Synopses & Reviews
A sweeping insider look at the life of William Brennan, champion of free speech and widely considered the most influential Supreme Court justice of the twentieth century and#160;
Before his death, William Brennan granted Stephen Wermiel access to volumes of personal and court materials that are sealed to the public until 2017. These are what Jeffrey Toobin has called and#8220;a coveted set of documentsand#8221; that includes Brennanand#8217;s case historiesand#8212;in which he recorded strategies behind all the major battles of the past half century, including Roe v. Wade, affirmative action, the death penalty, obscenity law, and the constitutional right to privacyand#8212;as well as more personal documents that reveal some of Brennan's curious contradictions, like his refusal to hire female clerks even as he wrote groundbreaking womenand#8217;s rights decisions; his complex stance as a justice and a Catholic; and details on Brennanand#8217;s unprecedented working relationship with Chief Justice Earl Warren. Wermiel distills decades of valuable information into a seamless, riveting portrait of the man behind the Court's most liberal era.
Review
"The authors balance differing accounts of Brennan the jurist and the man, presenting an evenhanded portrait of the affable but stubborn Justice."
--Kirkus Reviews "The definitive [Brennan] biography...a detailed and fascinating account... Both legal scholars and general readers will be delighted with this well-written, superbly documented biography."
--Publishers Weekly
Review
"The authors balance differing accounts of Brennan the jurist and the man, presenting an evenhanded portrait of the affable but stubborn Justice."
--Kirkus Reviews "'Justice Brennan' provides the most comprehensive and well-organized look at the legendary liberal jurist to date. Stern and Wermiel dig below the popular cliche of Bill Brennan as the Constitution's Gene Kelly, all twinkling eyes and glad-to-see-ya Irish charm,and#8221; to reveal the complicated (and quite conservative) man beneath."
--The New York Times
"Those who want to understand the glory and the contradictions of a true progressive jurist should buy the first full-length biography, Justice Brennan: Liberal Champion, by Seth Stern and Stephen Wermiel."
--The Atlantic Online
"Brennan made a huge mark on our Constitution, and Stern and Wermiel illuminate his legacy remarkably well."
--Christian Science Monitor
"The definitive [Brennan] biography...a detailed and fascinating account... Both legal scholars and general readers will be delighted with this well-written, superbly documented biography."
--Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"This sweeping biography of one of the most influential justices ever to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States invites the reader to witness the details of William J. Brennan Jr.'s personal life, the darker moments, as well as those that shine. It seats the reader in Brennan's chambers to listen to his conversations and see the memoranda exchanged with other justices and his law clerks ... In sum, the biography is an intimate account of Brennan's life, especially his 34 years on the Court."
--Newark Star Ledger
"The book offers an intelligent and interesting account both of Brennan's decades on the Court and of the broader developments in American life that intertwined with the Court's work."
--Ed Whelan, National Review Online
"The book takes care to place decisions and opinions in the context of Brennan's personal history, judicial philosophy and larger societal factors. It's deliciously gossipy when discussing how certain justices voted and what their opinions were of each other, but that information's also vital when understanding how the court operated."
--Dan Herman, Pacific Northwest Inlander
Synopsis
Before his death, Justice William Brennan granted Wermiel access to a trove of personal and court materials that will not be available to the public until 2017. Wermiel also conducted more than 60 hours of interviews with Brennan over the course of six years.
Synopsis
A sweeping and revealing insider look at court history and the life of William Brennan, champion of free speech and public access to information, and widely considered the most influential Supreme Court justice of the 20th century.
Synopsis
A biography of the driving force behind the Warren Courtand#8217;s most progressive decisions, based on exclusive interviews with Brennan and unprecedented access to documents not available to the public until 2017: no Supreme Court biographer has ever enjoyed this level of access to a justice himself and to his papers.
About the Author
SETH STERN graduated from Harvard Law School in 2001 and has been a reporter for
Congressional Quarterly since 2004.
STEPHEN WERMIEL, for twelve years the Wall Street Journaland#8217;s Supreme Court reporter, teaches constitutional law at American Universityandnbsp;Washington College of Law, where he also received his law degree.