Who's read Law School Confidential? What are your thoughts?

[Trel]

I have LSC and am a big fan of the book.  It's an easy read and gives lots of valuable advice.  PLS2, on the other hand, was unreadable.  I posted about it in another thread but I sat down in a bookstore to read it for about an hour and thought it was horrendous.  Instead I just skipped to chap 16 (I think that's the one), took some notes on his recommendations, and said to hell with it.  On the other hand, I've read LSC twice through and will probably read it again.  I even bookmarked several pages including "The harsh reality" (pg 79) and "A realistic evaluation of your fitness for law school" (pg 26) that everyone should read before they make the decision to attend law school.

I'd recommend this book to anyone thinking about going to law school...can't say the same for PLS2.

[ScurvyWench]

I agree, this book was an easy read and very applicable and realistic. I will probably read it again. I found Getting to Maybe more helpful on the specifics of exam taking. They also had a pretty good sense of humor.

[pumpkinfreak]

Talking to my friend down at UVA, she said she's ashamed, but she went for days without a shower

That's a bit ridiculous. Cleanliness is next to godliness.  

I'm also a fan of LSC by the way. It helped me come to terms with the harsh reality of the first year of law school which awaits me.

[jacy85]

Talking to my friend down at UVA, she said she's ashamed, but she went for days without a shower

That's a bit ridiculous. Cleanliness is next to godliness.  

Yeah, she used to believe in that mantra too.  Still does as far as I know.  But before exams in Dec. and May, she went days at the library, and only went home to sleep.

Granted, she probably wasted a few too many hours drinking or watching L&O.  She may not have been the most organized, and I know it can be done better.  But she also went in thinking, "Oh, it'll only be as bad as I let it, and I'm not gonna let it get bad."  Oh, how the mighty have fallen. 

And I never really answered the OP...I really liked LSC.  I've read it through a couple of times, and have already referred back to chapters now that I'm starting to get my stuff ready to go.  The study plan may have exaggerated the time necessary to get outlining and stuff done, but I like how they layed out a basic reading/outlining schedule. Seeing how I'm 100% determined to NOT be one of those people who fall desperately behind in my outlines, I'm going to try to stick to it, and will hopefully find that 18 hour days aren't necessary, esp. once you get the hang of reading and briefing cases.

Basically, it comes down to the fact that I have an SO that is more imporant to me than law school, as I'll be spending the rest of my life with him.  The info in LSC that's most helpful is the stuff that helps you stay on top of the game.  Get your resume ready before schools starts.  Take some time in Sept. before things get insane to start getting together your mail merge info for recruiting in Nov.  Get your resumes out early, before exams hit, etc.  If I can stay on top of stuff as much as possible, not get behind in my work, and stay ahead of the "extra" stuff that needs to get done, then my life will run a little more smoothly, allowing me to continue spending time with my SO.  If LSC helps me with that even a tiny bit, then it was more than worth the money I spent on it and the time taken to read it.

[_____]

I read LSC and liked it a lot... I was particularly grateful for all of the methodologies the book provides, down to the number and type of highlighters to use.  It was most appriciative of the interview advice and the job hunt info...

Personally, I have found Slaying the Law School Dragon to be useful as well.  It is less specific in terms of how to interview and do call backs, etc. But it has a suggestion for reading cases that I plan to actually use... It encourages reading cases multiple times, quickly, instead of once or twice slowly.  (But there's more to it than that as well; I'd just go on too long if I wrote about it all...)

Personally, I think this method will work better for me, though the book cautions testing it first (it provides a case as an example) to make sure it is right for you...

Anyway, it explains a lot of stuff in an easy to read way that LSC doesn't touch.  I'd say that LSC is like an instruction manual, but that Dragon is more background oriented.  It gives a better understanding of the law as an evolving creature so that law school as a place to study law (not just answer prof's questions and get jobs) will make more sense as you enter it...

I have also started reading Getting to Maybe (between readings of Law School Dragon). I have stopped Maybe for right now, because I found that the more I read Dragon, the more sense Maybe made.  So I'm going to finish Dragon and then start Maybe again...

[ct_rdr]

Bumping for Undreads.

I hace  LSC, but haven't started it yet. Can post when I have.

[Stroopwafel]

I've read LSC a few times and find it to be useful.
The book from JDJungle was also pretty good.

I'd be interested in any other reviews of other surviving Law school type books.

Also I've been talking to as many lawyers as I can. I've got a number of them among my friends and family. Most of then say not to stress out the summer before 1L. And the most common thing that I have heard is that it is an endurance race, a deliberate mindfuk (in that they do give more work then you can possible do in order to see how you manage time), and a test to see your breaking point.

Are there any books that are focused just on 1L year? It seems that this is the absolute most crucial of the 3 years. Particularly in that Law Review, rankings, jobs, bar, and even transfer options all come from this one 9 month period in our lives.

T minus 3 months till GO time y'all. 

[Boston24]

Depends on who you talk to.  The attorneys you worked with say that.  Maybe you happened to ask the guys who were on top of their sh*t and didn't procrastinate.  Maybe you talked to the ones who drew the line and didn't push themselves to do it all.

All I know is I have a couple of friends who are 1Ls, and both of them have entirely dropped off the face of the earth for months at a time this year.  Talking to my friend down at UVA, she said she's ashamed, but she went for days without a shower or a good meal.  There are times when law school can very easily become all-consuming.  To assume it's 100% exaggeration is naive.

I think Jumbo has it right.  Law school will be as demanding as I let it become.  But I think it's easier than not to let it become an all-consuming beast.  I'm sure it will happen to us all at some point during 1L.  And if you think LSC exaggerates, from what I hear, you should try PLSII.  *That's exaggeration*

At UVa?!?  That's not what I like to hear...

[jacy85]

It happens everywhere.  Why would you think it doesn't happen at UVA?  Because it's T14??  If so, that's silly.

[KristyB]

I am almost finished with LSC now.  I found much of what it had to say similar to the other two books I've read.  It definitely has some new insight but I found it to coincide well with what I took from Planet Law School.  Many people think PLS is too negative and pessimistic about law school and law professors but I took what I needed out of it and that seemed to go quite well with LSC.  I know many people say to relax before 1L but in LSC they also say that reading the E & E's would've been helpful.  PLS suggests this as well (more like orders you too, actually) so I'm trudging along through them.  It is nice to have an small understanding of what I'm getting myself into. 

Both LSC and PLS also say that you should start your outlines ASAP.  I think this may be one of the keys of staying on top of things.  I agree with Jacy that how much time someone has depends on who you talk to.  One of my friends said she only studied 4 hours a day during the semester and 14 hours a day during finals.  I'm not sure what her grades were, though.  Others I've talked to say that the first year is bad and then it is much easier than people think.  The 2L that I talked to at the school I'm going to next year said that she studies every moment she gets and still can't stay on top of things.