So much has been written about and by Ruth Bader Ginsburg that I wasn’t sure I wanted or needed to read more. I’m glad I did.
“My Own Words” (Simon & Schuster, 2016) was published when the Supreme Court justice was still alive. It was written with Mary Hartnett and Wendy W. Williams.
It’s a comprehensive collection of her speeches, decisions and dissents up until that time. They are woven together in a way that builds upon each other.
The narrative by Hartnett and Williams brings context and therefore clarity to the words.
It’s far from being a quick read because it’s all about the law. While some of the cases were well known to me, others not so much, and some not at all. The speeches were interesting because those went beyond the law into the thinking behind her interpretation of the decision’s outcome.
What would likely make this book interesting to anyone is the history and law. One does need to agree with RBG’s decisions to appreciate this book.
It would be hard to argue she was not a great legal scholar. That alone is reason to give her words your time.
