The Bill of Rights
A USER’S GUIDE
In this newly revised edition of The Bill of Rights: A User’s Guide, award-winning author and constitutional scholar Linda R. Monk explores the remarkable history of the first ten amendments to the Constitution. With a foreword by Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the book analyzes each amendment, the Supreme Court’s interpretation of every right, and the power of citizens to enforce those rights. The book also examines the Fourteenth Amendment, which nationalized the Bill of Rights and extended new rights of equality to all. The Bill of Rights: A User’s Guide won the American Bar Association’s Silver Gavel Award, its highest honor for public education about the law. Learn more…
“It’s hard to make the Bill of Rights accessible to everyone without talking down to anyone, but this fine book manages to do just that.”
—Laurence H. Tribe, Harvard Law School
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Linda R. Monk, J.D., is a constitutional scholar, and nationally award-winning author, whose passion is the U.S. Constitution and the American story. Her trademark is using an accessible, narrative style to explore deep truths about our constitutional democracy. A graduate of Harvard Law School, she conveys this depth of knowledge in a manner that is relevant to everyday citizens. As a result, she twice won the American Bar Association’s Silver Gavel Award, its highest honor for public education about the law. Her work has been featured on PBS, Voice of America, MSNBC, C-SPAN, and NPR, and she writes commentary for newspapers nationwide. She also presents seminars and lectures for a variety of audiences—including the Pentagon, National Archives, Fulbright Scholars, Smithsonian, George Washington’s Mount Vernon, and National History Day. Learn more…
IN THE NEWS
The Constitution EXPLAINED
This series of 35 videos was created by the Center for Civic Education in partnership with iCivics and constitutional scholar Linda R. Monk, JD, to explain key aspects of the U.S. Constitution in everyday language and make our nation’s founding document accessible to everyone. Select a topic from the dropdown menu below or simply scroll down and explore!
You can also view our virtual launch event featuring constitutional scholar Linda R. Monk, Julie Silverbrook of iCivics, Christopher R. Riano of the Center for Civic Education, and moderator and award-winning civics teacher Shelina Warren. Learn more…
National Constitution Center Scholar Exchange
The Bill of Rights with Linda Monk