MAXINE WATERS

An ebullient biography celebrates a longtime California congresswoman.

In this entry in the Queens of the Resistance series—the other three books focus on Nancy Pelosi, Elizabeth Warren, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez—Jones and Trotman once again offer a succinct, breezy overview of their subject’s life: this time, Maxine Waters (b. 1938), a “ferocious, fiery leader” who began her political career in 1976 in the California State Assembly. One of 13 children, she grew up “on and off welfare” in racially segregated St. Louis, with aspirations to become either a social worker—many visited the family during Waters’ childhood—or a dancer like the famous African American dancer Katherine Dunham. Marrying just after graduating from high school, Waters soon had two children. Besides raising her family, she worked as a service representative for the Pacific Telephone Company. When a friend told her about an ad for assistant teachers for Head Start, Waters applied; the job, she says, “changed my life and turned it in a new direction.” Involved in the preschool program and other initiatives, she became convinced of the power of community organizing and was inspired to go back to school. In 1970, she graduated from California State, Los Angeles, with a degree in sociology. In conversational prose, Jones and Trotman portray Waters as tireless, determined, and outspoken, with a “no-holds-barred style” that defined her as she made her way into politics. After serving as chief deputy for a city councilman, she won election to state assembly, a post she held for 14 years, taking on issues such as South African apartheid and job training. In 1990, she was elected to Congress, where she railed against the nearly all-male bastion of representatives. Besides holding many positions on the Financial Services Committee, Waters became chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, a prominent champion of voting rights, and an inspiring mentor.

A spirited tribute to an impressive woman.