Contrary to Popular Opinion

As an outspoken lawyer, law professor, bestselling author, and public personality extraordinaire, Alan M. Dershowitz has been a controversial and vocal critic of the status quo for more than two decades. Never afraid to tackle controversy or take on an unpopular case, Dershowitz has emerged as the nation's preeminent civil libertarian. While his list of clients, including Claus Von Bulow, Jim Bakker, Leona Helmsley, Michael Milken, and Mike Tyson may read like a who's-who of celebrity outcasts, Dershowitz has also devoted countless hours to uncelebrated legal work on behalf of victims of shoddy law and social injustice. As a political gadfly and enemy of anti-Semitism, he has challenged the Polish Catholic hierarchy on its own ground and publicly admonished former Soviet President Gorbachev to renounce Soviet anti-Semitism. He has denounced critics who hold democratic Israel to an unrealistically high standard of behavior while turning a blind eye towards the massive human rights violations of its hostile neighbors. He has blasted the appointments Reagan and Bush have made to the Supreme Court, calling the current chief justice an "enemy of liberty," and characterizing several recent appointees as "mediocrities in robes."
In Contrary to Popular Opinion Dershowitz selects his most recent columns, articles and essays and adds original commentary to present an engaging and spirited discussion from a remarkable mind about the most pressing issues of our time. Readers of Dershowitz's previous bestsellers, The Best Defense, Reversal of Fortune, and Chutzpah, will delight to see that Contrary to Popular Opinion continues Dershowitz's style of studied audacity. No matter how sensitive or incendiary the subject, Dershowitz is never afraid to say what is on his mind and back it up with solid and surprising arguments. In Contrary to Popular Opinion Dershowitz continues his crusade against blatant and subtle examples of anti-Semitism; dissects the "political correctness" controversy; exposes well-meaning censors on both the right and the left; blasts Bush's overtures to Beijing's repressive regime; makes a strong case for arresting and trying Yasir Arafat; questions the fairness of the RICO laws; makes a surprising pro-choice argument for the overturn of Roe v. Wade; wonders aloud about the damage the "war on drugs" is doing to our civil liberties; and condemns the ominous odor of fascism and bigotry rising from such diverse quarters as Russia's Pamyat and the Presidential campaigns of David Duke and Patrick Buchanan.
No matter what your political convictions, Alan Dershowitz is certain to delight and inform and possibly surprise you. In an age when political discourse has gone the way of the sound-bite, Alan Dershowitz provides a stimulating dose of that all-too-rare commodity - original thought compellingly presented.

In his syndicated newspaper column, Harvard Law School professor Dershowitz ( Chutzpah ) comments on contemporary legal and public policy issues. The self-described "civil libertarian"p. xiii is himself often newsworthy as the attorney for prominent criminal defendants such as Leona Helmsley and, of late, Mia Farrow. Mike Tyson. He states that he uses the publicity generated by these cases, about which many people have made up their minds in advance of trial, to highlight vital legal questions. The 150 columns, articles and essays collected here offer lively, challenging explorations of important debates. Divided into five parts, the book covers the range of Dershowitz's concerns: the courts, right- and left-wing intolerance, the First Amendment, abortion, women's rights, the death penalty and anti-Semitism. His thoughts are provocative and well worth reading.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Dershowitz is a Harvard law professor, celebrated criminal defense attorney (he has represented such controversial figures as Mike Tyson, Claus von Bulow, Leona Helmsley, and now Mia Farrow), and the author of Chutzpah ( LJ 6/1/91), Reversal of Fortune ( LJ 4/1/86), and The Best Defense ( LJ 5/15/82). His new book is a collection of his most recent newspaper columns on five topics: judges, juries, and the courts; anti-Semitism; free expression in a democratic society; the state vs. individual rights; and the politics of capital punishment, abortion, and the right to die. Dershowitz's opinions are controversial but logically and persuasively presented. For any collection containing Dershowitz's work, this is a necessary purchase.
- Elizabeth Fielder Olson, Archer & Greiner, Haddonfield, N.J.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.