‘Ruth Bader Ginsburg: A Life’ by Jane Sherron De Hart

WHO: Ruth Bader Ginsburg

WHAT: RUTH BADER GINSBURG: A Life
by Jane Sherron De Hart

WHEN: Published by Knopf October 17, 2018

WHERE: The author lives in Santa Barbara, CA

WHY: “A monumental biography of one of the most influential and revered Supreme Court justices of the last century.
“Ginsburg grew up in a Jewish community in Brooklyn; early in her career, she repeatedly suffered discrimination both as a woman and as a Jew. Nevertheless, she attended Cornell University and then law school at Harvard and Columbia (after she transferred), joined law school faculties, and was appointed to the federal bench at a time when those achievements were rare for women. Political historian De Hart describes in absorbing detail the behind-the-scenes campaign to obtain her appointment to the Supreme Court engineered by her devoted husband Martin Ginsburg, a renowned tax attorney, gourmet chef, and her biggest cheerleader.
“Since her arrival in 1993, the court has shifted steadily rightward, leaving her a lionized but increasingly isolated voice of principled dissent. Ginsburg’s influence on American law can hardly be exaggerated, particularly in areas regarding minority and women’s rights. The author clearly explains how, as an ACLU lawyer, Ginsburg plotted a successful incremental strategy to attack legal discrimination against women, which at the time was pervasive and took remarkably egregious forms. Once Ginsburg reaches the Supreme Court, De Hart excels in explaining the majority opinions, and later the
dissents, in which she participated with remarkable clarity, illuminating the issues, the competing positions, and the significance of each in language easily grasped by readers with no legal training (for a nonlawyer, De Hart has a remarkable grasp of court jurisprudence).
“The first comprehensive biography of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Supreme Court justice and cultural icon.” –KIRKUS, a starred review

“An insightful, fascinating, and admiring biography of one of America’s most extraordinary jurists.” –PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

“This meticulously researched, comprehensive volume is the first full biography of Ruth Bader Ginsburg.”
–Marie M. Mullaney, LIBRARY JOURNAL




Knopf. With 93 photos.
768 pages. $35 ISBN 978-1-40000-4048-3

Media Resources:
About the book and author | Author tour | Read an excerpt | Download the jacket | Download the author photo | Download the photo of Justice Ginsburg

To interview the author, contact:
Katie Schoder | 212-572-2103 | kschoder@penguinrandomhouse.com