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Hispanic Star: Sonia Sotomayor
Read about Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, one of the the most groundbreaking, iconic Hispanic and Latinx heroes that have shaped our culture and the world, in this gripping biography written by Claudia Romo Edelman and Nathalie Alonso, with black-and-white illustrations by Alexandra Beguez, perfect for fans of the Who Was and She Persisted series.
Meet Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, once just a girl growing up in The Bronx, New York, with her brother and Puerto Rican-born parents. From a young age, her mother emphasized the value of education. Sonia would eventually graduate summa cum laude from Princeton University, receive a Juris Doctor from Yale Law School, and later begin working as an assistant district attorney for New York County. Throughout her decades-long career, Sonia Sotomayor has been driven by her commitment to justice, inspiring young people to follow their dreams and strive to make them reality.
Hispanic Star proudly celebrates Hispanic and Latinx heroes who have made remarkable contributions to American culture and have been an undeniable force in shaping its future. If you can see it, you can be it.
Meet Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, once just a girl growing up in The Bronx, New York, with her brother and Puerto Rican-born parents. From a young age, her mother emphasized the value of education. Sonia would eventually graduate summa cum laude from Princeton University, receive a Juris Doctor from Yale Law School, and later begin working as an assistant district attorney for New York County. Throughout her decades-long career, Sonia Sotomayor has been driven by her commitment to justice, inspiring young people to follow their dreams and strive to make them reality.
Hispanic Star proudly celebrates Hispanic and Latinx heroes who have made remarkable contributions to American culture and have been an undeniable force in shaping its future. If you can see it, you can be it.
- GenresYoung Adult
112 pages, Hardcover
Published September 5, 2023
17 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
May 22, 2023
Hispanic Star series for middle grade celebrates Hispanic and Latinx heroes who have made a difference.
Sonia Sotomayor grew up in the projects in the Bronx. She is a great inspiration, showing children that no matter where you come from you can still achieve great things.
The story gives a brief history of Puerto Rico Island and how it becomes the US territory. How her parents arrive in NYC, and how with other members of the family, they continue with traditions of their island – spending weekends together, preparing their food and listening to their music.
Her mother who is a nurse works hard to be able to send her children to Catholic school. Her mother values education and instills it in her children.
Sonia’s story brings her hardship and aspirations, and what steps she takes to achieve her goals. At the end of her hard work, she receives a full scholarship to attend the Princeton University.
Her hardship isn’t just financial. She loses her father at young age and it takes her mother some time to get over the loss, which has an effect on Sonia and her brother. Sonia is also told that she doesn’t deserve to go to Princeton.
The book explains well the point of affirmative action. Sonia coming from low-income family is at disadvantage with students who came from well-off families and are well-travelled and have access to things Sonia has no idea about.
Outside school, when she hears of some injustice happening to Puerto Ricans, she quickly becomes their advocate. She stands up to discrimination. She refuses to be disrespected and to remain silent out of fear of losing a potential job.
Her career takes her from a prosecutor, to a law that improves people’s lives instead of enforcing laws. Then, she becomes a federal judge in NY. It leads her to become the judge for the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and finally the judge for the Supreme Court.
This is a well-written story that clearly shows what Sonia Sotomayor had to go through to get where she is now. She didn’t feel sorry for her circumstances. She was close to her family and that’s what mattered the most. It didn’t hold her back to reach for the stars, and in order to reach for those stars she had to take many steps and she worked hard at those steps.
The black and white illustrations are simple, some are like sketches. Most of the series have black and white illustrations for this age group, which seem appropriate.
This is an inspiring story of a phenomenal woman, and it’s part of a wonderful series.
Source: ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Sonia Sotomayor grew up in the projects in the Bronx. She is a great inspiration, showing children that no matter where you come from you can still achieve great things.
The story gives a brief history of Puerto Rico Island and how it becomes the US territory. How her parents arrive in NYC, and how with other members of the family, they continue with traditions of their island – spending weekends together, preparing their food and listening to their music.
Her mother who is a nurse works hard to be able to send her children to Catholic school. Her mother values education and instills it in her children.
Sonia’s story brings her hardship and aspirations, and what steps she takes to achieve her goals. At the end of her hard work, she receives a full scholarship to attend the Princeton University.
Her hardship isn’t just financial. She loses her father at young age and it takes her mother some time to get over the loss, which has an effect on Sonia and her brother. Sonia is also told that she doesn’t deserve to go to Princeton.
The book explains well the point of affirmative action. Sonia coming from low-income family is at disadvantage with students who came from well-off families and are well-travelled and have access to things Sonia has no idea about.
Outside school, when she hears of some injustice happening to Puerto Ricans, she quickly becomes their advocate. She stands up to discrimination. She refuses to be disrespected and to remain silent out of fear of losing a potential job.
Her career takes her from a prosecutor, to a law that improves people’s lives instead of enforcing laws. Then, she becomes a federal judge in NY. It leads her to become the judge for the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and finally the judge for the Supreme Court.
This is a well-written story that clearly shows what Sonia Sotomayor had to go through to get where she is now. She didn’t feel sorry for her circumstances. She was close to her family and that’s what mattered the most. It didn’t hold her back to reach for the stars, and in order to reach for those stars she had to take many steps and she worked hard at those steps.
The black and white illustrations are simple, some are like sketches. Most of the series have black and white illustrations for this age group, which seem appropriate.
This is an inspiring story of a phenomenal woman, and it’s part of a wonderful series.
Source: ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
July 17, 2023
This book offers middle-schoolers an informative account of Sonia Sotomayor's life. The book is the right length for any middle schooler & it flows seamlessly. The book covers her family history in both Puerto Rico & New York. From her humble beginnings to her ascent to the Supreme Court, her story is inspiring.
January 8, 2025
This is the Spanish edition of the biography of Sonia Sotomayor. Like the English version, it is just over 100 pages and does a very nice job of telling Sotomayor's life story. She grew up in the Bronx with her Puerto Rican parents. They didn't have a lot of money, they spoke Spanish at home, and her mom knew how important it would be for Sonia to get a good education. She took this to heart and graduated from Princeton and Yale. She is a leader in her field as she was often the lone woman, let alone Latina, in her law classes and workplaces - and became the first Latina woman on the Supreme Court!
While this is not as complete or revealing as her own autobiography (for obvious reasons), this is a reliable and comprehensive resource to inspire and guide young readers.
Text boxes and line drawings throughout give added details and dimension. Back matter includes "Did you know?" and notes from both authors and the Hispanic Stars series. Sadly I did not find any source notes or a bibliography - knocking it down to 3 stars.
While this is not as complete or revealing as her own autobiography (for obvious reasons), this is a reliable and comprehensive resource to inspire and guide young readers.
Text boxes and line drawings throughout give added details and dimension. Back matter includes "Did you know?" and notes from both authors and the Hispanic Stars series. Sadly I did not find any source notes or a bibliography - knocking it down to 3 stars.
May 31, 2023
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus
This was a great length (112 pages) for middle grade readers and moved quickly. In addition to outlinging Sotomayor's life, it gives a lot of background on Puerto Rico and Puerto Ricans and how they have been treated. I hadn't realized that Sotomayor had diabetes, but it was interesting to see how that was handled when she was young. I would have liked photographs instead of illustrations, like Tam O'Shaughnessy's Sally Ride: A Photobiography of America's Pioneering Woman in Space, but this is more like the Who Was biographies or the VIP ones. A solid addition to a middle grade collection, although I may wait to purchase something until Sotomayor's career is over.
This was a great length (112 pages) for middle grade readers and moved quickly. In addition to outlinging Sotomayor's life, it gives a lot of background on Puerto Rico and Puerto Ricans and how they have been treated. I hadn't realized that Sotomayor had diabetes, but it was interesting to see how that was handled when she was young. I would have liked photographs instead of illustrations, like Tam O'Shaughnessy's Sally Ride: A Photobiography of America's Pioneering Woman in Space, but this is more like the Who Was biographies or the VIP ones. A solid addition to a middle grade collection, although I may wait to purchase something until Sotomayor's career is over.
February 5, 2024
From the collection of Hispanic Star books, this glimpse into the life of Justice Sonia Sotomayor is a story of courage and perseverance. The details and timeline into her life are thorough and captivating. A perfect addition to a classroom library - I can’t wait to put it in mine!
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews