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My Beloved World
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My Beloved World
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My Beloved World
Audiobook12 hours

My Beloved World

Written by Sonia Sotomayor

Narrated by Rita Moreno

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

4/5

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Currently unavailable

About this audiobook

The first Hispanic and third woman appointed to the United States Supreme Court, Sonia Sotomayor has become an instant American icon. Now, with a candor and intimacy never undertaken by a sitting Justice, she recounts her life from a Bronx housing project to the federal bench, a journey that offers an inspiring testament to her own extraordinary determination and the power of believing in oneself.

Here is the story of a precarious childhood, with an alcoholic father (who would die when she was nine) and a devoted but overburdened mother, and of the refuge a little girl took from the turmoil at home with her passionately spirited paternal grandmother. But it was when she was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes that the precocious Sonia recognized she must ultimately depend on herself.  She would learn to give herself the insulin shots she needed to survive and soon imagined a path to a different life. With only television characters for her professional role models, and little understanding of what was involved, she determined to become a lawyer, a dream that would sustain her on an unlikely course, from valedictorian of her high school class to the highest honors at Princeton, Yale Law School, the New York County District Attorney's office, private practice, and appointment to the Federal District Court before the age of forty. Along the way we see how she was shaped by her invaluable mentors, a failed marriage, and the modern version of extended family she has created from cherished friends and their children. Through her still-astonished eyes, America's infinite possibilities are envisioned anew in this warm and honest book, destined to become a classic of self-invention and self-discovery.

LanguageEnglish
Release dateJan 15, 2013
ISBN9780307913111
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My Beloved World

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Reviews for My Beloved World

Rating: 4.0957869731800765 out of 5 stars
4/5

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  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    This autobiography describes Sonia Sotomayor’s life from her earliest memories to the time when she became a judge. It carefully avoids touching on her political opinions, focusing instead on personally formative experiences. These include her close relationship with her grandmother and her only recently repaired relationship with her mother. It includes a ton of inspiring sentences that I could see underlined in my kindle version, each of which lets you see a little part of Sonia Sotomayor’s personality that must have been crucial in making her dreams a reality.

    Even though I don’t follow politics very much, I really enjoyed getting to know a public figure’s background so intimately. More than anything else, I’d like to vote for politicians who I believe are good people. That would be much easier if everyone in politics wrote a book like this! This autobiography seems extremely candid and includes many moving, personal moments. I’m fairly sure I teared up a few times reading about how she overcame various challenges in her life. The book was very well written and I liked how straightforward the author was in admitting that she was intentionally avoiding talking about her political beliefs.

    My one problem with this book was how seriously it was written. While it was beautiful, intimate, and inspiring, I didn’t feel much of a personal connection with the author. This could just be because our life experiences are very different, while many stunt memoirs that I read are by women addressing problems that I relate to. But I also felt that her memoir lacked the humor and down-to-earthness of some other authors. It felt a little more professional and a little more distant. That said, it was moving in the way that a movie can be moving even though it isn’t connected to you personally. It was also a great way to get to know someone who plays a crucial role in the politics of our country. So, if you’re looking for a memoir that’s a little more serious than the typical stunt memoir or are very interested in politics, I think you would probably enjoy this book even more than I did.

    This review first published on Doing Dewey.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Sonia Sotomayor is the quintessential American success story. From next to nothing to the Supreme Court, Sotomayor made the best of what she had and sought out what she didn’t have. I was impressed not only by the description of her hard work during her early life, but also about the candor with which she talked about not only her deficiencies, but also the help she received because of her ethnic heritage. She is an affirmative action success story having received a leg up where she deserved it to make up for some of the hardships of her early life where nothing was given to her. One thing I leaned in the book that surprised me is how Yale law school where Sotomayor attended, was understandably competitive to get into, but surprisingly uncompetitive to survive with no grades and no class rank, two benchmarks that make other law schools brutal. Doubtless, Sotomayor would have excelled wherever she had decided to go to law school. I didn’t know much about Sotomayor before reading this book, and having read it, I learned the most important thing I could have hoped for: I learned that we are more than well served by Sonia Sotomayor’s sitting on the Supreme Court of the United States. And I can’t say that for all of the rest of the Court.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Inspirational.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Having only the most basic understanding of Sonia Sotomayor's background, this book was illuminating for understanding her life and how she achieved success in her legal career. In this memoir, Sotomayor honestly discusses her family, her faith, the defining experience of being diagnosed with diabetes as a child, and her ambitious pursuit of a career as a judge. A good book to read to understand the minority experience in the US and the human aspect of the legal system.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I will treasure this book always and am eternally grateful to the author for having written it. She’s an inspiration and an icon.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    The author became the first Hispanic woman to sit on the US Supreme Court. In this book she recounts her childhood, college and lightly her lawyer years, before becoming a judge. She also heavily talks about affirmative action, Puerto Rico's heritage (which I didn't know) and her activist/community service actions.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I thought that the book was excellent. My one minor quibble is that it didn't exhort her own minority community enough to achieve. I have no doub that there are plenty of bright Hispanic people, and her success should serve as an example. If they work hard, stay in school, don't get pregnant, don't get involved with bad people many of them could do fine.

    She could make that point a bit more strongly.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Incredible self-portrait of Sonia Sotomayor growing up in an impoverished Latinx community in NYC and how she got to law school, despite the difficulties. It is very detailed; her feelings at each stage of her life and her feelings about the people she meets are fully 3-dimensional. Her strength of spirit really shines throughout this memoir. Fantastic read.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    What a refreshing memoir by a fascinating woman! Her honesty about herself makes her an endearing writer to read. From losing her father at a young age to finding her way in places where people like her were not always welcome, she comes with a big heart and soul. I tagged this as an author I think I would be friends with!
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    This came highly recommended. It is a great story, and Sotomayor convincingly argues the importance of her background to her jurisprudence. However, the book is more sanitized than I would like---I wanted it up go deeper---and the long quotations from Sotomayor's speeches makes it seem like she wasn't completely committed to this memoir. Of course, it also ends too soon (for understandable reasons), just when she becomes a Supreme Court Justice.> I am struck by how low were their expectations for their young charges. Of one girl, for instance, it is written that she had "hopes of becoming a fashion designer but we think she’d make a better mother with six children."> And though Titi was also the most honest person I knew—if she found a dime in a pay phone, she’d dial the operator to ask where she should mail it—she broke the law every day she went to work.> If you held to principle so passionately, so inflexibly, indifferent to the particulars of circumstance—the full range of what human beings, with all their flaws and foibles, might endure or create—if you enthroned principle above even reason, weren’t you then abdicating the responsibilities of a thinking person?
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Id like to watch this in a movie. Thanks Sonia
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Narrated by R-r-rita Mor-r-reno! Actually, Ms Sotomayor reads the forward and prologue. I wished she had read the whole book; there is a salt-of-the-Bronx quality to her voice that intimately grounds her story. But after my initial disappointment, Rita Moreno more than held her own, la veterana that she is.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I think this may be one of my favorite memoirs I've read in a long time. If you're looking for recent stuff, such as being nominated and then appointed as a Justice of the Supreme Court, you won't find that in this book. What you will find is a candid, forthright description of Justice Sotomayor's earlier life: growing up as a girl of Puerto Rican heritage, in a low income, but hard working family, overcoming economic odds, health threats (Juvenile Diabetes in that time had far worse outcomes), school and university experiences, and life in her early days as a lawyer and wife. It was fascinating, particularly those early days. Justice Sotomayor's description of her interview at Radcliffe was especially great, enough so that I read it to my husband. Essentially, she'd never encountered anyone in a little black dress and pearls giving an interview before, had never seen an oriental carpet, nor a white couch (as was in the interviewer's office) let alone a couch without plastic on it. Then these two little lap dogs came barreling down on her, barking furiously, and she knew Radcliffe was not a fit for her. (Later, my husband and I ran into a pair of lapdogs yapping at us, and christened them "Radcliffe rats".) I was impressed with Justice Sotomayor before reading this book, but after doing so, really do admire her for what she has done with her life, and for holding true to her principles and the law of the US.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    My Beloved World is Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor's autobiography. Her childhood was turbulent mainly she discovered she had Type I Diabetes when she was seven, her mother and father were always arguing, and her father died of his alcoholism when she was nine. However, Judge Sotomayor's spirit was fueled by self-reliance, ambition, endurance, and competition.

    She was able to rise above her humble beginnings and excel in schooling, This lead to going to Princeton and later Yale Law School. During this time, she got married to her high school sweetheart but it didn't last. After law school, she began working the DA's Office then a private law firm dealing with intellectual property. After that was the Judge track. Being a judge was Judge Sotomayor's dream.

    I liked this book. I felt that Judge's Sotomayor's beginnings humanized her to me. Then, I got to her later years, essentially Princeton-present, and that made her back to her God-like status. She said it repeatedly but her life was truly blessed. However, I was with her all the way because she handled it with such grace and maturity. Judge Sotomayor worked her for everything she achieved and will continue to achieve.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Loved this book! What an inspiring story! Wondering how she found the time to write this book though...
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This fine autobiography came recommended to me. Ms. Sotomayor comes from a hard scrabble neighborhood in 1950s/60s New York City where she became a tough, smart, and tenacious D.A. I liked how she goes through various legal and courtroom procedures with clear, straightforward prose since I am a crime novelist. She even includes a private detective at one point while hunting down the vendors of knockoff purses. Some details about her colorful life--I won't list them here--surprised me. As a person, I believe I would like her after my completing her memoir. She certainly would have a lot of different things to talk about in a conversation. I wish I remembered more of my university Spanish, but she includes a Spanish-English dictionary at the back. My Beloved World is a nice change of pace in my reading diet, and I learned a lot of good stuff, too.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Especially interesting detail of Sonia Sotomayor's childhood in her Puerto Rican neighborhood of the Bronx; how non-English speaking students experienced school, how drugs penetrated the poverty stricken neighbors, and how alcoholism took the life of her father at a young age. Lovely description of the foods and family customs that made a particularly strong family; how an unusually strong connection between granddaughter and grandmother gave Sonia strength in a confusing and often sad situation. The book was much less interesting to me in the final third when she detailed all the many legal and social issues she has studied, championed, and represented legally. They are important to understand the Justice today and to appreciate her position serving on the Supreme Court, but just not as compelling reading as her personal journey depicted in the the first part of the book.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I really admire her, and I'm glad I had the chance to get to know more about her.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Learned quite a bit about one of our Supreme Court Justices. This is a look at her earlier life up to her appointment to the Supreme Court.

    Well worth the read and i listened to the audio version which is read by Rita Moreno.

    I was not aware she is a diabetic and beat the odds of having juvenile diabetes in the 60's when there was not many treatments or management plans for the disease.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I found Sotomayor's writing to portray a believable journey of an first generation child. It a perverse way, I heard an echo of a teacher of mine when she commented ( with much frustration): "If you didn't speak such good English at home, you would fail this course." Sotomayor only began to realize in college that she spoke English using a Spanish grammar (whereas I spoke English with no concept of grammar--just guessing my way through diagramming, etc).At any rate, I thoroughly enjoyed reading of her life's journey. I admit to getting a bit bogged down during her stint at the District Attorney's office. I also found her flexibility in forming friendships with the rich and famous to be surprising--but that's my small town Indiana peeking through!Those who have never lived outside of the U.S. may or may not understand the closeness of an extended family, but this narrative rang true for me. Perhaps it has more to do with extended family living in close proximity rather than the family's immigration status. I was happy to learn that Daniel Partrick Moynehan was instrumental in her selection to the Federal bench. Today, in 2016, I fear it would not be possible for Sotomayor to be confirmed due to the rancor and dysfunction of our political process. I think we need to switch our national slogan from "God bless America" to a more Anglo-influenced one of "God save America. I pray our Senate will perform its constitutional duty and hold hearings on Obama's moderate pick for our next Associate Justice of the Supreme Court.I read the Kindle version on my iPad. I am disappointed that Knopt did not bother including the photographs. For shame!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Lovely memoir in every way. The epilogue is beautifully written and at least via this book, it seems a victory to all to have a person filled with humanity as a Supreme Court justice
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Justice Sotomayor has lead a remarkable life. She is very cerebral, my sense is that it was very difficult for her to open up about some hard areas of her life but she did. One observation of hers touched me deeply:"Each death of someone close to me has come as a slap, reminding me again of my own mortality, compelling me to ask: What am I accomplishing? Is my life meaningful?"
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Very readable, very interesting, and very human. I enjoyed reading this book from start to finish. Sonia Sotomayor writes about her life from early childhood to her first appointment as a judge. She clearly details the influences which brought her to adulthood and the Supreme Court, namely, family, juvenile diabetes, hardship,loss, and many mentors along the way. I think I was most impressed with her clear description of the vast cultural gap between life n the Bronx and life amongst the powerful and wealthy. A very good read.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This is not a typical book for me, but I did enjoy this memoir of our most recent Supreme Court Justice. I had the opportunity to meet her a few weeks ago and was able to hear her speak, so that was the driving force of my desire to read this book about her childhood and her adult life up to her judicial appointments. There were very interesting portions and some very dry portions, but overall, she is a wonderful writer. Through her words, you were really able to understand where she came from and her desire to push herself to become the person she is today.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Sonia Sotomayor's memoir gives us a candid peek into the early life of the first Hispanic, female Supreme Court Justice of the U.S. The first portion of the book deals with her diagnosis with Type I diabetes at age 7, the dysfunctional marriage of her parents and her father's struggle with and demise from alcoholism. She shares the joys and heartaches of belonging to a large extended family of Puerto Rican descent growing up in the Bronx in the 1960's. A central figure in her life was her mother, who placed a high value on education. She demonstrated this to her children by earning her LPN despite language difficulties, and by sacrificing to send both of her children to private Catholic schools. Though Sonia experienced her mother as an emotionally distant person, her paternal grandmother's expansive love and personality filled that void.Nancy Drew Mystery books and Perry Mason television shows are cited by the author as her inspiration toward a career in law. Her constant awareness of the implications of her diabetes also influenced her career and other life decisions.As a carry over from her mother's influence, much of this memoir focuses on the author's educational experiences and achievements, which are truly remarkable. Including a full undergraduate scholarship to Princeton followed by law school at Yale. She was married from 1976 to 1983 to her high school sweetheart, but the demands of her work in the district attorney's office and her husband's graduate school created a divide that could not be bridged and the marriage failed.Her early law career in the district attorney's office, then later in private practice are chronicled in an almost case study style. The author seems to use these cases to explain how her style as a judge has been formed by experience. In some ways the book is surprisingly revealing for a Supreme Court Justice. And yet, once the book is finished, one can't help but feel that she has also been quite reserved. I greatly appreciated (and derived some hope) from a section at the end of the memoir where she discusses the importance of making decisions based on the context of a situation rather than rigidly sticking to some ideology. I listened to the audio version of this book which was beautifully narrated by Rita Moreno.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    The first Hispanic justice on the US Supreme Court has a wonderful story to tell - a story of a close, loving, but often dysfunctional family, of overcoming hardships, low expectations, soft bigotry, and ultimately triumph. I especially enjoyed the first half of this memoir, in which Sotomayor shares the story of her parents, her childhood, her abuelita, and her eventual discovery and fostering of her own intelligence and aspirations. To me, the story became less engaging once she went off to Princeton and Yale Law School - perhaps because she had less interesting and colorful characters around her at that point. Moreno's narration of this audio book was rather inconsistent at times, her pace at times hurried and then sloooooooow, but these are minor quibbles. All in all, an interesting and worthwhile memoir.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I almost returned this book unfinished because it was due at the library, but then I got to the part when she got into Princeton and I decided it was worth the late fines to keep reading. Her stories of childhood and her days in court were interesting, but I was most into learning about her experiences in college and law school as a woman and as a minority.

    She's really cool.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I have a great deal of respect for Justice Sotomayor and was very excited when she was appointed to the Supreme Court. I was very interested to learn about her background and her story and was glad to come across an inexpensive copy of this memoir.

    I would rate the author 5 stars for a life of hard work, dedication to the greater good, and for her achievements, but the book itself I would give 3.5. While I enjoyed reading about Sotomayor's life growing up in the Bronx and then at Princeton and Yale, I really wanted to hear more about her challenges and successes as a lawyer and then as a judge. She tells the reader right at the start that her memoir will only cover her life up to becoming a judge, so I do not feel like she pulled one on me. However, my favorite parts were her stories as a District Attorney, and then working in a private law firm before being nominated as a federal judge.

    As someone who studies history, I do feel like I gained a better appreciation for the difficulties that Latino people growing up in the Bronx (or any city I imagine) faced in the 1960s and 1970s. If for no other reason, that story makes this worth the read.

    1 person found this helpful

  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Audiobook performed by Rita Moreno

    The first Latina Supreme Court Justice chronicles her childhood, youth, training and experience on the road to becoming a federal judge. I found it interesting and I was captivated from the beginning. However some of the statements she made about her naiveté and total lack of exposure to or knowledge of phrases, organizations, or issues, just didn’t seem plausible. For example, I find it hard to believe that a Princeton senior in 1976 – even one coming from the disadvantaged background Sotomayor came from – would not know about Phi Beta Kappa or would not have heard the phrase summa cum laude. (I came from a similar background as Sotomayor, and even though I was NOT at an Ivy League school, I certainly knew these phrases as a college senior in 1972.)

    I have heard some criticism of the book because she ends the narrative as she ascends the bench, giving relatively little insight into her life or work since her first appointment. But I have no problem with this. The compelling part of the story is how she rose from her humble beginnings, and the ways in which her various experiences prepared her for that final achievement.

    The hardcover volume includes numerous photographs of Sotomayor’s parents and grandparents, as well as photos of her from childhood to taking her oath as a Supreme Court Justice.

    Rita Moreno does a wonderful job of narrating the audio version. She has an enthusiasm that is infectious and really brings life to the text.

  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I highly recommend this book, even though I think it’s good that Sotomayar is a Supreme Court Justice, rather than a writer. Her prose is serviceable, but seldom lyrical. Also, she is somewhat circumspect in wrting this book, and some topics (for example her marriage and divorce) are told in 2-D, rather than in full living color.However, her story is interesting and pulled me right along. Sonia Sotomayar grew up in the South Bronx; Spanish was her first language; her father was an alcoholic who died when she was young; she developed juvenile diabetes at a time when that was considered a death sentence. She also had support from a loving extended family and an amazing amount of grit. She is a poster child for affirmative action, having gone to Princeton and the Yale Law School. I often find Sotomayar irritating politically, but this book gave me admiration for her integrity and spunk. I also liked the way she identified the strengths she received from her family, especially her mother and grandmother, as assets that helped her in her law career. She has a nuanced understanding of her family dynamics. An example from the book, she is reflecting on life after the death of her father: “A hug from Papi would have been nice just then. I couldn’t deny that our life was so much better now, but I did miss him. For all the misery he caused, I knew with certainty that he loved us. Those aren’t things you can measure or weigh. You can’t say: This much love is worth this much misery. They’re not opposites that cancel each other out; they’re both true at the same time. “