<i>The Court Years 1939-1975: The Autobiography of William O. Douglas</i> (1980)

Few Americans would claim objectivity on the subject of William O. Douglas. He inspired powerful reactions. I start by stating my deeply held admiration for Justice Douglas, a respect nurtured at a distance and from his writings. His writings brought Douglas the man and Douglas the Justice close to many who never met him.

His words show him to be a man who cared profoundly about the world, its people, his country, and the law. Decades of American law students, particularly those like me who studied law in the 1960's and 1970's, listened to Justice Douglas, whether he was in the majority or, as often was the case, in dissent. As an admirer, I read and now review his account of life as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States.