The Nine by Jeffrey Toobin

A fair and mostly bipartisan critique of the Supreme Court during and after the Rehnquist years. Toobin manages to get into the inner workings of the court, and his descriptions of who really holds sway and why are fascinating. Sandra Day O’Connor and William Kennedy in turn hold the keys to the court, as their votes are the deciding ones in many if not all of the 5-4 decisions. The politics of the 2000 Bush vs. Gore case is worth reading alone. The justices and their interactions with each other are intimately described. A good look at both the personalities on the Court and the major cases of the last thirty-five years. - RC