The Student Room Group

Law books or documentaries

Hi! I was just considering law for a uni course, because I’ve found that I’m passionate abt the justice system, and it sounds really interesting to me but I don’t know much about it and wanted to do further research before applying. Does anyone have any book or documentary recommendations which would help me get the gist :smile:
Letters to a Law Student by Nicholas McBride
Stories of the Law and How it’s Broken by The Secret Barrister
Eve was Framed: Women and British Justice by Helena Kennedy
What About the Law? by Catherine Barnard, Janet O'Sullivan and Graham Virgo
Is Eating People Wrong? Great Legal Cases and How They Shaped the World by Alan Hutchinson
The Rule of Law by Tom Bingham
(edited 3 years ago)
Those books are good, but i'd say they should be a starting point and to be really competitive you should delve into more academic books
Original post by apostasies
Letters to a Law Student by Nicholas McBride
Stories of the Law and How it’s Broken by The Secret Barrister
Eve was Framed: Women and British Justice by Helena Kennedy
What About the Law? by Catherine Barnard, Janet O'Sullivan and Graham Virgo
Is Eating People Wrong? Great Legal Cases and How They Shaped the World by Alan Hutchinson
The Rule of Law by Tom Bingham

Thank you so much!!
Original post by studifstyle
Those books are good, but i'd say they should be a starting point and to be really competitive you should delve into more academic books

Ahh thank you I hadn’t thought of that :smile: this might be a really stupid idea but would it be worth looking at old reading lists from specific unis and getting a book or two from them? Or is there other places I could find books which would make me stand out?
Original post by Jizzbobaggins
Ahh thank you I hadn’t thought of that :smile: this might be a really stupid idea but would it be worth looking at old reading lists from specific unis and getting a book or two from them? Or is there other places I could find books which would make me stand out?

If it's something that interests you then totally go for it but dont get it because its on the reading list - reading lists are good to look at but they might be a bit overwhelming when you start so defo go for it if its in an area of law you enjoy and would find interesting. You dont need to stand out - you just need to show you have an interest in law and you have potential to be a good candidate. A genuine interest in law will help you stand out and if you can make it personal to you, that will make you different from everyone else. I remember someone on here did their whole personal statement based on the rule of law by Tom Bingham but used that really effectively with other things they've done + their thoughts.
I would like to second what PetitePanda said. One of the above users said you should look into more academic books to set yourself apart from others, but honestly I doubt that's necessary at this stage, especially seeing as you're just finding your feet and still fairly undecided. You might find that you read the books and realise you're not as interested as you thought you were. I've read a few of the books mentioned above and they're interesting for a beginner like you and me.
It's not a competition of who has read the most academic and advanced law books. Universities just care about who is genuinely interested in law, so don't put yourself off it by reading boring and complicated books just for the sake of it.
I'd also reccomend listening to the Law in Action podcast! :smile: Good luck
Original post by chloenix
I would like to second what PetitePanda said. One of the above users said you should look into more academic books to set yourself apart from others, but honestly I doubt that's necessary at this stage, especially seeing as you're just finding your feet and still fairly undecided. You might find that you read the books and realise you're not as interested as you thought you were. I've read a few of the books mentioned above and they're interesting for a beginner like you and me.
It's not a competition of who has read the most academic and advanced law books. Universities just care about who is genuinely interested in law, so don't put yourself off it by reading boring and complicated books just for the sake of it.
I'd also reccomend listening to the Law in Action podcast! :smile: Good luck

The first book I read made my cry and I could only read the introduction :lol: Defo agree though. They dont expect you to be a law student but the potential to be one. You should defo strive away from those books as they only give a general introduction but they are such a good start for anyone. Defo recommend law in action. There's so much you can do for law - it's honestly amazing
Original post by PetitePanda
If it's something that interests you then totally go for it but dont get it because its on the reading list - reading lists are good to look at but they might be a bit overwhelming when you start so defo go for it if its in an area of law you enjoy and would find interesting. You dont need to stand out - you just need to show you have an interest in law and you have potential to be a good candidate. A genuine interest in law will help you stand out and if you can make it personal to you, that will make you different from everyone else. I remember someone on here did their whole personal statement based on the rule of law by Tom Bingham but used that really effectively with other things they've done + their thoughts.


Yes! I loved The Rule of Law. I’ll say I found it really difficult to understand and at some points I had to spend quite a bit of time googling stuff but I really would recommend. It got me thinking and I managed to link stuff I learned with so many other things - even small things that I learned in A-Level Sociology!

I ‘read’ (😳😳) ‘what about law’ but I don’t think I’d recommend. I only chose it because for whatever reason we had the book in my house but it’s quite dull. I would really say you should try and find books that are about a more specific topic/subject in Law, but it is quite hard finding something you THINK you could enjoy as someone that’s never properly studied it!

Documentaries are a bit easier to find. I also think it’s always interesting to find a case you find interesting. I won’t say the case I researched but there are so many! The one I looked into was so huge in the media that there were podcasts and documentaries. It you’re looking for ideas, police brutality is obviously a huge issue right now and you could choose a case you find interesting/thought-provoking.
Original post by PetitePanda
The first book I read made my cry and I could only read the introduction :lol: Defo agree though. They dont expect you to be a law student but the potential to be one. You should defo strive away from those books as they only give a general introduction but they are such a good start for anyone. Defo recommend law in action. There's so much you can do for law - it's honestly amazing

Wait did it make you cry because it was emotional or because it was so hard? :lol:
And yes I completely agree. There's no harm with being competitive and reading complicated academic books but don't start with that and don't just do it for the sake of it. Not to mention, universities would rather take someone who read 'simple' books and can talk about them in depth and understand them, rather than someone who read tricky books and doesn't have a clue what they actually mean!
Original post by Euphoria101
Yes! I loved The Rule of Law. I’ll say I found it really difficult to understand and at some points I had to spend quite a bit of time googling stuff but I really would recommend. It got me thinking and I managed to link stuff I learned with so many other things - even small things that I learned in A-Level Sociology!

I ‘read’ (😳😳) ‘what about law’ but I don’t think I’d recommend. I only chose it because for whatever reason we had the book in my house but it’s quite dull. I would really say you should try and find books that are about a more specific topic/subject in Law, but it is quite hard finding something you THINK you could enjoy as someone that’s never properly studied it!

Documentaries are a bit easier to find. I also think it’s always interesting to find a case you find interesting. I won’t say the case I researched but there are so many! The one I looked into was so huge in the media that there were podcasts and documentaries. It you’re looking for ideas, police brutality is obviously a huge issue right now and you could choose a case you find interesting/thought-provoking.


Maybe it was you that I was thinking about. Omg I read what about law and I found it boring tbh. It was a good overview for the 7 modules but I just couldn’t read it all together. I found reading about stuff I liked so much quicker.
Original post by chloenix
Wait did it make you cry because it was emotional or because it was so hard? :lol:
And yes I completely agree. There's no harm with being competitive and reading complicated academic books but don't start with that and don't just do it for the sake of it. Not to mention, universities would rather take someone who read 'simple' books and can talk about them in depth and understand them, rather than someone who read tricky books and doesn't have a clue what they actually mean!


It was so hard to comprehend + it was about contact law :lol: honestly, I defo agree with that - imagine if you talk about something that is completely wrong (it might show you haven’t done enough research in the course)
Original post by PetitePanda
It was so hard to comprehend + it was about contact law :lol: honestly, I defo agree with that - imagine if you talk about something that is completely wrong (it might show you haven’t done enough research in the course)

Oh no! We're all in the same boat to be honest. I doubt anyone would have understood that having had no experience prior! I started off by reading 'Is Eating People Wrong?', which might be a common choice but it's so interesting and acted as a springboard to further reading etc :smile:

And yes exactly I'm glad you agree! Better to play it safe and succeed than try too hard and fail. Especially at this level.

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