My Beloved World

Book summary

Sonia Sotomayor is a US Supreme Court Justice. She is the first Hispanic and the third woman to serve on the Court. After growing up in New York City’s housing projects to non-English speaking Puerto Rican parents, she earned scholarships to Princeton and Yale Law School and eventually fulfilled her lifelong dream of becoming a judge.

After excelling academically in high school, Sonia Sotomayor was introduced to the Ivy League by a friend, a world previously unknown to her. She applied and was accepted to several prestigious institutions, ultimately choosing Princeton, where she experienced both opportunities and prejudice. A memorable incident at a department store highlighted how her Princeton affiliation altered others’ perceptions of her, yet she still felt like an outsider among her privileged classmates. Despite facing bias, including criticism of affirmative action in the university’s newspaper, Sotomayor found belonging through advocacy groups like Acción Puertorriqueña, which championed Hispanic representation and supported disadvantaged students. Her resilience and determination earned her numerous accolades, including the Pyne Prize, Princeton’s highest undergraduate honor. These early experiences of overcoming adversity and fostering connections laid the foundation for her future success, even as challenges persisted in her graduate studies.

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