Praise for the first edition: "This splendid interpretative summary of the history of the U.S. Supreme Court is designed for students and the general public. It is an effective textbook for American constitutional history courses and contains many in... Read more

Praise for the first edition: "This splendid interpretative summary of the history of the U.S. Supreme Court is designed for students and the general public. It is an effective textbook for American constitutional history courses and contains many insights of interest to professional historians. . . . Readers will find apt analysis and enjoyable prose in this fine book."— Journal of American History "[It] may well be the best single volume history of the Court. . . . on the whole, balanced and brings together an extraordinary amount of material."— Political Science Quarterly "The authors, each an accomplished historian, give readers an historical and political lens through which to view the development of Supreme Court jurisprudence. At the same time, they illuminate the various ways in which this jurisprudence has shaped both the law and the larger history of the United States."— Law Library Journal "This book is exactly what the title states it to be, placing the Court's noteworthy opinions within their institutional, social, and political contexts. Its treatment of a broad number of themes, including race and gender, is laudable. This book deserves a large audience, from novices seeking to acquaint themselves with the Supreme Court’s history to legal scholars who want a one-volume reference book in their libraries. The helpful bibliographical essay is as elegantly written as the main text of the book."— Journal of Interdisciplinary History "It is an attractive book for those who want a comprehensive overview of the cases that shaped our constitutional development and the Court that produced them."— Law and Politics Book Review "For those looking for a concise one-volume history of the Supreme Court—its major rulings, its political context, and its major justices—this is the book. Organizing their text around the terms of office of the 15 chief justices who presided over the court between 1789 and 2005, the authors masterfully weave together accounts of doctrinal developments, the political crises that engendered them, and the often larger-than-life personalities of the Court’s most significant justices. One sees U.S. history in a new light, and comes to appreciate the role of the Supreme Court in shaping that history. This is a rigorous and fair-minded account of one of America’s most important governmental institutions by a trio of distinguished historians. It is a stunning achievement, of great value to a wide range of readers. Essential."— Choice Less