About this title: Provocative, inspiring, and unflinchingly honest, this book relates the life story of one of Americas most remarkable and constroversial leaders--Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas--in his own words. 16-page photo insert.
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Description: Good. 0060565551 Fast Shipping. Cover is torn, wrinkled, missing or book is otherwise damaged. Customer Service is our #1 priority. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Harper
Date Published: 2007
ISBN-13:9780060565558ISBN:0060565551
Description: A wonderful copy with some minor edgewear to the cover. Dust Jacket has some edgewear present. -, Hard Cover, Very Good / Very Good. read more
Description: Acceptable. Former Library book. Shows definite wear, and perhaps considerable marking on inside. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy! read more
Description: Good. Shows some signs of wear, and may have some markings on the inside. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy! read more
Description: Very Good. Great condition for a used book! Minimal wear. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy! read more
Description: Acceptable. Book is in good reading condition. Cover has wear at edges and corners. Spine has wear at edges. Dust jacket included, and has wear at edges. read more
Description: Good. 2007-Hardcover----Used-Good-Hall Street Books proudly ships from Brooklyn, NY. All orders are processed and shipped within 24 hours, M-F. 100% money back No-Worry guarantee with expedited delivery and delivery confirmation available. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Harper
Date Published: 2007-10-01
ISBN-13:9780060565558ISBN:0060565551
Description: Very Good. This is a very good hardcover copy. Binding is tight and square. Text is clean, bright and unmarked. DJ is VG. We recommend EXPEDITED MAIL for even faster delivery! read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Harper
Date Published: 2007-10-01
ISBN-13:9780060565558ISBN:0060565551
Description: Very Good. Binding is tight and square. DJ is VG. Text is clean and bright. No names, no remainder marks, no stickers. Careful packaging and fast shipping. We recommend PRIORITY MAIL for even faster delivery! read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Harper
Date Published: 2007-10-01
ISBN-13:9780060565558ISBN:0060565551
Description: Like New. Like new hardcover in excellent condition with dust jacket intact, no writing, clean text, binding tight, Christian business. read more
Edition: First edition.
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Harper
Date Published: 2007
ISBN-13:9780060565558ISBN:0060565551
Description: Very good in very good dust jacket. Glued binding. Paper over boards. With dust jacket. 289 p. Contains: Illustrations. Audience: General/trade. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Harper
Date Published: 2007-10-01
ISBN-13:9780060565558ISBN:0060565551
Description: Very Good in Very Good jacket. Dust jacket has some shelf wear. No highlighting or underlining. Gently read once! Unforgettable and true! read more
Edition: First Edition; Seventh Printing
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Harpercollins Publishers, New York
Date Published: 2007
ISBN-13:9780060565558ISBN:0060565551
Description: Good in Good dust jacket. 9780060565558. 4to 11"-13" tall; 289 pages; Book Tight; Dust Jacket shows little sign of usage; Mylar Cover. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Harper
Date Published: 2007
ISBN-13:9780060565558ISBN:0060565551
Description: Very good in very good dust jacket. Spine straight, binding tight, no reader/remainder/library marks, cover/pgs flat w/sharp corners, very slight shelf wear. 289 numbered pgs., . Contains: Illustrations. Audience: General/trade. Photos/other info available by e-mail. Daily(M-F)orders/e-mail responses. E-mail confirmation of shipment. Books stored in smoke-free, climate controlled environment. Check our feedback/rating. read more
Edition: First Edition
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Harper
ISBN-13:9780060565558ISBN:0060565551
Description: Used-Good in Good jacket. FIRST EDITION HARDCOVER; Good condition. NOT an ex-library copy: very clean and bright pages; book has minor shelf wear; tight spine; Reliable customer service and no-hassle return policy. read more
"I couldn't put this one down. This black supreme court judge tells his story of being raised by his grandparents in poverty in the racially-heated deep South in the 1950's. His gruff and tough-love grandpa taught him to work harder than hard and to always refuse government handouts, saying, "It takes away from your manhood."
Extremely bright and hard working, he eventually went to Yale Law School where he became a self-proclaimed radical liberal. He loathed whites treatment toward blacks but began to take his first few baby steps towards conservatism when, during a debate with a Yale roommate about state-required seat belts and bike helmets, his friend said, "Clarence, why would you, a member of society who has been bullied and pushed around by whites, want to give the government even MORE control over your life? Real freedom means freedom from government intrusion. Isn't freedom the thing blacks are struggling for?" This simple logic smacked Thomas in the head like a 2x4.
When mandated school busing became the vogue, Thomas was livid with the government social engineers who would send black children into hostile white environments; places even black parents wouldn't dare tread.
He saw government programs of quotas, affirmative action and welfare destroying the blacks. He said, "History has proven that in order for the people to be lifted from poverty they need work skills, education and business experience. These opportunities are slow in developing. Methods that are more direct and immediate; job quotas, charity, subsidies, and preferential treatment tend to undermine self reliance and pride of achievement." Thomas believed blacks could never hope to improve their lot unless they took responsibility to improve themselves. This was not something that could be accomplished by mandated government programs.
In spite of his developing anti-liberal ideology concerning government programs, he felt like other blacks; no respectable black could ever vote for a Republican. But that was about to change.
As his ideology began to shift from typical black liberalism to conservatism, it set him on a collision course with traditional civil rights groups and, he argues, poisoned the atmosphere around his eventual appointment to the Supreme Court. His refusal to accept "the liberal pieties that had done so much damage to blacks in America," he writes, "meant that I had to be destroyed." And destruction of Clarence Thomas was the liberals' sole agenda when it came to his Senate Supreme Court nomination approval.
I rememer listening to the radio's live broadcast of those hearings twenty years ago, and wanting to put my fist through the radio as I listened to the merciless accusations of liberal senators bent on defeating Thomas. Even through the radio waves, I could sense the integrity, logic, brillance, honesty and extreme pain of this man being squeezed through a sordid wringer in those hearings. It was so interesting for me to now read of Thomas' own account of those dark days.
"One day in my third year of law school I was walking down the stairs and I round the corner passing Justice Thomas and the Dean walking up the stairs. It was sort of a shock since I had no idea he was coming to the school. It was certainly cool to walk right past a supreme court justice. By the way, he has a very deep voice and is really short.
Because of this very brief encounter I had some extra interest in reading this book which was fascinating. I had fallen into the trap of largely believing the conventional wisdom about Justice Thomas which I now know was a huge mistake.
He has an interesting take on race issues that has altered my take and added to my understanding in this area.
While I don't necessarily share his judicial or legal philosophy I have a much greater respect for him now and admire what he has done.
The book seems to be very honest. Justice Thomas strikes me as someone who continues to be quite angry and bitter about things that have happened to him. He has overcome a great deal and is a fascinating individual."
"This book showed up in the mail from a book club I belong to. I didn't order it but decided why not give it a read. Of course I watched some of the senate hearings when Justice Thomas was nominated for the bench. And, in shameful honesty, I also got caught up in the soap opera of Anita Hill's testimony and Justice Thomas' response. Beyond that I admit I knew nothing about the man.
As a general rule I do not read movie reviews before going to the movies. Why should I let someone else decide for me whether I will like something based on their biases? The same can be said for My Grandfather's Son. Having read My Grandfather's Son before seeing any reviews was invaluable. I was able to meet a man I did not know. A man who was willing to reveal all the hidden nooks and crannies of his life. This is what autobiography should be. Thomas makes no effort to gloss over or ignore his own failures in life. Nor does he wallow in them. Instead, he simply tells his life story. Few of us would be nearly so willing to lay our soul on the table for others to dissect. I guess once one has endured that circus called confirmation, nothing else can seem so bad.
I now feel like I know Clarence Thomas. He is a man aware of his failings and humbled by his successes. Justice Thomas you are indeed your grandfather's son."
"I enjoyed this book. Sure, Thomas is no literary genius, but his story is worth noting. I was particularly interested in his intellectual development post-Yale Law School, when he shed his debilitating liberal thought. Thomas was strongly influenced by Thomas Sowell, one of the foremost social and economic writers of our time, a personal favorite of mine as well. Love how Thomas describes his ability to overcome the "black" mindset that liberal, white, elitists have created. Briefly covers his work in the Department of Education and at the EEOC. Story of his Supreme Court nomination hearings is not as detailed as I would have liked, but then again, do we really need to hear any more of Anita Hill's silliness? Also liked the fact that Joe Biden comes off looking like the ass that he is - lucky for us to have such a good vice president!"
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