I’ve written more than a dozen books; published more than 50 articles, essays, and stories in mainstream outlets; and filed hundreds of appellate briefs. Over a 30-year publishing career, I’ve written on a broad range of topics for a variety of audiences.

My legal and political analysis has appeared in The Washington Post, CNN.com, NBC, and other mainstream news outlets. A list of my publications is here.

I hold a law degree from the University of California at Berkeley, a master’s in English with an emphasis in fiction writing from the University of California at Davis, and an undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania. Yes, I have both a law degree and a master’s in fiction writing. (This is a cue for jokes. In fact, I wrote about the overlap here, in The Recorder, San Francisco’s legal newspaper.)

Law is thus my second career. Before law school, I taught English and creative writing at the university and college levels.

My legal career began with criminal defense work at the trial level, then I worked exclusively as an appellate defender. For twelve years I maintained a private appellate law practice limited to representing people who had the right to appeal but could not afford to pay. (I was appointed by the appellate courts and paid through California’s general budget).

Motivated by a desire to make law and civics accessible to America’s future leaders, I took breaks from handling appeals to write books for young readers. Writing for middle and high school readers is much like writing for appellate justices: Appellate justices want everything broken down and digestible. I won’t carry the comparison too far: Ninth graders are usually more open-minded and a lot more fun.

I believe that democracy requires each of us to contribute. I also believe that when the rights of society’s most vulnerable members are denied, everybody’s rights are imperiled. When I taught literature at the college level, I came to believe that the purpose of literature is to expand our sympathies. Both my legal work and my writing have been informed by my belief in the importance of sympathy as a humanizing emotion.

I have a special interest in elections and election law.

My volunteer work includes:

  • Legal work for Election Protection (1-866-WE-VOTE).
  • Voter rights legal work through the Democratic Party in three states: CA, NV, and GA.
  • Working in a detention center in Texas offering legal assistance to asylum-seekers (through RAICES).
  • Researching and packaging a successful civil rights case against a California county that was violating the Indian Child Welfare Act.
  • Serving as a poll worker.

I live on California’s beautiful central coast. I was born in St. Louis, Missouri, and spent much of my childhood and young adulthood in Missouri. I volunteered to work my first political campaign in 1980 when I campaigned and did phone banking for Senator Eagleton in Missouri and Jimmy Carter.

To read about my upcoming books, click here.

My books have received the following honors and distinctions:

Andrew Jackson

♦Honorable Mention, Grateful American Book Award

Alexander Hamilton

♦A Junior Library Guild selection

The Girl From The Tar Paper School::

♦Jane Addams Peace Association, Children’s Book Award for Older Readers, 2015

♦Carter G. Woodson Middle-Grade Level Book Award, 2015

♦California Reading Association Eureka Silver Honor Book Award

♦Included on the 2015 list of Notable Social Studies Trade Books for young readers compiled by the National Council for Social Studies

♦Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction for Children (National Association of Teachers of English), Recommended Book

♦Included in the New York Public Library’s list of 100 children’s books to read in 2014.

♦A Junior Library Guild selection

Rivka’s Way:

♦Sidney Taylor Book Awards, Notable book of 2001

♦Lilith Magazine’s 5th Annual Selection of Books for Young Readers

♦Included in Great Books for Girls, by Kathleen Odean

♦Included in Best Jewish Books for Children and Teens, by Linda R. Silver

Guilty? Crime, Punishment, and the Changing Face of Justice

♦Junior Library Guild selection

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