Justice Brennan

the long version

Justice Brennan: The Great Conciliator traces the various stages of William Brennan's life: his Irish Catholic upbringing in Newark, New Jersey; his service as a superb labor trouble-shooter for the army during World War II; his tenure as a New Jersey state judge; his bitter confrontation with Sen. Joseph McCarthy during the dark days of the Communist witch-hunts; and ultimately his career on the Supreme Court. Author Hunter R. Clark has used access to the justice's personal files, granted by Brennan himself, and dozens of interviews with law clerks, associates, and intimates, to fashion a revealing portrait of Brennan and the in-chambers workings of the Supreme Court.