Reviews (3)

Enlightening
This is an excellent introduction to critical race theory. Well-written and supported by fascinating examples, it provides an insightful introduction to the school of thought of which Richard Delgado was one of the founders. The reviewer who found it poorly supported and insighting hate is quite misguided, for this introduction does not draw enormous conclusions but rather makes humble suggestions. It is not surprising that it made the reviewer feel uncomfortable, for nobody likes to admit to his/her racisms, which is actually one of Delgado's ideas. Racism is too loaded of a word and this society needs to develop more vocabulary to describe such emotions/feelings.

Horribly twisted and disgusting
This book not portrays every white person in America as a racist, but does so in a racist manner itself. The book cites almost no facts to prove its assertions that whites are inwardly racist because of their being white, and that radical measures such as affirmative action across the board (in jobs, schooling, housing, etc.) needs to become common practice to "overcome the disadvantages of being Black." The book claims to want to help all poor members of society, but mentions poor whites only in passing. The book does not effectively prove any of its claims, instead using obviously exaggerated and unlikely examples to make a point. This book only incited anger in me, not sympathy for the "poor Black man."

Eye-opening!A Safe and Non-Threatening Introduction
This book will change the way you view race and ethnicity in America.The authors present material and concepts that have come out of critical race theory in a readable format that is accessible to everyone.Although you may be confused about how to pin down precisely what "critical race theory" is (unfortunately, the authors don't really explain the overarching concept very well), you will be exposed to a plethora of new and radical (?) ideas that no other book or class will likely have introduced you to, such as interest convergence, which is the idea that a law will only change in favor of blacks when it is also perceived as being favorable by whites for whites.There are plenty of anecdotes, cases, and questions to keep you on your toes.This book is written in such a way so that any introductory class in history or sociology could utilize the book.I highly recommend it to professors and instructors of these courses, or to the general reader interested in race in America.Agree or disagree with them, you can't come away from the ideas in this book without thinking, and you'll never look at the legal system in the United States in quite the same way again. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Constitutional    2. Critical legal studies    3. Discrimination    4. Discrimination & Racism    5. Ethnic Studies - General    6. Law    7. Law and legislation    8. Legal Education    9. Legal Reference / Law Profession    10. Philosophy    11. Race And Ethnic Relations    12. Race discrimination    13. Race relations    14. Sociology    15. United States    16. Constitutional & administrative law    17. Ethnic studies    18. USA   

Reviews (6)

Interesting ideas for critical reading
I got this book as a gift from a friend after I had started at a top law school that, according to this author, is not particularly female-friendly.I would never have bought this book on my own because I've never really thought I needed "special" advice as a woman, and I did fine in school.But I am very, very glad my friend gave it to me, and I wish I had read it before starting school. Don't treat me like a child!
I only got through the first few chapters of the book before I was so OFFENDED I had to stop. The author clearly believes she is speaking to an immature and unintelligent audience. This is what cinched it for me:"At lower status law schools, the students of both genders are often the first generation of their families to get a higher education, and even a modest middle-class life seems good to them" (14). Why beat up your readers, Hirshman? I happen to be a first generation law student who is very displeased with the attitude of the book. I do not reccomend this for anyone.

Problematic thesis
This book explains how to choose a law school if you are a feminist who wants to go where no one will challenge your views.Hirshman seems to believe that feminist principles will crumble if exposed to any criticism, so she encourages people to choose schools that have lots of feminists, do not have any conservatives (and preferably not many men), and that will never question feminist beliefs. The problem is, lots of people say that the purpose of law school is to have your ideas challenged, and to face and overcome those challenges. Will Hirshman's approach train feminsists who like law school, but aren't very good lawyers? ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Graduate School Guides - Law    2. Higher    3. Law    4. Law (Specific Aspects)    5. Law schools    6. Legal Education    7. Personal & Practical Guides    8. Reference    9. Study and teaching    10. United States    11. Women In Higher Education    12. Women law students    13. Reference / Personal & Practical Guides   

Subjects:  1. Legal Education    2. Legal Reference / Law Profession    3. Higher & further education    4. Jurisprudence & General Issues   

Reviews (3)

Read Planet Law School
This book is pure fluff.It gives nebulous advice than anyone who graduated from high school should know, "prepare for class, read your notes..."The book to read about law school is Planet Law School.
Where's the beef?
As an entering law student, I was looking for a substantive prep book ... and some advice on how to get through my first year.This book offered important but rather skeletal comments ("review your notes often" "read the assignments before class" "manage your stress levels and eat properly" etc).Also, the in-class note taking and case briefing concentrated on handwritten methods, despite the proliferation of laptops (and a 2001 copywright date).However this book did not take a "One L" approach of frightening the reader.After reading it I DO feel more prepared and confident than I previously did-- if nothing else than for the opportunity to develop my own case briefing style and to begin to familiarize myself with law school reading. With this book you could skip orientation!
I spent 5 days from 9 to 5 at my schools orientation, when in reality all I needed was this book.It covers everything, but without all the extra yapping. And it is an excellent source to refer to.At first I wasn't sureif I should buy it because it wasnt recommended by my school, but I'm gladI did.It really does cover EVERYTHING. . .how to brief a case (IRAC), howto take notes, practice tests, and to how to cope with stress and so muchmore. This book is especially good for that first year student who doesn'tknow what to expect. Don't spend your money on other books that aren't asgood, this book is all you'll need. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Education    2. Graduate School Guides - Law    3. Handbooks, manuals, etc    4. Higher    5. Law    6. Law (General)    7. Law students    8. Legal Education    9. Professional Education    10. Reference    11. Study and teaching    12. United States    13. Study Aids / Professional   

Subjects:  1. Handbooks, manuals, etc    2. Law    3. Law teachers    4. Legal Education    5. Legal Reference / Law Profession    6. Practical Guides    7. Study and teaching    8. United States   

Reviews (4)

Partly Responsible for Ruining My Life
Hear ye!Hear ye!Be forewarned!Read my tale of woe and do not make the same stupid mistakes I did!
Law School Bible
This is a great book.I recommend it to anyone who wants quick facts about their law schools of interest.

useful info but misleading title
This book has short chapters about the law school experience and pertinent application issues, but the main reason to consider this book is the section featuring 117 schools profiled in depth.Especially valuable is the feedback, summarized or quoted, provided by students who have attended or are attending those schools.The editor chose not to include students' comments if only a few students responded to the Princeton Review survey, so I accept that the comments supplied reflect a general consensus.At times when opinions differ, balanced views are quoted and provided as well.
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Subjects:  1. Directories    2. General    3. Graduate School Guides - Law    4. Law (General)    5. Law schools    6. Legal Education    7. Professional - General    8. Professional Education    9. Study & Teaching    10. Study Aids    11. Study Guides    12. Test Prep    13. United States    14. Law / Study & Teaching   

Subjects:  1. International    2. Law    3. Legal Education    4. Legal skills & practice   

Reviews (4)

Nothing Particularly New or Exciting . . .
The reviewer from NY summed up this book pretty well.Overall, the book does not offer significant tips to the average law school applicant. I was going at this ALL ALONE...until I bought this book.
I began on my endeavor of applying to law school after having spent 2 years working in human services and social work.No one I had ever known before had ever gone to law school, my parents knew no one, and I had lost all of my acquaintances and advisors at my University after the time I had graduated.This gave me an inside look towards strategies in applying to schools.This also gave equal attention to recommendations, essays and personal statements as well as GPAs and LSAT scores (for those of you, like I, who would like to draw attention FROM the latter mentioned items!) If you want to understand...
If you want to understand exactly how the admissions decisions are made (in terms of committee, admissions deans, etc.) than this book is for you. I agree with the previous reviewer that for filling out specific parts ofthe application other books are better, but the author really shines whenit comes to how admissions works and what qualities will be sought out(intellectual muscle, moral character, diversity - whatever that means). Good book for insight, poor on specifics. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Admission    2. Education    3. General    4. Graduate Preparation - General    5. Graduate School Guides - General    6. Graduate School Guides - Law    7. LSAT (Law School Admission Test)    8. Law (General)    9. Law schools    10. Legal Education    11. Professional Education    12. Reference    13. Study Aids    14. Test Prep    15. United States    16. Advice on education    17. Higher & further education    18. Legal profession   

Subjects:  1. Law    2. Law examinations    3. Legal Education    4. Legal Reference / Law Profession    5. Legal Writing    6. Legal composition    7. Research    8. United States   

Reviews (5)

Was very useful at the time...
...but that time was two years ago.Buy the updated version.

Great Statistical Guide
This book doesn't tell you the whole story behind each law school, but it gives valuable statistics to help you figure out where to apply.The preliminary chapters and the appendices also have some useful information.

The Absolute Law School Bible
If you want objective reviews of law schools (but only the ABA-approved law schools), this book is the ultimate Bible to them.In my opinion, in your search for a law school, you need to have this book as a reference. It describes the specialties of different schools, and the grid comparingyour chances of admission against your LSAT and GPA is priceless.However,many top-ranked schools do not provide that information, so if you'rehoping to determine your chances at Harvard or Columbia, guess again. You'll just have to apply to find out!It's also useful in that itprovides e-mail addresses, snail mail addresses, phone numbers and websitesfor all of the schools.That is a handy way to request catalogs and otherinformation. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Directories    2. Educational    3. General    4. Graduate School Guides - Law    5. Law    6. Law (General)    7. Law schools    8. Legal Education    9. Reference    10. United States    11. Education / Higher   

Subjects:  1. Business & Financial    2. Business Aspects    3. Handbooks & Manuals    4. Intellectual Property - General    5. Law    6. Law and art    7. Legal Education    8. Legal Reference / Law Profession    9. Patent, Trademark, Copyright    10. United States    11. Business law    12. Industrial or vocational training    13. Legal skills & practice    14. Reference works   

Subjects:  1. LSAT (Law School Admission Test)    2. Legal Education    3. Study Guides   

Reviews (5)

Good questions, terrible explanations
I also used Nova's LSAT prep book.I loved it!The problems were explained in depth whereas with LSAT 180 you are left in the dark. LSAT 180 is good for practicing hard questions but if the book doesn't tell you how to work through them what good is it?

Recycle your cans, not your questions
I originally purchased the Kaplan 2003 LSAT Prep Book to prepare for the test, but due to circumstances beyond my control I needed to push my test date back a year.I was completely disheartened to see the amount of questions which were recycled in the 2004 LSAT 180 book from the 2003 book I studied from previously.Basically they took at least 1/3 of the questions in this book from their previous publications and simply relabeled them "difficult" to go along with the title of the new book and expectations of the reader.While the format of the book is quite nice, each sub-type of question has its own section, this in no way makes up for the sheet Kaplan tries to pull over the readers eyes by labeling the questions "tough".

A Good Resource to Have
This is not a good place to start with your LSAT studies unless you have a Bachelor's degree (or higher) in Computer Science or Philosophy (or both).
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Subjects:  1. Admission    2. LSAT (Law School Admission Test)    3. Law    4. Law School Admission Test    5. Law schools    6. Legal Education    7. Study Guides    8. United States    9. Study Aids / General   

Subjects:  1. Drug abuse    2. Drug control    3. Drug traffic    4. Forensic Science    5. Investigation    6. Law    7. Legal Education    8. Legal Reference / Law Profession    9. Narcotics, Control of    10. United States   

Subjects:  1. LSAT (Law School Admission Test)    2. Law    3. Legal Education    4. Study Guides    5. Advice on education    6. Legal skills & practice    7. Study & learning skills    8. Study guides, home study & revision notes   

Subjects:  1. Education    2. Law    3. Legal Education    4. Legal Reference / Law Profession    5. Reference    6. Study and teaching    7. United States   

Reviews (1)

Don't bother
Most of this information is given to you at orientation (IRAC method, etc.). This is basically an advertisement for their Law In A Flash Flashcard series, and other Emanuel products, which they basically try to convince you that you cannot live without. For instance, in the chapter on Studying and Class Preparation, they mentioned Law in a Flash flashcard series or other Emanuel products 17 times. It got to be a bit much. Go to the Emanual website for free if you want to look at their ads and save your money. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Law    2. Law examinations    3. Law students    4. Legal Education    5. Legal Reference / Law Profession    6. Professional - General    7. Study Aids    8. Study and teaching    9. Test Prep    10. United States   

Subjects:  1. General    2. Handbooks, manuals, etc    3. Law    4. Legal Education    5. Legal Reference / Law Profession    6. Legal assistants    7. Paralegals & Paralegalism    8. Study and teaching    9. United States   

Reviews (2)

Basic But Good Coverage
The book may be a bit basic for anyone with a business background.But it is a good overview for a lot of topics and business basics that most law students will cover at some point or another during law school.

Useful for lawyers who need to learn about business
BUSINESS BASICS is a very comprehensive overview of business issues designed for law students and lawyers. Students taking a basic course in corporations or business associations will find it useful, especially ifthey lack a business background. It covers not only corporate law, but alsosuch broader topics as insurance, retirement planning, real estatepurchases, and the like. Relatively little traditional doctrinal analysis;more an explanation of how business works. Don't think of it as a study aidfor your corporations class-think of it as a one volume equivalent of anundergraduate business administration program. On that basis, I highlyrecommend it. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Financial    2. Business enterprises    3. Business law    4. General    5. Law    6. Law and legislation    7. Legal Education    8. Legal Reference / Law Profession    9. United States   

Editorial Review

While almost anything goes in a college-application essay, law-school applicants are expected to be a little more sophisticated. No navel-gazing allowed. But please, no pontificating, either. Like admissions officers everywhere, those at law schools are looking for something fresh. That means, says Boykin Curry, that unless you are quite certain that you've got a spectacular new approach, you should avoid such topics as "Why I want to be a public defender," "I have always wanted to be a lawyer since I was ten," and "What I think about justice" ("lecturing on the law--before you have studied it--" Curry warns, "is likely to bore and irritate the reader"). Instead, be honest, and be creative. Use these essays for inspiration. One essayist here demonstrates his bargaining skills by relating his Peace Corps experiences haggling over goat meat in Niger. Another writes touchingly of his stated goal: to practice law with the same integrity that his grandfather brought to his carpentry business. Read more

Reviews (10)

Very helpful for me
I have a biology and computer science background and was very nervous about my ability to write an impressive essay compared to other applicants with a background in english, history,and political science.I quickly identified with the essays of non traditional applicants, but also learned a great deal from the wit, charm, and literary styles of the other essays.I found the book to be invaluable in my application efforts.Thank you.

A helpful book but could have been better
I personally found it helpful to see what other applicants had written.The forty essays in this book are separated into seven categories.They are essays about: Character, the school and you, important changes, entering the legal profession, contemplative, crimes, and applicants with colorful backgrounds.I found about half of the essays to be of little help to me personally as they were more the result of an applicant's specific abilities than a good essay.For example, I did not find essays about being a congressman's son, growing up as a Native American, or living in Niger to be to helpful.It would also have been nice to know which essays worked at which schools.It mentions the schools on the cover but does not tell which essays went to each school.This would be especially helpful since some worked at Florida State and Tulane while others worked at Harvard and Stanford an obvious difference.Personally, I found How to get into the Top Law Schools to be more helpful but this is good as supplementary reading.

Boring Essays
The book has its helpful points, but the overwhelming majority of the essays in this book are boring and don't stand out in too many ways, in my opinion. I'm having a hard time seeing why the various admissions officers chose to submit the essays in this book--probably because most applicants write boring essays, as even the admissions officers in this book will tell you. I also guess it's because the title of the book is "Essays That Worked," not "Essays That Are Impressive." And I'll bet the essays mainly "worked" because everything else in their admissions files was stellar and they were written in a decent fashion. Read more

Subjects:  1. Academic writing    2. Admission    3. College applications    4. Graduate School Guides - Law    5. Law (General)    6. Law schools    7. Legal Education    8. Reference    9. United States    10. Writing Skills    11. Law    12. Reference / Writing Skills