sociological self-sabotage scale do you have reach to reach the point where men and women of great achievement – astronauts, writers, artists, that guy at Wham-o who invented the giant bubble set, Frisbees, the hula hoop, and the Frisbee – are replace as idols by Paris Hilton and a gaggle of mean girls?All these questions rattled through my mind as I read Justice Sonia Sotomayor memoir “My Beloved World”. She is an incredible lady whose life path, driven by excellence, is the personification of the opportunities possible through America’s freedom. The difficulty and obstruction of her journey took many forms, but even with all those walls that had to be scaled she never doubted the path’ existence. Justice Sotomayor recognized that America’s greatness and power was not due to it’s achievements such as men on the moon, defeating fascism, military might, or technological invention. America’s greatness is born out the ideals to which she aspires. Even when our country was nowhere near living up to these ideals, as is seen in the huge percentage of delegates to the Continental Congress who were slave owners, they remained her compass.
I was also struck by how similar Justice Sotomayor’s life is to that of Condoleezza Rice. Clearly these women are on opposite ends of the political spectrum. This leads me back to Point – Counterpoint. It seems to me that while we often disagree with one another’s understanding our ideals, each philosophy is strengthened by the necessity to compete with differing viewpoints. It is often a messy or even horrifying process, as with the Civil War. Ultimately it is a process that continues to find ways to liberate from darkness those who do not yet share the full measure of freedom.
My fifteen year old daughter answered the Facebook profile question about her political views by saying “Politics are corrupt”. I believe this level of cynicism, especially from those so young, is the greatest threat to our continued freedom. This is why Justice Sotomayor’s memoir, like that of Dr. Rice and so many others, is an important inspiration in the ever present fight for liberty.
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LibraryThing member katiekrug
The first Hispanic justice on the US Supreme Court has a wonderful story to tell - a story of a close, loving, but often dysfunctional family, of overcoming hardships, low expectations, soft bigotry, and ultimately triumph. I especially enjoyed the first half of this memoir, in which Sotomayor
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shares the story of her parents, her childhood, her abuelita, and her eventual discovery and fostering of her own intelligence and aspirations. To me, the story became less engaging once she went off to Princeton and Yale Law School - perhaps because she had less interesting and colorful characters around her at that point. Moreno's narration of this audio book was rather inconsistent at times, her pace at times hurried and then sloooooooow, but these are minor quibbles. All in all, an interesting and worthwhile memoir. Show Less
LibraryThing member Y2Ash
My Beloved World is Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor's autobiography. Her childhood was turbulent mainly she discovered she had Type I Diabetes when she was seven, her mother and father were always arguing, and her father died of his alcoholism when she was nine. However, Judge Sotomayor's
She was able to rise above her humble beginnings and excel in schooling, This lead to going to Princeton and later Yale Law School. During this time, she got married to her high school sweetheart but it didn't last. After law school, she began working the DA's Office then a private law firm dealing with intellectual property. After that was the Judge track. Being a judge was Judge Sotomayor's dream.
I liked this book. I felt that Judge's Sotomayor's beginnings humanized her to me. Then, I got to her later years, essentially Princeton-present, and that made her back to her God-like status. She said it repeatedly but her life was truly blessed. However, I was with her all the way because she handled it with such grace and maturity. Judge Sotomayor worked her for everything she achieved and will continue to achieve.
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spirit was fueled by self-reliance, ambition, endurance, and competition.She was able to rise above her humble beginnings and excel in schooling, This lead to going to Princeton and later Yale Law School. During this time, she got married to her high school sweetheart but it didn't last. After law school, she began working the DA's Office then a private law firm dealing with intellectual property. After that was the Judge track. Being a judge was Judge Sotomayor's dream.
I liked this book. I felt that Judge's Sotomayor's beginnings humanized her to me. Then, I got to her later years, essentially Princeton-present, and that made her back to her God-like status. She said it repeatedly but her life was truly blessed. However, I was with her all the way because she handled it with such grace and maturity. Judge Sotomayor worked her for everything she achieved and will continue to achieve.
Show Less
LibraryThing member rebeccar76
Loved this book! What an inspiring story! Wondering how she found the time to write this book though...
LibraryThing member Schmerguls
I found this autobiography consistently interesting, especially the account of her growing up in the Puerto Rican world of the Bronx, her attendance at Catholic grade and high school, Princeton, and Yale Law. Her account tof her stint as a state prosecutor in Manhattan was also of sustained
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interest. She certainly had a very different childhood than have had most Supreme Court justices, and one cannot help but admire the determination and perseverance she has displayed all though her life. Some of the time spent discussing her philosophy was of less interest to me, but overall the book was good experience and evocative of admiration for her aims and achievements. I also admired the forthright way she discussed her divorce, without rancor of any kind and with no potshot at her ex-husband. I found myself pleased that she is on the Supreme Court. Show Less
LibraryThing member rivkat
Memoir, ending just when Sotomayor becomes a judge and deliberately not covering Supreme Court confirmation or tenure. She tells a very personal story of growing up in a Puerto Rican immigrant neighborhood with diabetes that had to be rigidly treated and an alcoholic father who died young.
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Constantly emphasizing compassion and seeing everyone’s perspective, Sotomayor defends negotiation—though she didn’t hesitate to raise a little hell on occasion, as when a law firm partner challenged her at a public dinner to explain why she deserved to be at Yale given that, he asserted, she was only there because of affirmative action. I read it because Sotomayor spent some time doing trademark work in private practice, but the memoir is so rich in the texture of her life through college, and a bit in the prosecutor’s office, that the private practice bits go by really quick. There’s not much more than what was part of her confirmation hearings—she once wore a bulletproof vest when rousting counterfeiters, and even zoomed off on a motorcycle to get away from angry people who’d had their merchandise seized at her behest. Show Less
LibraryThing member Jcambridge
The preface to this book gives the reader a glimpse of how good it will be "...experience has taught me that you cannot value dreams according to the odds of their coming true. Their real value is in stirring within us the will to aspire...". Ms. Sotomayor is a gifted storyteller, not only in
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print, but also on the speaker circuit. I encourage everyone to put this book at the top of their reading list for 2013...it is an inspiration to all ages. If you have the opportunity to see/hear her in person, take it -- An appearance this month in Washington, DC drew a crowd of 1500+, all of whom were fully engaged by this brilliant and delightful woman. Show Less
LibraryThing member Y2Ash
My Beloved World is Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor's autobiography. Her childhood was turbulent mainly she discovered she had Type I Diabetes when she was seven, her mother and father were always arguing, and her father died of his alcoholism when she was nine. However, Judge Sotomayor's
She was able to rise above her humble beginnings and excel in schooling, This lead to going to Princeton and later Yale Law School. During this time, she got married to her high school sweetheart but it didn't last. After law school, she began working the DA's Office then a private law firm dealing with intellectual property. After that was the Judge track. Being a judge was Judge Sotomayor's dream.
I liked this book. I felt that Judge's Sotomayor's beginnings humanized her to me. Then, I got to her later years, essentially Princeton-present, and that made her back to her God-like status. She said it repeatedly but her life was truly blessed. However, I was with her all the way because she handled it with such grace and maturity. Judge Sotomayor worked her for everything she achieved and will continue to achieve.
Show More
spirit was fueled by self-reliance, ambition, endurance, and competition.She was able to rise above her humble beginnings and excel in schooling, This lead to going to Princeton and later Yale Law School. During this time, she got married to her high school sweetheart but it didn't last. After law school, she began working the DA's Office then a private law firm dealing with intellectual property. After that was the Judge track. Being a judge was Judge Sotomayor's dream.
I liked this book. I felt that Judge's Sotomayor's beginnings humanized her to me. Then, I got to her later years, essentially Princeton-present, and that made her back to her God-like status. She said it repeatedly but her life was truly blessed. However, I was with her all the way because she handled it with such grace and maturity. Judge Sotomayor worked her for everything she achieved and will continue to achieve.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Y2Ash
My Beloved World is Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor's autobiography. Her childhood was turbulent mainly she discovered she had Type I Diabetes when she was seven, her mother and father were always arguing, and her father died of his alcoholism when she was nine. However, Judge Sotomayor's
She was able to rise above her humble beginnings and excel in schooling, This lead to going to Princeton and later Yale Law School. During this time, she got married to her high school sweetheart but it didn't last. After law school, she began working the DA's Office then a private law firm dealing with intellectual property. After that was the Judge track. Being a judge was Judge Sotomayor's dream.
I liked this book. I felt that Judge's Sotomayor's beginnings humanized her to me. Then, I got to her later years, essentially Princeton-present, and that made her back to her God-like status. She said it repeatedly but her life was truly blessed. However, I was with her all the way because she handled it with such grace and maturity. Judge Sotomayor worked her for everything she achieved and will continue to achieve.
Show More
spirit was fueled by self-reliance, ambition, endurance, and competition.She was able to rise above her humble beginnings and excel in schooling, This lead to going to Princeton and later Yale Law School. During this time, she got married to her high school sweetheart but it didn't last. After law school, she began working the DA's Office then a private law firm dealing with intellectual property. After that was the Judge track. Being a judge was Judge Sotomayor's dream.
I liked this book. I felt that Judge's Sotomayor's beginnings humanized her to me. Then, I got to her later years, essentially Princeton-present, and that made her back to her God-like status. She said it repeatedly but her life was truly blessed. However, I was with her all the way because she handled it with such grace and maturity. Judge Sotomayor worked her for everything she achieved and will continue to achieve.
Show Less
LibraryThing member bookczuk
I think this may be one of my favorite memoirs I've read in a long time. If you're looking for recent stuff, such as being nominated and then appointed as a Justice of the Supreme Court, you won't find that in this book. What you will find is a candid, forthright description of Justice Sotomayor's
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earlier life: growing up as a girl of Puerto Rican heritage, in a low income, but hard working family, overcoming economic odds, health threats (Juvenile Diabetes in that time had far worse outcomes), school and university experiences, and life in her early days as a lawyer and wife. It was fascinating, particularly those early days. Justice Sotomayor's description of her interview at Radcliffe was especially great, enough so that I read it to my husband. Essentially, she'd never encountered anyone in a little black dress and pearls giving an interview before, had never seen an oriental carpet, nor a white couch (as was in the interviewer's office) let alone a couch without plastic on it. Then these two little lap dogs came barreling down on her, barking furiously, and she knew Radcliffe was not a fit for her. (Later, my husband and I ran into a pair of lapdogs yapping at us, and christened them "Radcliffe rats".) I was impressed with Justice Sotomayor before reading this book, but after doing so, really do admire her for what she has done with her life, and for holding true to her principles and the law of the US. Show Less
LibraryThing member edlynskey
This fine autobiography came recommended to me. Ms. Sotomayor comes from a hard scrabble neighborhood in 1950s/60s New York City where she became a tough, smart, and tenacious D.A. I liked how she goes through various legal and courtroom procedures with clear, straightforward prose since I am a
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crime novelist. She even includes a private detective at one point while hunting down the vendors of knockoff purses. Some details about her colorful life--I won't list them here--surprised me. As a person, I believe I would like her after my completing her memoir. She certainly would have a lot of different things to talk about in a conversation. I wish I remembered more of my university Spanish, but she includes a Spanish-English dictionary at the back. My Beloved World is a nice change of pace in my reading diet, and I learned a lot of good stuff, too. Show Less
LibraryThing member Salsabrarian
Narrated by R-r-rita Mor-r-reno! Actually, Ms Sotomayor reads the forward and prologue. I wished she had read the whole book; there is a salt-of-the-Bronx quality to her voice that intimately grounds her story. But after my initial disappointment, Rita Moreno more than held her own, la veterana
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that she is. Show Less
LibraryThing member hemlokgang
Very readable, very interesting, and very human. I enjoyed reading this book from start to finish. Sonia Sotomayor writes about her life from early childhood to her first appointment as a judge. She clearly details the influences which brought her to adulthood and the Supreme Court, namely, family,
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juvenile diabetes, hardship,loss, and many mentors along the way. I think I was most impressed with her clear description of the vast cultural gap between life n the Bronx and life amongst the powerful and wealthy. A very good read. Show Less
LibraryThing member maggie1944
Exceptionally well written biography, or memoir, of Justice Sonia Sotomayor. She ends her book before she become a Supreme Court Justice so it does not include insights into that position; however, she does an very good job of describing the difficulties she faced as a child, and the struggles and
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accomplishments she was able to complete. Her writing is very engaging and friendly, and this would make an excellent book for anyone ages 14-99. Inspiring! Show Less
LibraryThing member FormerEnglishTeacher
Sonia Sotomayor is the quintessential American success story. From next to nothing to the Supreme Court, Sotomayor made the best of what she had and sought out what she didn’t have. I was impressed not only by the description of her hard work during her early life, but also about the candor with
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which she talked about not only her deficiencies, but also the help she received because of her ethnic heritage. She is an affirmative action success story having received a leg up where she deserved it to make up for some of the hardships of her early life where nothing was given to her. One thing I leaned in the book that surprised me is how Yale law school where Sotomayor attended, was understandably competitive to get into, but surprisingly uncompetitive to survive with no grades and no class rank, two benchmarks that make other law schools brutal. Doubtless, Sotomayor would have excelled wherever she had decided to go to law school. I didn’t know much about Sotomayor before reading this book, and having read it, I learned the most important thing I could have hoped for: I learned that we are more than well served by Sonia Sotomayor’s sitting on the Supreme Court of the United States. And I can’t say that for all of the rest of the Court. Show Less
LibraryThing member Nebraska_Girl1971
This is not a typical book for me, but I did enjoy this memoir of our most recent Supreme Court Justice. I had the opportunity to meet her a few weeks ago and was able to hear her speak, so that was the driving force of my desire to read this book about her childhood and her adult life up to her
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judicial appointments. There were very interesting portions and some very dry portions, but overall, she is a wonderful writer. Through her words, you were really able to understand where she came from and her desire to push herself to become the person she is today. Show Less
LibraryThing member kaulsu
I found Sotomayor's writing to portray a believable journey of an first generation child. It a perverse way, I heard an echo of a teacher of mine when she commented ( with much frustration): "If you didn't speak such good English at home, you would fail this course." Sotomayor only began to realize
At any rate, I thoroughly enjoyed reading of her life's journey. I admit to getting a bit bogged down during her stint at the District Attorney's office. I also found her flexibility in forming friendships with the rich and famous to be surprising--but that's my small town Indiana peeking through!
Those who have never lived outside of the U.S. may or may not understand the closeness of an extended family, but this narrative rang true for me. Perhaps it has more to do with extended family living in close proximity rather than the family's immigration status.
I was happy to learn that Daniel Partrick Moynehan was instrumental in her selection to the Federal bench. Today, in 2016, I fear it would not be possible for Sotomayor to be confirmed due to the rancor and dysfunction of our political process.
I think we need to switch our national slogan from "God bless America" to a more Anglo-influenced one of "God save America. I pray our Senate will perform its constitutional duty and hold hearings on Obama's moderate pick for our next Associate Justice of the Supreme Court.
I read the Kindle version on my iPad. I am disappointed that Knopt did not bother including the photographs. For shame!
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in college that she spoke English using a Spanish grammar (whereas I spoke English with no concept of grammar--just guessing my way through diagramming, etc).At any rate, I thoroughly enjoyed reading of her life's journey. I admit to getting a bit bogged down during her stint at the District Attorney's office. I also found her flexibility in forming friendships with the rich and famous to be surprising--but that's my small town Indiana peeking through!
Those who have never lived outside of the U.S. may or may not understand the closeness of an extended family, but this narrative rang true for me. Perhaps it has more to do with extended family living in close proximity rather than the family's immigration status.
I was happy to learn that Daniel Partrick Moynehan was instrumental in her selection to the Federal bench. Today, in 2016, I fear it would not be possible for Sotomayor to be confirmed due to the rancor and dysfunction of our political process.
I think we need to switch our national slogan from "God bless America" to a more Anglo-influenced one of "God save America. I pray our Senate will perform its constitutional duty and hold hearings on Obama's moderate pick for our next Associate Justice of the Supreme Court.
I read the Kindle version on my iPad. I am disappointed that Knopt did not bother including the photographs. For shame!
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LibraryThing member meltonmarty
Especially interesting detail of Sonia Sotomayor's childhood in her Puerto Rican neighborhood of the Bronx; how non-English speaking students experienced school, how drugs penetrated the poverty stricken neighbors, and how alcoholism took the life of her father at a young age. Lovely description of
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the foods and family customs that made a particularly strong family; how an unusually strong connection between granddaughter and grandmother gave Sonia strength in a confusing and often sad situation. The book was much less interesting to me in the final third when she detailed all the many legal and social issues she has studied, championed, and represented legally. They are important to understand the Justice today and to appreciate her position serving on the Supreme Court, but just not as compelling reading as her personal journey depicted in the the first part of the book. Show Less
Awards
Audie Award (Finalist — 2014)
Pages
336
ISBN
0307594882 / 9780307594884