REVIEWS

“Exhaustively researched, gracefully written, persuasively argued, and historically grounded, [Democratic Justice] enriches our understanding of American democracy, politics, jurisprudence, and the liberal establishment.… One comes away from a reading of this book with a profound and renewed admiration for Felix Frankfurter and the obligation to reexamine his steadfast adherence to what he believed to be the limited role of an appointed judiciary in a liberal democracy.”
― David Nasaw, author of The Last Million and The Patriarch

“A magnificent and indeed definitive biography of a vitally important but highly imperfect Justice.”

— David J. Garrow, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Bearing the Cross and Liberty and Sexuality

“For years people interested in constitutional law and US history have missed a comprehensive biography of Felix Frankfurter, in his time the most influential figure in constitutional law and an important contributor to Progressive thought and politics. Finally we have one. Brad Snyder gives us a balanced view of Frankfurter’s life and work, connecting them to broader currents in US law, politics, and thought. With this work we can see how Frankfurter contributed to twentieth century constitutionalism—and what the limitations of his contribution were. This is a major achievement that deserves to be widely read.”

— Mark Tushnet, William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Law Emeritus, Harvard Law School

“The conventional wisdom is that Felix Frankfurter was a liberal lawyer who became—surprisingly—a conservative justice. Brad Snyder’s spellbinding biography brilliantly revises this understanding to present Frankfurter as a champion of democracy in his day—and for our own as well.”

— Laura Kalman, Distinguished Research Professor, University of California, Santa Barbara

“Felix Frankfurter was one of the most significant figures of the American twentieth century. For more than fifty years, he knew everybody and he was part of everything; he was central in creating the society we live in now. Brad Snyder has given this protean man the major biography he has long deserved. Democratic Justice is vivid, meticulous, and irresistibly absorbing.”

— Nicholas Lemann, Pulitzer-Moore Professor of Journalism and Dean Emeritus, Columbia Journalism School, and author of Transaction Man

Reviews for The House of Truth:

One of the best history books of the month of February.

— Amazon

“Snyder’s account usefully maps a hinge moment in American political history.”

— Franklin Foer, The Atlantic

“Brad Snyder . . . has used their common living quarters and intimate fellowship as an organizing principle for a lengthy,
lively and exhaustively researched study of their impact on American liberalism from 1912 to 1934.”

— Lewis L. Gould, The Wall Street Journal

“An accomplished, authoritative history of American liberalism.”

— Kirkus Reviews

Advance reviews for The House of Truth:

“For the first time, we have the real story of this incredible little galaxy that included such disparate figures as Felix Frankfurter, Walter Lippmann, and Gutzon Borglum, and reached out to cultivate and invigorate the aged Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes–with profound and lasting influence on the course of American politics. Brad Snyder tells this story with verve and insight. This is a major work in the history of this nation’s public life.”

— John Milton Cooper, Jr., author of Woodrow Wilson: A Biography

“With his deep understanding of history and the law, Brad Snyder has crafted a notably illuminating and refreshing book. Deeply researched and finely written, The House of Truth brings to life a group of brilliant friends whose passion for justice helped shape what became known as the American Century.”

— David Maraniss, author of Once in a Great City: A Detroit Story

“This dazzling book provokes reconsideration of the Progressive era, legal reform and modern American liberalism. I know of no other work that so ably transports its readers into the packed and exciting years of the early twentieth century.”

— Laura Kalman, Professor of History, University of California, Santa Barbara

Reviews of A Well-Paid Slave:

“Justice Blackmun’s Lengthy Ode to Baseball,” Wall Street Journal, Oct. 27, 2006

“The Player Who Hit One Out of the Park,” Washington Post, Oct. 19, 2006

“Fielders’ Choice,” New York Times Book Review, Oct. 8, 2006

“Before You Could Say Jackie Robinson,” New York Times Book Review, May 25, 2003 (paywall)