Scalia

Rise to Greatness: 1936-1986

By: James Rosen

Narrated by: John McLain

Length: 13 hrs and 32 mins

Publisher's summary

The bestselling historian and journalist James Rosen provides the first comprehensive account of the brilliant and combative Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia, whose philosophy and judicial opinions defined our legal era.

With SCALIA: Rise to Greatness, 1936-1986, the opening installment in a two-volume biography, acclaimed reporter and bestselling historian James Rosen provides the first comprehensive account of the life of Justice Antonin Scalia, whose singular career in government—including three decades on the Supreme Court—shaped American law and society in the twenty-first century.

A decade in the making, Rise to Greatness tells the story of the kid from Queens who became the first Italian American on the Court and one of the most profoundly influential figures of our time. This volume takes us from Scalia’s birth to his ascension to the Court, providing a fresh and probing look at his Catholic upbringing and education; his stints in academia and published works, some of them obscure and long-overlooked; and his service in the Nixon and Ford administrations, when Scalia played a central role in reforming the U.S. intelligence community and in the approval of sensitive covert operations.

Deeply researched and based on unparalleled access to documentary and personal sources, and written with an intellectual rigor and wit befitting its subject, Rosen’s narrative sounds like a novel while presenting startling new insight into the life, mind, career, faith, and legacy of the man whom family and friends called “Nino.” The result is a compelling portrait of an American legend with whom the author personally corresponded, broke bread, drank wine, and braved the streets of the capital as a (nervous) passenger in the justice’s famously speedy BMW.

Rosen has unearthed previously unpublished writing from every phase of Scalia’s career, including private Supreme Court emails, and has interviewed Scalia’s family, classmates, students, colleagues from the Nixon, Ford, and Reagan administrations, priests, poker buddies, hunting companions, and fellow judges and justices.

Rise to Greatness is a landmark of modern biography, a rich and moving study, accessible to lay listeners, that brings to life a towering figure of American history. It is the book Scalia fans, and all citizens interested in history and the law, have long awaited.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2023 James Rosen (P)2023 Impact Audio

Enlightening

Well written and comprehensive. Fair, delightful, intriguing. I've listened to it twice!
Scalia guided and changed this nation for the best. A true North Star. Rosen is on point!

Reccomend

Great review of recent history of Supreme Court. S<. ilea was an amazing American. Wish we had more like him. The reader was especially gifted.

A Life Well Lived

Finally, a truthful, unbiased biography of a great jurist. Previous authors demonstrated they each had a hidden agenda in their biographies, leaving things out, partial presentations, and outright untruths.

I am eagerly awaiting volume two.

And Ruth Bader Ginsburg

I’m looking forward to volume II. I suspect it will have how judge Scalia and Judge Ginsberg continue to get along. Well, I think it is sad, that politics intervened, even for President Reagan. He should’ve chosen judge Scalia to be the chief justice of the Supreme Court.

Loved Scalia

This was a great read. At 74 almost every historical event that was discussed I had some familiarity with, which made the book ever more special to me. A must read for everyone regardless of age.

An enjoyable audiobook

Enjoyable hearing about Scalia from start to Bench. Some of the anecdotes were pretty funny while others disconcerting. Over all good book and very informative.

Outstanding Book about an Outstanding American

“Scalia A Rise to Greatness” is an outstanding book about an outstanding American! Experienced as an Audio Book.

Fascinating!

I loved this book! Deeply researched and retold with detailed care. An amazing tribute to the most incredible legal mind of our time. This book is truly a gift to American history.

Great biography!

James Rosen did a superb job of bringing the life of Justice Scalia to those who only knew of him from a distance during his time on the Supreme Court. There’s so much more to the man and his story, and this book makes it accessible to all.

Good but not great

This was a good biography. It could have been great if the author stopped idolizing Scalia. It would also be 10% shorter if he stopped criticizing other Scalia biographers.