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Supreme Court Justice Alito explains how justices or judges should interpret the law and how he thinks the U.S. constitutional system should work. His book adapts speeches he delivered from 2007 to 2025 and opens by outlining the dual basis of his jurisprudence. First is originalism—the theory that the Constitution should be interpreted to mean what its words were understood to signify when adopted. The second is textualism—the view that statutes should be interpreted based on their plain meaning within their historical and legal context. With examples of theory in practice, he reviews cases and outcomes that illuminate, if not explain, his votes on issues. He traces judicial review and its reach beyond the U.S., offers lessons from baseball, distinguishing judging cases from umpiring games, and opines on the COVID pandemic's unprecedented restrictions. He insists on the centrality of religious liberty and a government friendly to religion. He laments bitter factionalism and lambasts Congress and state legislatures for shirking their responsibilities by ceding power to executive officers and agencies. VERDICT A readable and often engaging analysis and discussion for readers interested in seeing where Justice Alito is coming from and his vision of the United States, present and future.—Thomas Davis