First

Sandra Day O'Connor

By: Evan Thomas

Narrated by: Kirsten Potter

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The intimate, inspiring, and authoritative biography of Sandra Day O’Connor, America’s first female Supreme Court justice, drawing on exclusive interviews and first-time access to Justice O’Connor’s archives—as seen on PBS’s American Experience

“She’s a hero for our time, and this is the biography for our time.”—Walter Isaacson

Finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize • Named One of the Best Books of the Year by NPR and The Washington Post

She was born in 1930 in El Paso and grew up on a cattle ranch in Arizona. At a time when women were expected to be homemakers, she set her sights on Stanford University. When she graduated near the top of her law school class in 1952, no firm would even interview her. But Sandra Day O’Connor’s story is that of a woman who repeatedly shattered glass ceilings—doing so with a blend of grace, wisdom, humor, understatement, and cowgirl toughness.

She became the first ever female majority leader of a state senate. As a judge on the Arizona Court of Appeals, she stood up to corrupt lawyers and humanized the law. When she arrived at the United States Supreme Court, appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1981, she began a quarter-century tenure on the Court, hearing cases that ultimately shaped American law. Diagnosed with cancer at fifty-eight, and caring for a husband with Alzheimer’s, O’Connor endured every difficulty with grit and poise.

Women and men who want to be leaders and be first in their own lives—who want to learn when to walk away and when to stand their ground—will be inspired by O’Connor’s example. This is a remarkably vivid and personal portrait of a woman who loved her family, who believed in serving her country, and who, when she became the most powerful woman in America, built a bridge forward for all women.

Praise for First

“Cinematic . . . poignant . . . illuminating and eminently readable . . . First gives us a real sense of Sandra Day O’Connor the human being. . . . Thomas gives O’Connor the credit she deserves.”—The Washington Post

“[A] fascinating and revelatory biography . . . a richly detailed picture of [O’Connor’s] personal and professional life . . . Evan Thomas’s book is not just a biography of a remarkable woman, but an elegy for a worldview that, in law as well as politics, has disappeared from the nation’s main stages.”—The New York Times Book Review

An interesting story

I enjoyed the book, more so toward the end. Her story rests on the connections and white privilege of her life, especially Stanford on. Working with and dating Rehnquist, living near Barry Goldwater and working in his campaign, state connections, etc. A relatively short stint as a judge before going to the Supreme Court. She had more experience as a political operative and politician. Her SCOTUS record as a tinkerer and minimalist was an approach with both admirers and detractors. She seemed to become more centrist and liberal through the years. It’s telling that she wanted to retire during a GOP administration and then bemoaned the appointment of Alito to replace her. And that she did not respect Scalia, or vice versa, as far as jurisprudence. It’s amazing she didn’t have the foresight then to retire during a Democrat administration! It was sad to see her leave for John, a short lived and futile sacrifice, but that was another example of her stubbornness at times. She realized her great mistake later. As her total picture evolved, I became to appreciate her more and am glad I finished the entire story. She was a centrist figure who was probably the best choice at the time to serve as the First.

A lot I didn't know about her

Although I celebrated the first female Justice, I was not a fan of the party who appointed her. I knew little about her in a time that SCOTUS appointments were less fraught and drew less wide ranging attention. This was an interesting biography about a woman I have come to admire and still think she should NOT have stepped down.

History of SOC

Wonderful story of SOC! Loved this journey through the history of the first female Supreme Court justice. Could listen to it again

History of a new Breed

Excellent! Lots of history about Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'connor and the path she chose to lead as a leader. Absolutely love it.

Enthralling

This book was well written and truly fascinating. I’m thankful to have listened and I’m glad to know more about the incredibly life of O’Connor. Truly inspirational