Ketanji: Justice Jackson's Journey to the U.S. Supreme Court

Ages 4 to 8, Grades P to 3

This inspiring picture book biography—created by two Coretta Scott King Honor winners—tells the story of Ketanji Brown Jackson, who is making history as the first Black woman to serve as a Supreme Court Justice.

Ketanji Brown Jackson is no stranger to people trying to stand in her way.When a guidance counselor told her she should set her sights lower than Harvard, she decided to go to Harvard for her undergraduate degree and her law degree.When she became a public defender and was confronted with systemic inequalities in the justice system, she used her legal skills to advocate for people who needed her help, but couldn’t afford an attorney.Ketanji’s path to the Supreme Court may have been unique—she’s the only current Justice to have been a public defender and one of just a few who went to public school—but it is distinctively powerful and heartening, and will present a generation of readers with a new inspirational figure. Margaret A. Edwards Award winner, Printz Honor winner, and National Book Award finalist Kekla Magoon and Coretta Scott King Honoree Laura Freeman reunite to bring Ketanji’s incredible achievements to life in this stirring picture book biography.

About the Author

Kekla Magoon is the author of many novels and nonfiction books for young readers, including The Season of Styx Malone, The Rock and the River, How It Went Down, and Revolution in Our Time: The Black Panther Party’s Promise to the People. She has received the Margaret A. Edwards Award, the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, the John Steptoe New Talent Award, three Coretta Scott King Honors, the Walter Award Honor, an NAACP Image Award, a Printz Honor, and been a finalist for the National Book Award. Kekla holds a B.A. from Northwestern University and an M.F.A. in Writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts, where she now serves on faculty. Visit her online at keklamagoon.com.Laura Freeman is a Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honoree. Her work has been recognized with an NAACP Image Award, reached the New York Times bestseller list, and been honored by the Society of Illustrators and the Georgia Center for the Book and is in the Annuals for Communication Arts and American Illustration.In addition to illustrating books, Laura’s art can be found on a wide range of products, from dishes and textiles to greeting cards, and her editorial images are frequently seen in the New York Times and other periodicals. She invites you to visit her website, www.lfreemanart.com, to discover more about her.