I Dissent: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Makes Her Mark

Ruth Bader Ginsburg had ample experience dissenting and objecting long before she reached the U.S. Supreme Court, according to Levy’s (Dozer’s Run) spirited picture book biography of the second woman to sit on the high court. Bucking all trends, Ginsburg pursued a different path than most women in the mid-20th century when “Boys were expected to grow up... and do big things. Girls? Girls were expected to find husbands.” Baddeley’s (A Woman in the House [and Senate]) playful, full-color illustrations show a resolute Ginsburg realizing a life that includes college, law school, motherhood and a successful legal career. The typeface also emphasizes Ginsburg’s true-to-herself determination, as phrases written in large display type are splayed across spreads. “Ruth objected” when she had to take cooking instead of woodshop in school; “She resisted. And persisted” when stereotypes made it hard for her, a Jewish mother and lawyer, to find work. A concluding spread offers more details about and context for Ginsburg’s accomplishments, especially in civil rights, alongside four photographs of the justice throughout her life. Ages 4–8. [em]Author’s agent: Caryn Wiseman, Andrea Brown Literary. (Sept.) [/em]