Spider Woman, Lady Hale
Spider Woman, Lady Hale
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Spider Woman
A Life – by the former President of the Supreme Court

Author: Lady Hale

Narrator: Lady Hale

Unabridged: 11 hr 22 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 10/07/2021


Synopsis

Brought to you by Penguin.

Lady Hale is an inspirational figure admired for her historic achievements and for the causes she has championed. Spider Woman is her story.

As 'a little girl from a little school in a little village in North Yorkshire', she only went into the law because her headteacher told her she wasn't clever enough to study history. She became the most senior judge in the country but it was an unconventional path to the top.

How does a self-professed 'girly swot' get ahead in a profession dominated by men? Was it a surprise that the perspectives of women and other disadvantaged groups had been overlooked, or that children's interests were marginalised? A lifelong smasher of glass-ceilings, who took as her motto 'women are equal to everything', her landmark rulings in areas including domestic violence, divorce, mental health and equality were her attempt to correct that.

As President of the Supreme Court, Lady Hale won global attention in finding the 2019 prorogation of Parliament to be unlawful. Yet that dramatic moment was merely the pinnacle of a career throughout which she was hailed as a pioneering reformer.

Wise, warm and inspiring, Spider Woman shows how the law shapes our world and supports us in crisis. It is the story of how Lady Hale found that she could overcome the odds, which shows that anyone from similar beginnings will find that they can cope too.

© Lady Hale 2021 (P) Penguin Audio 2021

Reviews

Goodreads review by Nigel on October 29, 2021

An interesting insight into over half a century of change in the law and society. In full Lady Hale - Brenda - came from a very ordinary background. As she says she was "a little girl from a little school in a little village in North Yorkshire', she only went into the law because her headteacher told......more

Goodreads review by Rosemary on January 23, 2022

Lady Hale motto: Women are Equal to Everything Lady Hale came to countrywide prominence in 2019 when she ruled that Boris Johnson’s prorogation of parliament was unlawful. We learned a new word – prorogation (the action of discontinuing a session of a parliament without dissolving it) – and glitterin......more

Goodreads review by Nic on October 25, 2021

Lady Hale’s Spider Woman is a must read for so many reasons. A trailblazer, a staunch feminist within a man’s world of traditions and views, a wife and mother, a woman suffering from imposter syndrome. Lady Hale takes us from her early/school years in a North Yorkshire Village to the presidency of t......more

Goodreads review by Rachael on December 02, 2021

An interesting and enjoyable read into the author's life and the law itself.......more

Goodreads review by Jonathan on November 14, 2021

As readers of my reviews will know, educated in law but non-practising, this book was a must-read for many reasons, if nothing else, because many lectures of mine took place in the Lady Hale building at The University of Salford. Unfortunately, I did feel that that it did take a bit of time to get go......more


Quotes

Brenda Hale is a superhero who embodies Parker's law that great power brings equivalent responsibility. Her wise, accessible memoir is essential, entertaining and inspirational reading for all lovers of freedom, equality and justice

What a life, what a story... Spider Woman is restrained, warm, dryly funny ... and an inspiration to all women to aim high... Whatever her title, Brenda Hale rocks The Times

Inspirational and iconic

A feminist icon... Her success story is an inspiration for men and women both - showing that law matters

This book is not only essential reading for anyone who is in the Law or interested in the Law but it is also a fascinating personal story

A compelling account of a path-breaking and inspirational career by one of the most influential lawyers and judges of our times

Brenda Hale's story is extraordinary. She has been a pioneer as a woman... Spider woman and agent of change

Lady Hale takes us on the journey from 'girly swot' to 'Spider Woman' and along the way teaches us about the importance of the rule of law and protecting human rights... with humanity, humour and deep insight

This is an extraordinary and essential journey through the law by the most inspiring of figures

Fluently written... Her accounts of her more groundbreaking cases are fascinating... [Spider Woman is] quietly thrilling Observer