Synopses & Reviews
Updated now for the first time,
The Words We Live By continues to take an entertaining and informative look at America's most important historical document, now with discussions on new rulings on hot button issues such as immigration, gay marriage, and affirmative action.
In The Words We Live By, Linda Monk probes the idea that the Constitution may seem to offer cut-and-dried answers to questions regarding personal rights, but the interpretations of this hallowed document are nearly infinite. For example, in the debate over gun control, does "the right of the people to bear arms" as stated in the Second Amendment pertain to individual citizens or regulated militias? What do scholars say? Should the Internet be regulated and censored, or does this impinge on the freedom of speech as defined in the First Amendment? These and other issues vary depending on the interpretation of the Constitution.
Through entertaining and informative annotations, The Words We Live By offers a new way of looking at the Constitution. Its pages reflect a critical, respectful and appreciative look at one of history's greatest documents. The Words We Live By is filled with a rich and engaging historical perspective along with enough surprises and fascinating facts and illustrations to prove that your Constitution is a living--and entertaining--document.
Review
"In The Words We Live By, Linda Monk has created a treasure--a wonderfully accessible yet deeply insightful guide to our Constitution which should be read and enjoyed by a wide audience of old and young alike."--Doris Kearns Goodwin, Pulitzer Prize-winning author
Review
"Linda Monk takes us on a lively and learned exploration of the document that underlies not only how we Americans govern ourselves but how we make sense of the world. Anyone reading The Words We Live By will finish it with a greater understanding of the Constitution and a new respect for how it has secured freedom and self-government for the last two centuries."--Steve Chapman, syndicated columnist, Chicago Tribune
Review
"Linda Monk has brought the Constitution to life with a book that is authoritative, compelling and even entertaining. She captures just the right blend of history and current events to help us understand why the Constitution is America's cornerstone of freedom."--Charles Overby, Chairman of the Freedom Forum and Pulitzer Prize-winning newspaper editor
Synopsis
The Words We Live By takes an entertaining and informative look at America's most important historical document, now with discussions on new rulings on hot button issues such as immigration, gay marriage, gun control, and affirmative action. In The Words We Live By, Linda Monk probes the idea that the Constitution may seem to offer cut-and-dried answers to questions regarding personal rights, but the interpretations of this hallowed document are nearly infinite. For example, in the debate over gun control, does "the right of the people to bear arms" as stated in the Second Amendment pertain to individual citizens or regulated militias? What do scholars say? Should the Internet be regulated and censored, or does this impinge on the freedom of speech as defined in the First Amendment? These and other issues vary depending on the interpretation of the Constitution.
Through entertaining and informative annotations, The Words We Live By offers a new way of looking at the Constitution. Its pages reflect a critical, respectful and appreciative look at one of history's greatest documents. The Words We Live By is filled with a rich and engaging historical perspective along with enough surprises and fascinating facts and illustrations to prove that your Constitution is a living -- and entertaining -- document.
Updated now for the first time, The Words We Live By continues to take an entertaining and informative look at America's most important historical document, now with discussions on new rulings on hot button issues such as immigration, gay marriage, and affirmative action.
Synopsis
Includes bibliographical references (p. 273-278) and index.
Synopsis
An entertaining and informative look at America's most important historical document, from an award-winning journalist.
Would national identity cards impose on our liberty?
Did the Supreme Court really "choose" George W. Bush as our president?
Do campaign contribution caps infringe on our freedom of speech?
The United States Constitution is the basis for our most fundamental rights as Americans, and is a key element in nearly every major legal and political debate ever argued. But how many of us actually understand the language used by our Founding Fathers?
Now Linda R. Monk, an award-winning author and journalist, takes us through the Constitution, line by line, to help us comprehend this amazing document. From the Preamble, which she analyzes with inspiration from Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Charlton Heston, and James Madison, to each and every amendment, Monk enlightens us by offering insight, legal expertise, surprising facts and trivia, opposing interpretations, and historical anecdotes to breathe life into this provocative and hallowed document.
About the Author
Linda R. Monk has twice won the American Bar Association's Silver Gavel Award, it's highest honor for public education about law. Her book, The Bill of Rights: A User's Guide, won the Silver Gavel, and Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg has written the Foreword to the new third edition (2000). Ms. Monk also won the Silver Gavel in 1998 for her work on the documentary Profiles of Freedom: A Living Bill of Rights. A graduate of Harvard Law School with an emphasis in constitutional law, Ms. Monk has written numerous articles on legal and historical issues for newspapers nationwide--among them the Chicago Tribune, Washington Post, Baltimore Sun and Des Moines Register. She is also the editor of Ordinary Americans: U.S. History Through the Eyes of Everyday People, a collection of 200 first-person accounts of history as the average American actually lived it. She lives in Alexandria, Virginia.