You are invited to an intimate conversation with Nina Totenberg as she talks about her nearly f ifty-year friendship with Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and he r book Dinners With Ruth: A Memoir on the Power of Friendships.&n bsp\;
\nFour years before Nina Totenberg was hired at NPR\, where sh e cemented her legacy as a prizewinning reporter\, and nearly twenty-two y ears before Ruth Bader Ginsburg was appointed to the Supreme Court\, Nina called Ruth. A reporter for \;The National Observer\, Nina was curious about Ruth&rsquo\;s legal brief\, asking the Supreme Court to do somethin g to declare law that discriminated &ldquo\;on the basis of sex&rdquo\; to be unconstitutional. In a time when women were fired for becoming pregnan t\, often could not apply for credit cards or get a mortgage in their own names\, Ruth patiently explained her argument. That call launched a remark able\, nearly fifty-year friendship. \;
\nDinners with Ruth< /em> is an extraordinary account of two women who paved the way for future generations by tearing down professional and legal barriers. It is also a n intimate memoir of the power of friendships as women began to pry open c areer doors and transform the workplace. At the story&rsquo\;s heart is on e\, Ruth and Nina saw each other not only through personal joys\, but also illness\, loss\, and widowhood. During the devastating illness and eventu al death of Nina&rsquo\;s first husband\, Ruth drew her out of grief\; twe lve years later\, Nina would reciprocate when Ruth&rsquo\;s beloved husban d died. They shared not only a love of opera\, but also of shopping\, as t hey instinctively understood that clothes were armor for women who wanted to be taken seriously in a workplace dominated by men. During Ruth&rsquo\; s last year\, they shared so many small dinners that Saturdays were &ldquo \;reserved for Ruth&rdquo\; in Nina&rsquo\;s house. Dinners with Ruth< /em> also weaves together compelling\, personal portraits of other fascina ting women and men from Nina&rsquo\;s life\, including her cherished NPR c olleagues Cokie Roberts and Linda Wertheimer\; her beloved husbands\; her friendships with multiple Supreme Court Justices\, including Lewis Powell\ , William Brennan\, and Antonin Scalia\, and Nina&rsquo\;s own family&mdas h\;her father\, the legendary violinist Roman Totenberg\, and her &ldquo\; best friends\,&rdquo\; her sisters. \;
\nCelebrated NPR correspo ndent Nina Totenberg delivers an extraordinary memoir of her personal succ esses\, struggles\, and life-affirming relationships. Inspiring and revela tory\, Dinners with Ruth is a moving story of the joy and true me aning of friendship. \;
\nAbout the Author: \;NINA TOTENBERG is \;NPR&rsquo\;s award-winning legal affairs correspondent. She appe ars on \;NPR&rsquo\;s critically acclaimed news magazines \;All Th ings Considered\, \;Morning Edition\, and \;Weekend Edition\, and on \;NPR \;podcasts\, including \;The NPR Politics Podcast&nbs p\;and its series\, &ldquo\;The Docket.&rdquo\; Totenberg&rsquo\;s Supreme Court and legal coverage has won her every major journalism award in broa dcasting. Recognized seven times by the American Bar Association for conti nued excellence in legal reporting\, she has received more than two dozen honorary degrees. A frequent TV contributor\, she writes for major newspap ers\, magazines\, and law reviews.
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