SUNDAY

In a sign of our odd political times, Democratic leaders mourned the recent retirement of Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor—a Reagan appointee who cast a tie-breaking vote putting George W. Bush in the White House and one of the most influential conservatives of the past 25 years. But if you’re looking to find out what exactly that influence has been, you probably won’t find it in Joan Biskupic’s timely biography, Sandra Day O’Connor. After spending a few pages on her infamous Bush v. Gore vote, Biskupic tells us of reports that O’Connor was “visibly upset” when broadcasters prematurely awarded Florida to Gore. “This is terrible,” said O’Connor, and she “left the room in apparent disgust.” Instead of any discussion of how her disgust may have related to her later vote, Biskupic describes her next golf round, to emphasize her competitive nature. If, for you, politics is a sport and the only end is winning, then Biskupic delivers. Readers looking for more may have to wait for the next O’Connor bio, which must certainly be in the works. Biskupic reads from and signs copies of her book at 1 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 23, at Politics and Prose, 5015 Connecticut Ave. NW. Free. (202) 364-1919. (Ryan Grim)