Lovely One: A Memoir [L0033]

2024 - HBDJ Excellent condition. #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • In her "vulnerable, tender, and infinitely inspirational" (Oprah Daily) memoir, the first Black woman to ever be appointed to the Supreme Court of the United States chronicles her extraordinary life story. "A billowingly triumphant American tale."-The New York Times Book Review (Editors' Choice) With this unflinching account, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson invites readers into her life and world, tracing her family's ascent from segregation to her confirmation on America's highest court within the span of one generation. Named "Ketanji Onyika," meaning "Lovely One," based on a suggestion from her aunt, a Peace Corps worker stationed in West Africa, Justice Jackson learned from her educator parents to take pride in her heritage since birth. She describes her resolve as a young girl to honor this legacy and realize her dreams: from hearing stories of her grandparents and parents breaking barriers in the segregated South, to honing her voice in high school as an oratory champion and student body president, to graduating magna cum laude from Harvard, where she performed in musical theater and improv and participated in pivotal student organizations. Here, Justice Jackson pulls back the curtain, marrying the public record of her life with what is less known. She reveals what it takes to advance in the legal profession when most people in power don't look like you, and to reconcile a demanding career with the joys and sacrifices of marriage and motherhood. Through trials and triumphs, Justice Jackson's journey will resonate with dreamers everywhere, especially those who nourish outsized ambitions and refuse to be turned aside. This moving, openhearted tale will spread hope for a more just world, for generations to come.

From recent Amazon/GoodReads reviews: "This is an extremely-well written memoir, proving Justice Jackson is not only a talented jurist, but a marvelous writer as well."; "This was one of the most inspiring reads I've encountered in a long time. I fell in love with Ketanji and her whole family. Her marriage is a beautiful picture of what an egalitarian partnership can look like. She spells out the realities of systemic racism and so much warmth of humanity too. It's a both/and that left me more hopeful."; "Ketanji Brown Jackson's memoir was a complete pleasure to read. Her narrative is both fast-paced and poignantly descriptive. She drew me in, making feel that she was speaking directly to me. I found my eyes filled with tears to overflowing many times. Her work ethic, shared by her equally accomplished surgeon husband is breathtaking. And her deep personal connections with family, friends and colleagues is a model for us all. I feel deeply grateful that she now serves on the highest court in the land. "