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Ok so my dad is a teacher and he gets barnes and noble gift cards as presents and he normally gives them to me...so I'm going to buy some books that I'm interested in before my 1L for my own pleasure, but I won't mind buying ONE book as a preface into law school. My question is, what book, what ONE book, would you recommend as helpful above all others for going into 1L.

one book to rule them all?

One book to find them

I've had Planet Law School 2 suggested to me by some current students

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the consensus seems to be getting to yes

but what the hell do i know...i'm just a lowly 0L

Sean Bateman wrote:the consensus seems to be getting to yes

but what the hell do i know...i'm just a lowly 0L

...i think you mean "getting to maybe"

sckon wrote:

Sean Bateman wrote:the consensus seems to be getting to yes

but what the hell do i know...i'm just a lowly 0L

...i think you mean "getting to maybe"

fail.
you are correct sir.

see, what'd i say. nothing but a lowly 0L

sckon wrote:

Sean Bateman wrote:the consensus seems to be getting to yes

but what the hell do i know...i'm just a lowly 0L

...i think you mean "getting to maybe"

+1 on the suggestion. To be fair, it's the only one I've read, but I already can see why it will make a tremendous difference in how I approach studying and test taking. It'll keep me from making a lot of mistakes I know I wouldn't have figured out until after 1st semester grades.

sckon wrote:

Sean Bateman wrote:the consensus seems to be getting to yes

but what the hell do i know...i'm just a lowly 0L

...i think you mean "getting to maybe"

"getting to yes" is the sequel and it is written by Denny Crane.

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Kiersten1985 wrote:

sckon wrote:

Sean Bateman wrote:the consensus seems to be getting to yes

but what the hell do i know...i'm just a lowly 0L

...i think you mean "getting to maybe"

+1 on the suggestion. To be fair, it's the only one I've read, but I already can see why it will make a tremendous difference in how I approach studying and test taking. It'll keep me from making a lot of mistakes I know I wouldn't have figured out until after 1st semester grades.

+1

Thinking Like a Lawyer by Shauer is good too. Its a bit more centered on being a lawyer and not so narrowly focused on law school. But, seeing as how we are going to law school, I would recommend Getting to Maybe first then Thinking Like a Lawyer.

the lantern wrote:one book to rule them all?

savesthedayajb wrote:One book to find them

One book to bring them all and in the darkness bind them

I've been preparing by reading Getting to Maybe, due to all the praise for it here.

The other week I was hanging out with some friends, and one them, a 3L in good shape to graduate 1st or 2nd in his class saw it and said "I've read that, pretty useless." I asked him what he thought I should be reading to get ready for law school. "One L" by Scott Turrow

"isn't that just a narrative? how is that going to get me prepared?"

"It'll show you what you're up against."

I'm on the last 50 pages of One L and it is amazing/eye opening/frightening. But most of all, I do feel much more prepared than I was reading GTM.

I thought One L made law school seem way harder than it actually is. I didn't know of any groups that made such complex outlines that sections had to be "assigned" like in that book (IIRC).

get a book on meditation / de-stressing techniques

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When you finish it, you can print a certificate that says you're a poop expert.

jonas586 wrote:

the lantern wrote:one book to rule them all?

savesthedayajb wrote:One book to find them

One book to bring them all and in the darkness bind them

In the land of law school where the darkness lies.

Following Getting to Maybe strictly would have netted you some poor grades on at least 3/4 of my exams. The type of legal analysis it teaches you to do will only work on a specific kind of exam (and for a specific kind of professor) and the entire book can be summed up in a few sentences. GTM is ridiculously overrated on here. Save yourself some time. If you already own the book, just read the chapter on policy questions and be done with it.

And at 0Ls recommending it to each other. I'm looking at you, Kiersten.

I read Law School Confidential, One L, Getting to Maybe, and The Legal Analyst.

I recommend LSC. Great, broad overview of what law school is like and what it takes to succeed.

The Legal Analyst was a good introduction to some basic law & econ principles. I liked it. It made many of the policy rationales behind certain rules in the traditional common law courses (Torts, Ks, Property) easier to grasp and work with.

One L was a fun read but could easily freak you out. It's a great example of how NOT to go about your first year of law school.

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I also read LSC and found it to be a pretty good overview, although I am a 0L so I can't really say how practical everything it contains actually is. Probably worth the money, though.

Getting to Maybe is probably the most recommended book on here. I don't think you can go wrong if you pick that one up.

thanks guys, i appreciate the help.