Over the years, in this magazine and elsewhere, I have recommended two books — both the products of members of the University of Cambridge Faculty of Law — as reading in preparation for a law degree, but this is the first time I have explained why they are so useful for students. These books are What About Law? (3rd edition, Hart, 2021), edited by Catherine Barnard, Janet O’Sullivan and Graham Virgo (hereafter Barnard et al.), and Letters to a Law Student (5th edition, Pearson, 2022), written by Nicholas J. McBride.
One of the chief strengths of McBride’s book is that it is a toolbox of study skills for a law degree, all presented as letters to a student, Jess, who has expressed interest in studying the subject. This means that it works as a coherent and developmental book to be read in the conventional way, and also one that is very useful to dip into. I imagine that some letters will be turned to for practical advice — ‘How (and how not) to argue’, ‘On doing the LNAT ’, ‘Reading cases’, ‘How to write an essay’, ‘How to write a problem answer’ — but there are others, with less obvious titles, that should not be overlooked. The ‘General tips’ and ‘Avoiding problems’ letters contain some vital advice for law students.
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