The Nine

Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court

De: Jeffrey Toobin

Narrado por: Don Leslie

Bestselling author Jeffrey Toobin takes you into the chambers of the Supreme Court and reveals the complex dynamic among the nine people who decide the law of the land.

Just in time for the 2008 presidential election–where the future of the Court will be at stake–Toobin reveals an institution at a moment of transition, when decades of conservative disgust with the Court have finally produced a conservative majority, with major changes in store on such issues as abortion, civil rights, presidential power, and church-state relations.

Based on exclusive interviews with the justices themselves, THE NINE tells the story of the Court through personalities–from Anthony Kennedy’s overwhelming sense of self-importance to Clarence Thomas’s well-tended grievances against his critics to David Souter’s odd nineteenth-century lifestyle. There is also, for the first time, the full behind-the-scenes story of Bush v. Gore–and Sandra Day O’Connor’s fateful breach with George W. Bush, the president she helped place in office.

THE NINE is the book Toobin was born to write. He is a bestselling author, a CNN senior legal analyst, and New Yorker staff writer. No one is more superbly qualified to profile the nine justices.©2007 Jeffrey Toobin; (P)2007 Books on Tape

Reseñas de la Crítica

“Compelling. . . . Driven by the author's assured narrative voice, The Nine is as informative as it is fascinating, as insightful as it is readable.” —Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times“Smart and entertaining. . . . The Nine is engaging, erudite, candid, and accessible, often hard to put down. Toobin is a natural storyteller, and the stories he tells are gripping.”—The New York Times Book Review“Toobin’s sparkling new work is anecdotally rich and clearly written. . . . A testimony to [his] skill.” —USA Today“Intelligent and even-handed. . . . Toobin’s access to the Supremes and their secret little world is phenomenal.”—Chicago Sun-Times“The Nine not only provides a vivid narrative history of the Court's recent history, but also gives the reader an intimate look at individual justices, showing how personality, judicial philosophy and personal alliances can inform decisions that have huge consequences for the entire country. . . . Driven by the author's assured narrative voice, The Nine is as informative as it is fascinating, as insightful as it is readable.”—Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times“Every decade or so, an enterprising and intelligent outsider like Toobin can come along and shine a muchneeded spotlight on the place. . . . The Nine is engaging, erudite, candid and accessible, often hard to put down. Toobin is a natural storyteller, and the stories he tells are gripping. . . . [He] writes about the court more fluidly and fluently than anyone.”—David Margolick, The New York Times Book Review“The Nine is the latest, and by far the best [book] . . . about the Supreme Court.” —Nina Totenberg, NPR“This is a remarkable, riveting book. So great are Toobin's narrative skills that both the justices and their inner world are brought vividly to life.”—Doris Kearns Goodwin“[An] absorbing group profile. . . . [Toobin] deftly distills the issues and enlivens his narrative of the Court's internal wranglings with sharp thumbnail sketches”—Publishers Weekly“A compelling look at the power and the politics behind the Supreme Court.” —Booklist“A major achievement, lucid and probing.”—Bob Woodward

The Nine

Well, as advertised "The Nine" is in fact exciting, even riveting and insightful, but what is not advertised is that the author's strong left wing bias is barely concealed. This is sad. The subject matter is of great importance, and the author obviously put a great deal of sweat into into its writing, but unfortunately, it was titled wrong. It would have better been titled "The Nine: A Leftist's View of the Supreme Court". If your leanings are left, you will love this book. If they are right, you will hate it. If, on the other hand you are apolitical as I am, and you read the book to learn more about this major institution of the american government system, you will be saddened and disappointed, bucause the schloarship cannot be trusted.

Very Human Group

Jeffrey Toobin sure flat knows how to reveal what the court is really like. In his fine book, "The Nine," the listener comes to know about each high court judge warts and all. Sharp character sketches and descriptions of how the judges work individually and together are great.

Toobin, it seems, has set out to help us understand how the court works from the perspective of those a part of it. He succeeds wonderfully in this task. His portraits of the individual judges extends over a 15 year period allowing for him to introduce key decisions made over that period.

This book is well written and read. It tells how the individual judges work and interact rather than telling how the court works, per se. Therefore, the book will be of broader interest. Listen to it for what it is and you'll not be disappointed.

Great book

A wonderful insight to the workings and history of the highest court of the land.

Very long and kind of basic

I'm an attorney, so for me a lot of what was covered in this book was pretty basic, and I got a little bored given its length. I did find some of the behind-the-scenes accounts of the nomination process pretty interesting though. Also, the narrator had an extremely slow manner of speaking, so I recommend playing the book on 1.25 or 1.5 speed.

The Supreme Court described

Although a long listen, this book provides historical and personality descriptions of the 9 justices up to John Roberts. The reader has a melodious and yet engaging voice which helps to show the interplay of the justices, their clerks and the government revealing how sometimes decisions are made. Clear patterns of judgement emerge as justices' tenure on the court matures. Excellent book to listen to in my opinion.