Rose Rosetree’s Reviews > Lovely One: A Memoir > Status Update

In the later chapters, Ketanji is emphasizing her family, her elder daughter's graduation, etc.

Sweet! But I'm really reading this memoir to learn about her career, her triumphs.

Unabashedly, Ketanji plays the social game of pursuing a nomination as a federal judge.

No embarrasment, just the pragmatism of a very sweet, very spiritual person.

An inspiration!

Ketanji matter-of-factly, thoughtfully, describes how life unfolded for her immediate family, up until her older daughter's neurodiversity diagnosis - after so many years.

The tone of this writing astounds me with Ketanji's truth seeking, her unflinching honesty, and how fully she shares. The intent seems clear to me: Justice Jackson aims to be of service, in a natural way, wherever she goes.

How Ketanji keeps on going as her elder daughter's problems keep coming up!

How can she and Patrick stay so strong with all the pressures of their lives. Yet they do! So inspiring!

Another grace note, to me, was how President Obama personally commuted his sentence.

Karmic debt paid - as each of us must do repayments when evolving in this world. But how many lifetimes has it happened that a President or King or Emperor would intervene, once that karmic debt had been fully paid.

Food for thought, Goodreaders?

From my perspective, it was a spiritual grace note that this uncle lived in freedom for a year, having won, and also contributed indirectly to some modifications of the Three Strikes law, and mandatory sentencing.

To my ears, hearing this story through the audiobook, I thought it had RETURNING KARMA written all over it.

If you read that part of "Lovely One," you will see what I mean.

Wrapping up the story, Justice Jackson expressed regret that her uncle had only one year of freedom before passing away.

Her reaction is so understandable to me, yet my reaction was different.

The harsh sentence was commuted in the final batch of commutations signed by President Barack Obama, on his very last day in office, in 2016.

For an offence that would have merited a 10-year prison sentence, Ketanji's uncle had spent close to 30 years in prison. Once released, he lived for a year, dying in broken health, in his late 70s.

What an OMG story, calmly voiced by Ketanji. Her uncle, one of Ketanji's father's brothers, had been convicted and given life imprisonment in Florida, under the [cruel and possibly racist, imo] Three Strikes Law.

Ketanji did only what she could. But another attorney became aware of the case and volunteered to do pro bono work to help this nonviolent offender.