The United States Government: The Supreme Court: Books in the HMCPL Catalog

From Library Journal: 'Like other histories of the Supreme Court, this survey describes the origin and evolution of the Court and speculates on its future. Personalities, issues, and important cases underscore the story. Unique to this treatment, however, are 380 photographs and illustrations of individuals and documents associated with the Court's history. A delectable selection of color plates at the beginning constitutes a special insider's tour of today's physical facility. The Supreme Court Historical Society collaborated in the making of this book, and the quality, selection, and profusion of illustrations is of a high standard. Shnayerson's narrative breathes life into these pictures. An excellent bargain for most libraries, this rewarding book demands no expertise from the reader. Susan E. Parker, Harvard Law School Lib.'
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Publisher's Weekly: 'Cox, a Harvard law professor who was special prosecutor during Watergate, here presents a lucid, authoritative history of the Constitution's role in American life. The document has served well, he writes, because its framers said "enough but not too much," giving subsequent generations a continuity of principles that, nonetheless, could meet changing needs. Cox focuses on how the Supreme Court assumed and acted on the power to interpret the Constitution's often vague meaning throughout the stages of U.S. development. Once called upon primarily to settle constitutional issues involving the growth of a national economy, and later the rise of the welfare state, the Court since World War II has been the Constitution's "voice" in the protection of individual rights, he shows. General readers will appreciate Cox's ability to get to the heart of complex issues. BOMC and History Book Club selections.'
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Volume I of "Landmark Decisions of the United States Supreme Court" covers ten cases on school desegregation, obscenity, school prayer, fair trials, sexual privacy, censorship, abortion, affirmative action, book banning, and flag burning.

Volume II of "Landmark Decisions of the United States Supreme Court" covers ten cases on slavery, women's suffrage, Japanese-American concentration camps, bible reading in the public schools, the book banned in Boston, rights of the accused, the death penalty, homosexuality, offensive speech, and the right to die.

From Amazon.com: "Decision provides a unique behind-the-scenes look at the Supreme Court and how its Justices decide cases. Distinguished author Bernard Schwartz, described by The New York Times as "one of the nation's leading legal scholars," uses confidential conference notes, draft opinions, memoranda, letters, and interviews to tell what really goes on behind the red velour curtain. Cases and anecdotes, woven into deft discussions of the Justices and how they function, provide unmatched insights into our high tribunal. We read of the conferences where the Justices cast their votes, the decisions as to who will write opinions (one of the most critical choices made by the Chief Justice), the often extensive give and take of the draft opinion, and the intense lobbying between Justices that influences vote changes (it was Chief Justice Earl Warren's pressure on Justice Reed in Brown that made the final vote unanimous)...Decision gives readers a privileged look at countless cases throughout the Court's history, from the Dred Scott decision to Miranda v. Arizona to the controversial decision in Roe v. Wade to United States v. Nixon (the Watergate tapes case). Highly readable, yet written with impeccable scholarship, Decision shows the Justices in action as never before. Everything you wanted to know about the Supreme Court and were afraid to ask is here, in a revealing work on the institution that has had such an impact on our law and our life.

From the book jacket: "For more than two centuries, the U.S. Supreme Court has served as the most powerful court in the world. As the ultimate authority on topics ranging from equal rights and abortion to freedom of the press and religion, the Court often has been the most vital branch of the U.S. government, creating new rights and protecting others. Throughout its history, however, little has been known about the inner workings of "America's Court."...In this lively and revealing book, McGurn describes the intricate and often erratic relationship among the Justices, the public and the media, taking the reading behind the scenes of this secretive body and opening the Court to the people it servies."

From Publishers Weekly: "Presenting a sophisticated narrative history of the Supreme Court, Irons (The Courage of Their Convictions, etc.) illustrates the beguiling legacy left by the Constitution's framers, who conjured up the high Court without providing an instruction manual. Irons is clear about where his ideological sympathy lies, calling Justice William Brennan "my judicial ideal and inspiration" and quoting Brennan's famous formulation that "the genius of the Constitution" rests in "the adaptability of its great principles to cope with current problems and current needs." Irons traces the development of the Court's peculiar institutional workings from its first proceedings under Chief Justice John Jay to the struggle for individual liberties during the successive Warren, Burger and Rehnquist Courts. In characterizing the Court as a bastion of racism, classism and sexism prior to Earl Warren's ascendancy, he often tends to use extended arguments when quick jabs would suffice. But as he delves into the personalities of litigants, justices and senators (who, as far back as 1831, fought fiercely over the confirmations of Supreme Court nominees), Irons proves himself a master of American legal and political history. He is particularly lucid when recounting how Reconstruction reforms, such as the Fourteenth Amendment, that were intended to ensure the liberties of individuals were co-opted by the Gilded Age Court to protect the liberties of business. Irons combines careful research with a populist passion. In doing so, he breathes abundant life into old documents and reminds readers that today's fiercest arguments about rights are the continuation of the endless American conversation. BOMC selection." (Aug.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From the book jacket: "'Supreme Court Drama: Cases That Changed America' profiles major U.S. Supreme Court decisions that have made a significant impact on American society. Each volume is organized by broad legal principles such as individual liberties, criminal justice, equal protection, and business and government law. Within this framework, case entries are arranged under the more specific legal issue to which they relate, such as affirmative action, capital punishment, freedom of speech, and monopolies."

From the book jacket: ''The Supreme Court' grew out of an historic opportunity to interview all of the living Supreme Court justices fro a C-SPAN feature documentary about the Court, the only time the nine sitting members and their two retired colleagues have granted interviews to a single television network."