There are a lot of awful law school advice books out there, many of them filled with rumors, inaccuracies, and misinformation. So it's refreshing to read Anna's book. She knows this stuff cold, as former dean of admissions at U. of Chicago, and she writes about it with clarity and levelheadedness. She's a smart, witty, articulate writer. The book is a pleasure to read, and the advice she gives is sound. My only complaint, really, is that the book sometimes feels unfinished; I understand Anna wanted to keep the book to a manageable length, but some of the chapters seem incomplete. But that's a small complaint. Read this side by side with Richard Montauk's "How to Get into the Top Law Schools," and you'll be set.

This is a great general overview, preparation, and reference for working on law school applications. The book provides overview and advice on interviews, how to choose a law school, and discusses briefly the numbers (lsat, gpa), but I found the candid advice and examples regarding the resume, personal statement, and recommendations the most valuable. It's easy to read and much less intimidating than some of the other popular and much lengthier books and covered most of the questions and concerns I had. If you're considering law school or beginning work on law school apps, this is a good place to start.

This book has fantastic, specific information on what parts of your life should become your law school admissions application. She writes fluidly, moving forcefully from point to point. This is not a book full of conventional wisdom--she has some pointed and surprising advice. In the back are example resumes, personal statements and other materials to work from. I highly recommend buying and reading this entire book. It will make your law school admission ordeal much less mystical and stressful. Get this book if you are not getting much guidance from a counselor because your school simply isn't helpful or you've had your undergraduate degree for a while and are out on your own.

This book is especially useful to anyone who is intimidated by the idea of writing an essay about themselves to be read by educated strangers somewhere. She won't just tell you to write about some profound experience you had or about how you want to make the world a better place with your JD. Instead, she knows that most of us didn't spend three years delivering AIDS medication to starving children in Sub-Saharan Africa. For those of us with more average lives, this book gives solid advice on where to start mining for personal statement material - maybe you did something bad and it taught you something about yourself that nobody else applying to law school can offer to their fellow students. I wrote about going to jail, something I would not have done if I hadn't read this book. It worked for me.

One last thing. An earlier reviewer suggested that people reviewing this book were somehow connected to the author and that it's suspicious that a book would get so much positive feedback. I've never met Anna Ivey, but I have read this entire book and can assure anyone applying to law school that it is worth their money.

If you are applying to law school, ABSOLUTELY BUY IT!!!!! Save yourself a lot of sleepless nights of agony and wonder. The answers to any and all questions you can possibly ask about the admissions process + about how to make your application bullet-proof are all in this one book.

As a prospective law student and active LSAT instructor, I am forced to be up-to-date with the most comprehensive and effective law school admissions guidebooks.

Anna Ivey's book is excellent! No, IT'S GOD SENT! As she makes it clear in her book, nothing can take the place of a strong LSAT and GPA, BUT you can TOTALLY control the soft factors, which for many of us in the "mushy-middle" will make or break the deal.

While I think Richard Montauk's book is as good as it can get from a law former-law student's point of view, Anna Ivey's book has that extra insight, which only someone who has been behind the curtains (Dean of Admissions)could possibily know (i.e. how and when you should or should NOT write an addendum; what makes admissions officers wince, etc).

Plus, she's a really funny person; relieving a lot of the pressure/stress associated with law school admissions. My friends and I got to page 150 in one sitting (no joke!)!

I whole-heartedly recommend this book to EVERYONE applying to law school. It's like GOLD!

This book is truly indispensable. I looked at MANY different books, and this is BY FAR THE BEST. If you are even thinking about going to law school, this is a MUST HAVE. Very cheap, easy (actually fun) to read, and packed with useful, practical information.