VISION: A Memoir of Blindness and Justice is the name of the book by David Tatel, retired Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Washington D.C. Circuit. He will be at The Bookstore to talk about his book, along with our own neighbor Linda Greenhouse, former Supreme Court reporter for the New York Times, this coming Sunday afternoon June 29 at 5 p.m.
Now that I’ve gotten the heavy lifting out of the way, let me tell you just how charming and intelligent and fun to read is Judge Tatel’s book.
First, it’s a glimpse into the civil rights turbulence of the 1960s and 70s, then a rumination on judicial philosophy, and then a candid reflection on the challenges of living with a disability. A genetic condition has rendered him blind for the past fifty of his eighty-plus years, but his view of justice has, of course, remained undiminished.
He retired from the bench a little over a year ago, having taken the seat in the land’s second highest court, previously held by Ruth Bader Ginsburg, in 1993. Before that he was the founding director of the Chicago Lawyer’s Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, and director of the Office for Civil Rights of the U.S. Dept. of Health, Education, and Welfare during the Carter administration.
In a world where the news is dominated by evil-doers, it’s a pleasure to know a guy like David Tatel exists, and it’s a double pleasure to have him come to The Bookstore to give his talk. The book is honest, it’s truthful, and it’s really a primer for someone who’s had a life worth telling, to show them how it’s done.
David’s literary agent, Gail Ross, happens to be an old friend of mine as well, so I was very pleased when she reached out to ask us to host this event.
I wish I could tell you there’ll be guaranteed seating, but there’s really no way for us to hold seats in advance. Come early, we’ll have chairs set up before starting time. . .
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And just in case your weekend is not already completely filled, I want to tell you our friend Eoin Higgins will be at the Monterey Library on Saturday morning June 28 at 11 a.m., to talk about his book Owned: How Tech Billionaires on the Right Bought the Loudest Voices on the Left. You may remember we brought Eoin and his book to the Lenox Library last January, a fully packed house that was recorded for the Book Show on C-span network.
Do I even have to say it?
Thanks for reading!
Matt
