Self-aware and sincere; a tribute to authenticity, integrity, and faith in a profound vision.
In this young adult adaptation of her 2024 memoir, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Jackson recounts how her lofty dreams became a reality.
Jackson, whose African first and middle names, Ketanji Onyika, mean “Lovely One,” was raised to trust in and value the transformative power of knowledge. She is the daughter of parents—an educator and a school board attorney—who emphasized the importance of determination and Black cultural pride. Growing up in Miami in the ’70s and ’80s, Jackson balanced academic excellence with personal development, from piano lessons and public speaking to chess club and creative writing. Her path to the nation’s highest tribunal began after she read a magazine article about Constance Baker Motley, a trailblazing civil rights activist who in 1966 became the first Black woman to serve as a federal judge. Motley’s achievements inspired 11-year-old Jackson and guided her goals through high school, Harvard College, Harvard Law School, two federal clerkships, marriage, and parenthood. When she faced challenges, including battling first-year anxieties in college and the mental and physical demands of Big Law culture, Jackson drew upon her resilience. Narrated with resolve, her story spotlights a journey propelled by duty and grit and the navigation of a system that’s inherently stacked against Black women. With clear-eyed authority, Jackson addresses how racism and inequities shaped America’s history; nevertheless, optimism fueled her climb to unprecedented heights.
Self-aware and sincere; a tribute to authenticity, integrity, and faith in a profound vision. (photo credits) (Memoir. 13-18)Pub Date: Jan. 20, 2026
ISBN: 9798217117772
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Bright Matter Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 10, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
PERSPECTIVES
Small but mighty necessary reading.
A miniature manifesto for radical queer acceptance that weaves together the personal and political.
Eli, a cis gay white Jewish man, uses his own identities and experiences to frame and acknowledge his perspective. In the prologue, Eli compares the global Jewish community to the global queer community, noting, “We don’t always get it right, but the importance of showing up for other Jews has been carved into the DNA of what it means to be Jewish. It is my dream that queer people develop the same ideology—what I like to call a Global Queer Conscience.” He details his own isolating experiences as a queer adolescent in an Orthodox Jewish community and reflects on how he and so many others would have benefitted from a robust and supportive queer community. The rest of the book outlines 10 principles based on the belief that an expectation of mutual care and concern across various other dimensions of identity can be integrated into queer community values. Eli’s prose is clear, straightforward, and powerful. While he makes some choices that may be divisive—for example, using the initialism LGBTQIAA+ which includes “ally”—he always makes clear those are his personal choices and that the language is ever evolving.
Small but mighty necessary reading. (resources) (Nonfiction. 14-18)Pub Date: June 2, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-593-09368-9
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: March 28, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2020
A powerful reminder of a history that is all too timely today.
A beautifully heart-wrenching graphic-novel adaptation of actor and activist Takei’s (Lions and Tigers and Bears, 2013, etc.) childhood experience of incarceration in a World War II camp for Japanese Americans.
Takei had not yet started school when he, his parents, and his younger siblings were forced to leave their home and report to the Santa Anita Racetrack for “processing and removal” due to President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Executive Order 9066. The creators smoothly and cleverly embed the historical context within which Takei’s family’s story takes place, allowing readers to simultaneously experience the daily humiliations that they suffered in the camps while providing readers with a broader understanding of the federal legislation, lawsuits, and actions which led to and maintained this injustice. The heroes who fought against this and provided support to and within the Japanese American community, such as Fred Korematsu, the 442nd Regiment, Herbert Nicholson, and the ACLU’s Wayne Collins, are also highlighted, but the focus always remains on the many sacrifices that Takei’s parents made to ensure the safety and survival of their family while shielding their children from knowing the depths of the hatred they faced and danger they were in. The creators also highlight the dangerous parallels between the hate speech, stereotyping, and legislation used against Japanese Americans and the trajectory of current events. Delicate grayscale illustrations effectively convey the intense emotions and the stark living conditions.
A powerful reminder of a history that is all too timely today. (Graphic memoir. 14-adult)Pub Date: July 16, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-60309-450-4
Page Count: 208
Publisher: Top Shelf Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 4, 2019
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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