The Turbulent True Story of a First Year at Harvard Law School

Unlike my law school classmates, I did not read this prior to law school. I'm glad I did not. I was already terrorized by the rumors. Had I read this, I might very well have "tucked tail and ran." It is very accurate. Nevertheless, I encourage future law students to read so that they'll have no illusions. Along these lines, just know that the first year comes to an end -- it too shall pass. Few achievements in my life make me feel as confident as having made it through the 1st year of law school!

An entertaining and informative read, especially for a soon-to-be 1L. Of course, some things have changed (some have not), and, because I will not be in H law school, my school will be different in many ways.

This is an accurate picture of the highs and lows of a 1 L at the The Harvard Law School and I suspect a number of other top law schools. It is well written and moves briskly through the first year. Well worth reading.

Always wanted to know how law study works and how a top school that teaches the subject goes about the teaching. Book a must to understand law. First year law requires all a persons effort and most time that is not good enough.

To anyone interested in going to law school or even wondering what it might be like, read this book!

Turow chronicles his first year at Harvard Law in frightening fashion. For those interested in going to law school, the book will be a terrifying account. For the rest of us, it's like watching a car accident and not being able to look away.

Good behind the scenes take on law school. I always studied in law library while in dental school and knew many law students and lawyers. The education is a lot different than other professions. Book is a classic; but if one was to only have time to read one book, Andrew J.McGlurg's "1L of a Ride" is a newer take and humorous, as opposed to paranoid (yet very realist viewpoints).

I have enjoyed It. But, I'll be writing my own version from the perspective of a first-generation law student attending an average school in the new millenium. One-L is somewhat outdated because many technological advances have changed the nature of the classroom and ways of communicating with fellow law students.

Well Pleased, extraordinary customer service and timely delivery. It was easy to access the site as well as purchase the product. The price was more than affordable. My book was in excellent condition. I would highly recommend using the the store.com site.

A. Williams

The book was a great read, it illustrated in great detail the expectations and experances that first year law students face. I would reccommend this book to anyone considering applying or attending law school. The only problem I had with the book was the authors recommendations at the end of the book.

I found the book to have a lot of whining, and had almost no acknowledgement of how privileged he was to get to attend Harvard. If you want to buy this to help you decide whether to go to law school, skip the book and just don't go to law school because unless you go to a top-top-tier like Harvard, it isn't worth the investment anymore.

Thanks to Scott that with few days lying in my bed reading this book I feel like myself going through Harvard Law first grade in a super fast speed.
It satisfies my curiosity about the superior Harvard and the respected law.
However, I feel like the book was written in redundance, maybe it's Scott's intent to put us in his Harvard Law position in the way to make us feel this bored, stressful, and never ended feeling?
And my english is not enough to understand the last, 10-year-later part. Seems like 10-years lawyering finally turned one into some what sophistication. I like the story, but I don't like the writing. But what do I know? I am not a local speaker anyway~~ Let me star you Four, lol!

I love Scott Turow's books in general, but this one is of little interest for anyone except lawyers. Like legal writing itself, the book drones on endlessly in a language few know or care to know. On the other hand Turow's writings about the death penalty are terrific.

Scott Turow was a pampered Stanford graduate teaching English at the university who decided to give law school a try. Naturally, he tells us he scored higher than just about anyone on the LSAT and therefore had his choice of law schools to attend. While attending Harvard Law School (HLS) he quickly determined his law professors did not measure up by making things too difficult for him and the story goes downhill from there.

If you want to read about privileged young people who think the worst life crisis you can have is when a Harvard law professor picks on you in class, this is the book for you. What makes it worse is the timing of this whining. Turow attended Harvard Law during the early seventies and the Vietnam War was still raging but winding down. I was overseas with the US Marines while he was going through his traumatic classroom experiences. Naturally, my reaction to his book is influenced by my own experiences during the same time. His whole thesis seems petty in comparison.

I have always had an interest in law school and thought the book would provide a glimpse of the intellectual challenge and rigor of one of America's best law schools. I was very disappointed. There are many people who have gone through much more difficult real-world experiences who will react to Turow's whining with the disdain it deserves. No surprise - I do not recommend the book.

Mr. Turow's 'One L' was published in 1977. His memoir covers his first year at Harvard Law School which began in September 1975. The author was 26 years old and three-or-four-years older than most of the other students. For three years prior to entering Harvard, Mr. Turow taught creative writing at Stanford and it shows. 'One L' is a clear, gripping, heartfelt presentation. The guy certainly is smart but also, even more valuable, observant, introspective, speculative, thoughtful, and progressive in his attitudes. For a young man he appears more mature than people typically his age. Despite me not having either the work ethic or intelligence to succeed at Harvard or demanding fields as the law or medicine, for that matter, I found the memoir to be very informative, entertaining, and interesting.

Mr. Turow puts a very human face on the challenging career path. Terror for first-year students seems to be a constant companion. The author covers such topics as professors' reputations and teaching styles, the legal structure, tort suits, study groups, the aspirations on being selected for Harvard Law Review, legal thinking, career potential, burn out, personal sacrifices, the competitive environment, oral arguments, exams, moot court, research skills, racism, sexism, and the Socratic method of teaching. When I was at college, if I had been exposed to the Socratic method, it's a sure bet I'd have soiled my underwear and flipped out by yelling at the professor every nasty profanity-laced pejorative known to man. The book also has some humor and, thankfully, ignores dorm room shenanigans. The pressure to perform well also manifested itself in personality conflicts and altered relationships. Because the memoir was written in 1977 I'd imagine the Internet has changed certain aspects of the law school process in 2017, especially involving research.

I can understand why people thinking of entering law school would find 'One L' informative but Mr. Turow does such a great job of conveying the mood and difficulties of Harvard law school that even laymen like myself found the book engrossing. His conclusion to the work was especially humane and well thought out. I closed the book appreciating the challenges of the demanding field. Getting that degree sure isn't a cake walk.

Turow, who later wrote "Presumed Innocent", wrote this memoir of his first year at Harvard Law School in 1975-76. I went to law school 6 years later, so I can relate. From comments of contemporary students, the experience has not changed much.

The Harvard experience is probably only different in degree, not in kind, from the experience elsewhere. Harvard is a much larger law school with super-super achievers throughout its class ranks. But law schools everywhere have big, oppressive classes, and law students everywhere must deal with the uber-competitiveness of law school and the profession in general. The assault on one's self-esteem and the soul-destroying fear of failure is what distinguishes the law school experience. Even though professors attempted to soften the harshness of the Socratic teaching method by the time I went to school, the experience is still a brutal one. Turow does an excellent job of capturing the emotions of the first year, and is a sensitive observer of himself and others.

Turow has a useful afterward written 25 years later that contains some good suggestions for reforming legal education. But much of his critique misses the larger issues raised by legal education and what the profession truly stands for. For anyone going to law school I would recommend Duncan Kennedy's "Legal Education as Training for Hierarchy." The essay has been published in David Kairys' collection, "The Politics of Law" and Kennedy, being a good lefty, makes his essay available from the author in pamphlet form. He is professor at Harvard Law School -- and probably was there at the very time Turow attended.

One L

Scott Turow was an English major at Amherst. After graduating he worked as a lecturer at Stanford University. After three years (the early 1970s), a deepening interest in law led to a decision to attend law school. Legal matters were all around him. [Law is mostly concerned with property or personal rights in a society.] Scott chose Harvard Law School, the oldest and most prestigious law school in America. This book is about his experiences as a first-year law student (1L). This is "a demanding year, the work is hugely difficult and seemingly endless" and has fierce classroom competition. Nearly 40,000 students begin law school each year, the first year is uniform at American law schools. This book will give you an idea of what it's like.

After graduation Scott returned to his native Chicago to work as a Federal prosecutor ("Operation Greylord"). He later united law and literature by writing a number of books that were best-sellers, and were later adapted to successful movie dramas. Scott noted that Roscoe Pound had a single year of legal education in 1889 before he passed the bar exam. So why do they require three years before graduation? Is it due to monopoly power to extract more money from students, or to create a costly barrier that limits this education to the wealthy? Before the 20th century most lawyers trained as a legal aide to a lawyer to get practical experience before taking a bar exam. This necessarily limited the numbers of new lawyers. The rise of corporations in the late 19th century created a need for thousands of lawyers as employees of corporations. Universities began law schools to produce lawyers for corporate needs. Earlier, civil engineering schools were began to produce engineers for society; they previously came from the military.

This is why the law was seen as "the instrument by which the people in power kept themselves on top" ("Registration"). Law is a way to keep order in society, and prevent feuds and violent conflicts that would threaten peace in society. Only anarchists and libertarians dream of a world without laws, something that cannot exist in an ordered society. Just think of the Ten Commandments as the basic law of a society. Scott mentions "the era of Vietnam" but doesn't tell of his experiences when he was in college at Amherst. Did he ever meet Dr. Spock?

One L

Scott Turow was an English major at Amherst. After graduating he worked as a lecturer at Stanford University. After three years (the early 1970s), a deepening interest in law led to a decision to attend law school. Legal matters were all around him. [Law is mostly concerned with property or personal rights in a society.] Scott chose Harvard Law School, the oldest and most prestigious law school in America. This book is about his experiences as a first-year law student (1L). This is "a demanding year, the work is hugely difficult and seemingly endless" and has fierce classroom competition. Nearly 40,000 students begin law school each year, the first year is uniform at American law schools. This book will give you an idea of what it's like.

After graduation Scott returned to his native Chicago to work as a Federal prosecutor ("Operation Greylord"). He later united law and literature by writing a number of books that were best-sellers, and were later adapted to successful movie dramas. Scott noted that Roscoe Pound had a single year of legal education in 1889 before he passed the bar exam. So why do they require three years before graduation? Is it due to monopoly power to extract more money from students, or to create a costly barrier that limits this education to the wealthy? Before the 20th century most lawyers trained as a legal aide to a lawyer to get practical experience before taking a bar exam. This necessarily limited the numbers of new lawyers. The rise of corporations in the late 19th century created a need for thousands of lawyers as employees of corporations. Universities began law schools to produce lawyers for corporate needs. Earlier, civil engineering schools were began to produce engineers for society; they previously came from the military.

This is why the law was seen as "the instrument by which the people in power kept themselves on top" ("Registration"). Law is a way to keep order in society, and prevent feuds and violent conflicts that would threaten peace in society. Only anarchists and libertarians dream of a world without laws, something that cannot exist in an ordered society. Just think of the Ten Commandments as the basic law of a society. Scott mentions "the era of Vietnam" but doesn't tell of his experiences when he was in college at Amherst. Did he ever meet Dr. Spock?

I was notified that my order was placed, the money was taken out of my account, and I was notified it was being shipped. The next day, I received a very nice email from the dealer that I had been notified in error and the book I'd ordered was already out of stock. While it was frustrating that my account was charged, the merchant was very quick to refund my money, and I appreciated the personal email and apology for the error.

I have since read the book (I just borrowed it) and it's definitely worth the read if you're planning on attending (or if your spouse is planning to attend) law school.

I was drawn to this book out of a morbid sense of curiosity after completing two years of graduate school myself (though in social work, not law). I wanted to know if a student in a different program, some thirty-plus years earlier would have a similar experience. I was not disappointed. Turow describes how he was drawn to law school after spending some time being an English lecturer, and how some of his classmates and friends came from similar backgrounds and academic levels. He approaches the first year of law school with no small amount of trepidation and quickly becomes overwhelmed with readings in a language he is not acquainted with. He describes the feeling of "becoming unmoored" encountered by not only himself but most of his classmates as they wade into deeper waters of academia while losing touch with the world outside of the law school. Turow sufficiently described his experiences in his first year of law school that I was able to relate to his misery and anxieties. In short, the experiences of law students thirty some years ago at an ivy league institution isn't all that dissimilar from graduate students today.

Reading Law at Harvard is distinctly different from reading Law in British universities - even in those that may emulate the 'Socratic' method of teaching. Rarely will a British don behave like Rudolph Perini, Turow's contract professor, who (in Turow's descriptions) seem to swoop down on his student more like a peregrine falcon than a teacher. Nonetheless, this is a detailed and frank book recounting Turow's first year at Harvard Law School, a story he was able to tell lucidly with the aid of the contemporaneous memos that he kept. This book was first published in 1977, and republished in 2014.

What is universal in the study of law in Anglo-American systems is that students are taught to think differently from others. The complexity of that phenomenon is well described by Turow. Whether it is a good thing or not, even Turow seemed uncertain. We might get a hint from the fact that he became a novelist instead of a practising lawyer. 40 years ago another American, John Jay Osborn wrote a novel entitled, 'The Paper Chase'. That book was made into film and earned John Houseman an Oscar award for his role as Professor Kingsfield. It is uncanny how Kingsfield resembled Perini (or perhaps I should say it the other way round). The 40th anniversary edition of the Paper Chase has just been published.

Scott is a bright guy. After graduating from college he got married and started a job teaching writing at Stanford. He then decided to take a different path, though, and go back to school for a law degree. He is accepted to Harvard Law, the very top of all of the top-tier law schools.

When Scott enters the school for that first day in the fall, he officially becomes a first-year law student--a 1L. He meets the other 139 1Ls in his section--the people with whom he will share classes, share frustrations, and, ultimately, the people with whom he will compete for advantage throughout the year.

The first year of law school is brutal. There is an immense amount of information to learn, and the students compare learning the law to learning an entirely new language. There is more reading than anyone can possibly do, and more to absorb than anyone could possibly absorb. The professors alternately bore and terrorize their classes, and there are no tests until the high-stakes midterms and finals.

Students don't sleep enough. They do nothing except study, and their health and mental well-being plummet. Many fall into depression, sure that they are stupid and will never get through the year, never mind the entirety of law school. Scott is determined to stay true to himself and not take law school too seriously, but he finds himself slipping into competition without being able to help it, and he isn't sure he likes the person he is becoming.

This book is a well written memoir, and a true deterrent to deciding lightly to enter law school. I didn't find the author to be all that interesting, though. He spent much of the book trying to make it clear that he was more mature than other students, and he wasn't going to get caught up in cutthroat competition, and he even looked down on his professors. All of these details led me to be less sympathetic than I could have been to his mental anguish.

This is the book, "Anonymous" at the time, which frightened me so much, that I cancelled a scheduled LSAT exam! Instead, I took the GMAT, did not become a lawyer, and ended up with a degree in Public Administration/Political Science from UIC. And became a Presidential Management Intern, which led to a federal career.
I do not regret it, but wonder how the exam might have been. Turow himself, was so afraid of criticizing Harvard, that he did not attach his name to the book until years later.

Last summer, after I had gotten into law school but before becoming a full-fledged 1L, I received this novel as a gift. I purposely didn't read it, though, afraid that it would put me off of law school entirely. I had a general idea of what to expect from law school - I'd done my due diligence and knew what was expected of me. And after plowing through a year of law school and surviving, I finally picked up and read One L.

This novel really captures what it is to be a first-year law student. Turow went to school under different circumstances than most of us - in the 70s at Harvard - but the experience, at least as far as I can tell, is pretty universal. Reading Turow's account as a soon-to-be 2L, after I'd finished my classes, taken exams, seen my grades, and relaxed somewhat, I could recognize a lot of the highs and lows of One L in my own 1L experience. I attend a regionally strong public law school, which is maybe pretty different from Harvard in some ways, but a lot of the same kinds of characters in this book - the professors and classmates both - existed in real life for me. The characters in this book do feel a slight bit exaggerated, maybe for obvious purposes, but I have no doubt that people like Professor Perini exist in real life, even somewhere in my own law school.

This is a great book to read after you survive your 1L year. You'll be reading and saying "I know exactly what he's talking about here" all the time. It might be an even better book to read if you're not going to law school but want to understand the 1L experience - for example, if you have a partner or a good friend who's currently a 1L. All of the excitement, the doubts, the fears that Turow talks about as a 1L - they're all real. In fact, maybe for that reason, the only people I might recommend not to read One L are soon-to-be 1Ls. It's really impossible to "prepare" for law school to the extent that you'll be totally ready for everything that comes your way, and I doubt reading One L will help you prepare at all; in fact, it might just stress you out more. But that's just my feeling; I could very well be wrong.

Literature professor and published author, Scott Turow, decides that he liked the research for his book so much that he will attend law school. He chooses the venerated Harvard Law School and chronicles his first year as a law student there where they are called 1Ls.

Parts of the book were interesting and parts dragged. It seems law school, like most professional schools, tries to weed out students during the first year. This book makes me wish I'd kept a journal of my first year of dental school and published a book about

Scott Turow has written an illuminating account of his first year at Harvard Law School and, considering how little legal education has changed since its origins in the late nineteenth century, it is an account which is and will continue to be, for the foreseeable future, timely, relevant, and accurate.

In view of the prestige and elitism of the institution where he got his legal education, certain tendencies present in many educational institutions are likely to have been exaggerated in Turow’s experience in ways that prove revealing. The faculty there were a little more arrogant, the students a little more competitive than customarily, and therefore for Turow a little bit more effective as examples with which to probe certain characteristic tendencies (i.e. faculty arrogance) which make up the subject matter of the book. In brief, everything in this book is likely to be more over-the-top than in another school and this makes for much more exciting drama and personality clashes. The pride over good grades and the grief over bad ones is more exaggerated, the secrecy surrounding effective study aids is more pronounced, the studying more round-the-clock.

One of the things I loved about this book was the x-ray on grades that Turow does. He writes about grades from every angle imaginable, from analysing his own reactions to his grades to the sort of mass hysteria induced in his classmates.

At Harvard good grades are essential to getting in and in Harvard they are vital to prestigious opportunities for students such as an invitation from a faculty member to work on their research or selection to work on the Harvard Law Review. The students there have all been carefully plucked from the wider collection of humanity because of their obsession with and ability to get good grades so they’re already primed to be focused like a laser on them.

The way in which overachievers treat high grades as a trophy, as a validation, as a necessity, it’s all here. One student tells Turow that his first thought on seeing his grades was that there’s “something wrong” because one of them was not an A. One of his professors gives an exam and prefaces it by telling the class that they worry about the exams too much and ponders whether exams merely test “time management.”

People can try to escape the gravitational pull of grades but they ceaselessly return to a sort of institution-wide obsession with them. And they underpin a lot of the behaviour of the students and their teachers, including one section where Turow’s own obsession with besting his fellow students on an exam inspires him to act in ways which he is ashamed of in retrospect. The way that he can let this obsession get to him while also seeing the way the obsession undermines the mission of the school is one of the things I loved about the book.

Aside from this grade theme which runs through the book there is a complete summary of all the activities of the One L, a first year law student. Turow traces his journey from his decision to go to law school through applying, registering, shopping for textbooks, and attending classes and a few extra-curricular activities. He thoroughly explores the Socratic Method and presents the occasionally soap-opera-like interactions of the faculty and the students from classes to study groups.

The intensity of Turow’s first year of law school is extreme at times and this book really allows you to feel what he felt throughout the year. Passages of contemporaneous diary entries help with that but Turow mostly recounts his story and analysis in the past tense, something which allows you to experience all the events, along with enough background information and subsequent thought, that you really get a complete picture of what it must be like to go to law school and get this tremendous introduction to legal thinking and the legal process.

I had never heard of this book, but found it at a used book sale. As a recent fan of Scott Turow, I knew I had to read it. It was written by Turow immediately after he finished his first year of law school. He was married and teaching at Stanford when he entered Harvard Law School in 1975. This book will probably only appeal to you if you are somehow connected to the legal profession or interested in the profession - otherwise you may find it slow going, cumbersome, and yes, boring. I spent 9+ years working as a victim advocate in a district attorney's office, and I found it interesting. I had no idea that so many law professors had never actually practiced law. I also didn't realize that students received no actual training in how to be a lawyer.

Turow talks about the fact that he didn't want the competitiveness of law school to change the person that he was. However, he comes to the realization as exams draw closer, that his worst fears have been realized, and that he has become someone he doesn't even recognize.

The afterward written in 1988 is very revealing about Turow's opinions on lawyers and law schools. He talks about the initial desire "to do good" and how lawyers often end up settling by "doing well". He describes it this way:

"It is this absence, I think, that accounts for much of the unhappiness I described before. Feeling cut off from a world of transcendent values, lawyers often despise themselves, because, as they see it, they do no good, while a few others, too absolute in their hunger to do well, are willing to believe, too easily, there are no limits to the extent to which they should go in a client's behalf, and engage in lawless behavior."

I recommend this book for anyone considering law school, anyone who has been to law school, or anyone who is interested in what goes on in American law schools. An interesting tidbit from the book was that Sandy Stern was a classmate of Turow's at HLS. Stern is an important character in some of Turow's fictional works and is a first-rate defense attorney.

Not much has changed in the study of law in the decades since ONE-L was first published. Though I attended law school almost 30 years after Mr. Turow, reading this book I felt as if I was reliving my own 1L experience. Writing in a breezy manner, Turow captures with uncanny accuracy the culture, idiosyncrasies, and intense pressures that are universal to the law school experience, as well as the peculiar personality-types that invariably populate it. The uninitiated will find his vivid descriptions of the Socratic method, magisterial professors, immense workload, single-minded classmates, classroom posers ("gunners," in modern parlance), perpetual sleep-deprivation, overwhelming exam anxiety, and cutthroat competition for top grades and positions on law review illuminating, while for those who have already passed the crucible it is likely to arouse a sense of nostalgia and perhaps even fondness as they revisit their own first years, content at having survived the legal profession's version of boot camp.

Nevertheless, Turow makes law students out to be a bit more neurotic than they actually are, though that might just be a reflection of his own personality and era. Although law school has remained remarkably the same over the years, it has changed around the margins and is probably not quite as daunting today as it once was. It's a matter of degree rather than essence. Additionally, Turow's recommendations for how to improve legal education, presented briefly in the final pages, are superficial (a code of professorial etiquette) and silly (a more humanistic curriculum that incorporates film, music, and poetry as teaching devices), and some of his complaints about the classroom behavior of old school professors like Perini come across as oversensitive whining. More than once the reader is likely to question what Perini did that was supposedly so bad or abusive to his students.

These minor criticisms aside, ONE-L is a fascinating, enjoyable book that provides an authentic depiction of first-year legal education and should be considered a must-read for anyone considering law school or otherwise interested in what life as a law student is like.

This is a must for anyone considering law school.
This is a must for anyone who survived the grinder of law school.
This is a must for those who didn't.

Some of the stuff is terribly outdated, but so what? The book was written when it was fresh in the author's mind.
It's actually interesting to read some of these things. Students chain smoking during exams. A year's worth of books costing around $150. Students fraternizing with professors over drinks.

But the rest? It could be 2011, it could be 1991, it could be 1981. The high stress. The gunners. The jealousy over outlines.
The mental assessment over whether or not you are good enough.
The guilt.
The agonies and ecstasies.
The rollercoaster of emotion that the whole ordeal is during your 1L year.

5/5 for sure.

I read this book because the law student at Northwestern mentioned that although it was dated, it's an important book in terms of understanding what law school was/is like. As a person who will be attending law school next fall, I was somewhat disappointed with the book, but most likely for reasons out of Turow's control. If the book was meant solely as a description of his first year and nothing more, then it would be a tight account of many of the difficulties this person had as he navigated what he describes as the toughest year at arguably the best law school in the country. But that being said, Turow's account seems to take a slightly different angle in that it aims to primarily critique the collective law education process while being critical of the professors and other students (pseudo-fictional amalgamations of the actual people he went to school with and was taught under) at Harvard. I think what got to me was the constant oscillation between the pride he had at being at so prestigious an institution with the shame he almost exhibited as he slowly changed as a person as the year progressed, becoming as competitive and almost bitter as those around him. It's a tough sell when much of the book comes out as whining and because it's so time specific, the whining doesn't seem like the kind of thing that can sustain the book for readers from this decade let alone readers in the future. I think the book is important as a period piece, an insider's guide to law school, but there's just something that it lacks for a broader audience. If I wasn't going to law school, I would have said the book was a waste of my time, since it doesn't seem to do enough other than provide the perspective of a very neurotic, though intelligent and successful writer's take on his tough transition from being a graduate professor of literature at Stanford to a law student. If this review seems a little confusing, suffice to say that if you want to go to law school, go ahead and read it, if not, take a pass. You may as well read a blog online.

If you are reading this book, then you are probably trying to ask if law school is right for you. That, or else you are attempting to discern how you will respond when a spouse or friend goes to law school.

This book has a lot of imitators now that blogging has emerged as a convention of daily life. I see blogs cataloged for almost every law school and for almost as many business schools. They all attempt to provide detail to the foreboding mystery that surrounds the gatekeeping institutions of professional life.

Turow attended Harvard Law School, beginning in 1978. He takes on the competition among his peers, the fear within the Socratic system of teaching, and the strain on his own conscience. The last element is key to this book.

Going to law school is like riding a wave. The force is in the water, not in whatever is bobbing along. It is only that Turow can identify when his values are provoked by the transformative pressures of HLS that the book makes a real comment. By contrast, a book like the Paper Chase is more about relationships. There is more narrative content in that approach.

This is as much a documentary journal. Fear is not an abstract notion. It is borne out through the personification of Contracts Professor Rudolf Perini. Outlines matter. Study groups become fortresses against anxiety. Law Review is a beacon, at least for some.

I think the reason to read this book is answered by One L. There are a few comments, here and there, that hint at the strain. When Turow realizes that he cannot tell his friends what Boston is like, although he has lived there for four months, he realizes that he has only walked back and forth on a two-mile corridor from apartment to school.

The 1996 edition includes an afterword by the author. He writes a bit about how a career in the law has subsequently forced him to think about what a legal education provided and how it differs from practice. Law school serves to train people to become law professors, he says. Nonetheless, he doesn't think it would serve the profession to make school more focused on career skills. If anything, he appreciates that his profession shares a common training ground that differs from the constraints of the practice.

At several points in the book, Turow poses a riddle: when you buy a hamburger, when does it become a contract and what would it mean to break the deal. I don't think he answers it specifically, because he seems to be saying that the law doesn't have a firm and final answer.

As many reviewers have noted, this title has grown a bit dated. I had the good fortune of approaching this book via audiobook, where the audiobook ends with a great interview of Turow about his life after One L and the afterlife of One L itself. This book accurately captures the mentality of top-school law students; this mentality remains to this day: the drive, the ambition, the neurosis, the pride, the fear, the self-doubt, etc. The work is dated because (a) the Socratic method has faded and (b) computers have impacted both law school and the profession *immensely.* Overall, the 'spirit' of the story is still spot-on, so this is a recommended read.

To the outside observer, law school is extremely difficult, and Harvard Law School is the epitome of the educational experience. However, Turow breaks down law school as well as the stigma of HLS. In "One L," a superbly written account of his first year in law school, Turow gives us a behind-the-scenes account of what it means to be in law school at HLS. To be perfectly honest with you, the alarmingly real account will serve to scare some readers, as it did to me. I am preparing to enter law school at a smaller, more student-focused school, but his book had me second-guessing whether or not I was capable of the law school experience. Yet I found myself engrossed and eager to experience the instances about which Turow wrote. The transformation that he endures throughout law school is something I cannot honestly picture within myself. Then again, neither could Turow. Dedicating yourself so deeply to the study and comprehension of law is unreal, and he says you are almost unrecognizable to yourself when you look back. When he was awaiting his grades, I felt the same nervous anticipation that he described. He talks of the faults of Harvard Law and law school in general, and he is in no way idealistic or presents an image of grandeur when it comes to the practice. He makes his own suggestions for the improvement of educating lawyers, but unfortunately recognizes the static aspects of the profession. He does not address the issue of whether an individual should attend law school or not, so if you're looking to "One L" for answers to that question, you will just have to read the book, consider his experience, and decide for yourself. Nor does he assist you in making the crucial decision of where to go to law school, for which I was hoping he'd offer a small tidbit of advice. I guess when you are accepted at Harvard, the choice isn't a very hard one. Toward the end, in the "reflection" of the book and the experiences it describes, Turow doesn't paint law as a particularly rewarding profession, but more as a struggle with doing well and doing good. Although I found the book leaning toward the pessimistic side, I think that is to be expected. Turow will make you understand it. For anyone who has considered going into law, this book is essential.

I have had this book for about a year, and just closed it a moment ago after reading it for the second time. It is a great read and highly recommended for anyone considering a graduate degree in any discipline.

Turow's writing is vibrant and filled with emotion and humor. I felt as if I was taking the 1L journey with him: I shifted my opinion of Perini, felt strongly in my opinion of sharing class outlines, and was irritated with Terry's work ethic. As he mentions in the Afterword, he is probably more "compulsive than the average" - this really puts things in perspective when reading the book. Classmates and even professors are described in brutal detail: "he's a great guy and extremely bright... but." That same exposition of classmates and professors continues with the institution itself.

This book is not only entertaining, but is one of the rare first-person accounts of an elite education worth reading. Turow's background as lecturer at Stanford's English Department gives ample credibility to his writing ability. The only negative I could really find in this book is the Afterword - it seems to be a little much. I appreciate his thoughts on the legal system and lawyers in general, but this section could have been reduced by a few pages. Having said that, it does not detract my overall opinion whatsoever.

Read this if you are thinking of law school. Read this if you are thinking about grad school. Read this if you need to be reminded of what hard work it takes to succeed in any field. Read this if you want to be entertained.

Enjoy this book, and thank you for reading this review.

-Jonathan

Very absorbing and fascinating look into human nature with a focus on one particular segment of such. It is also an interesting study in literary formatting to compare Turow's autobiographical account with Osborne's fictional account of the same subject matter via The Paper Chase. Essentially, both books tell the same story and contain much of the same content but convey the information via entirely different modalities. Which one does so more effectively? It is an interesting question. In any event, this book is an excellent read and well worth the time to pursue it. I would give this book a solid 5 stars.

My husband was a grad student at Harvard when he came across the book and brought it home. He had taken a Harvard Law class in conjunction with his own concentration, and loved it to the point that he was thinking of applying.

Well, he didn't apply in the long run, but I did pick up the book. And goodness, but I'm glad I did.

One-L does not just tell you about the first year of law school at Harvard in the mid 70s - it tells you what students at Harvard are thinking, feeling, and experiencing. It talks about stress, peer pressure, teachers who bore, who excite, fascinating classes, horrific encounters, and the like. Turow somehow manages to cram all the highs and lows of a single nine-month period into a single book, and by the end of it I felt that though my husband wasn't at Harvard Law, I understood what he was experiencing himself a thousand times better.

And that's a very good thing, because as anyone who's had to put a spouse through any level of higher education can tell you - it SUCKS. Whether or not the details of what Turow experienced matched my husband's daily grind don't matter quite as much as the fact that they both were having the same emotional and physical drain on a regular basis - and understanding this drain was vital to our living happily in a too-crammed apartment on Garden Street.

I still recommend this book to the spouses of friends who are going to law or grad school - although I caution the actual student not to read it until they've graduated! I firmly believe that it needs to be required reading for family members who want to better understand what their student is experiencing - there is no better way of describing what life for 1Ls is like than this book.

I'm a second-year undergrad at UC Berkeley, and I thought that my plans for law school would be solid. Turow's book made me consider the costs (i.e. endless nights of studying and short but frequent shocks of depression) of a legal education. After reading the book I have my doubts but I'm still leaning towards law school, and now I have a better idea of what to expect.
Turow's book brings the reality of a crazy first year environment filled with competition and fear. This experience was very similar (though not even close to the magnitude in Turow's world) when I first started school at Berkeley. I was intimidated by the wealth of knowledge in my peers and professors. However, as Turow argues, my peers and professors are just human too (with the exception with a few genuises here and there).
Legal education has reformed over the past few decades but the rigors and challenges of law school admissions and graduation have remained about the same. The Law Review is still the most difficult and most prestigious group that any law school student could join. Grades matter less in the admission to the Law Review, but the writing competition is given higher scrutiny to compensate.
I think that high school students and pre-law college students should read this book to prepare for the rigors of higher education and demistify the idea that everyone is smarter than you. We're all just human.

I found this memoir about a first year at Harvard Law School in the 1970s to be informative, fascinating, and gripping. Turow is clearly a skilled writer, and he uses that skill to very effectively put us in his shoes so that we get a vivid sense of what he and some of his classmates were experiencing, thinking, and feeling. The reader thereby goes along for quite a ride, with highs and lows, twists and turns, elation and depression, competition and compassion. I'm neither a lawyer nor prospective lawyer, but I thoroughly enjoyed this glimpse into what some people go through on their path to becoming lawyers.

While I thought some parts of "One L" were melodramatic it is the rare book which can make the struggle of learning exciting to read about. I would guess that nearly every law student or prospective law student in the last 20 yrs has read this book or knows about it. I read it myself before, during and after law school and while I found many things in the book true, much of what he described about law school I didn't experience at my school, Gonzaga University. Granted, Gonzaga in the 1990s isn't Harvard in the 1970s but I doubt that even Harvard is like what Turow described.
Turow does accurately describe the crushing amount of work and the stress of law exams that 1Ls experience. The obsession with grades, making Law Review, the clannish study groups were not part of my experience at Gonzaga and I doubt that it is the experience of most law graduates wherever they went to school. Whatever law school you'll go to you'll work harder than you ever did in your life but it isn't the inhumane world that Turow describes, at least not where I went. There's nothing magical about the top tier law schools in my opinion other than the prestige and post-grad networking. The textbooks at Gonzaga were the same that Harvard used and the professors we had were on a whole very good with several Ivy League law grads amongst them.
The maxim a few of my classmates had probably is true in every law school--the first year they scare you to death, the second year they work you to death, the third year they bore you to death. Turow's book does get the "scare you to death" part down. I would've like to have seen his take on the 2L and 3L years as well.

Turow's One L in an interesting read. His easy prose style will keep you engaged with the 'characters' in the story, and his penchant for drama will keep you turning pages. I gave the book 4 stars because of Turow's writing style and his inclusion of legal terms, description of classes, exams, and study groups. It is apparent that he wrote this book for those who were contemplating law school. Even though his perspective is dated, I think he successfully channeled the highs and lows of the trials of obtaining an advanced degree at a top university. Turow's bleeding heart sentiments about the perils of the HLS education and his open disdain for the pedagogy of certain professors were the weakest areas of the work.

With that said, I did feel that Turow and some of his acquaintances should have been put on suicide watch or given a valium. Most of them appeared very uptight, and overly sensitive to the competitive nature of the class environment and criticism of the professors, which is often the custom in any graduate/professional class. As a former graduate student and lecturer in English at another prestigious university--Stanford--Turow should have been more amenable to the teaching styles and challenges presented, jmho. But I did read this over 25 yrs later so my Gen-Y student experience would naturally clash with the student experience of the late 70s. Warning: Be mindful of the generation gap!

As a student who is thinking about law school, I was not frightened or put off by One L. A good read but by no means my only source.

I finished ONE L in one day, and was quite impressed. I've never read any of Turow's books; however, we do have something in common, I'm in a rough and tumble school as well--obtaining a PhD. Turow writes with candor and honesty. He describes in detail his life as a first year student, and what he thinks of the entire daunting situation of being a Harvard law student. Harvard is by far one of the top schools of law, and the sheer mention of it sends chills down the spine. Scott takes you through his first year, and the trials, tribulations and emotional stress that being a law student can inflict upon even the most intelligent person. Being a graduate student myself, I've had similar thoughts and feelings as Scott. As I made my way through the book, I had the distinct feeling that Scott was holding some feelings back--probably to protect the institution or other students, but he explains in great detail many of the feelings that overtake him in his arduous journey through the first year of Harvard Law. I don't care what college you attend, or if you attend college at all, buy this book and grab a cup of your favorite coffee; sit back and prepare to be captivated by the power of Harvard Law.
If you expect a blueprint for admission into Harvard Law, or cliff notes on how to master the first year, you will be disappointed.

Interesting experience of one student's experience going through law school in the mid-70s. Surprised that, with this 2010 refresh, the author didn't take the time to update the economics of it all (Harvard Law tuition may have been $6k a year in 1974 but it's probably 10x that...and I doubt any corporate lawyer yearns to make $39k a year).

His 2010 comments really don't add much other than to point out his daughter went to law school (again, why wouldn't he incorporate some of the more drastic changes in the way law is taught in 2010 v 1974) and, without mentioning names (uh...Grisham?), the author lays claim that his books spurred all the modern-day legal thrillers...which is a subjective statement at best.

Again, an interesting story but I'm not sure I learned much about today's first-year law school experience.

I picked this up randomly from my girlfriend's library primarily to see what my law school friends were going through. I am not a law school student and have never seriously contemplated law school, but I have many friends currently attending and finishing law school right now and I was curious to read about what they were experiencing. After devouring the first half vigorously, I was pleasantly suprised at how much interest I had for the book. Although the subject matter was not very exciting Turow kept my attention until midway through, where the book seems to lose some steam. I believe it was not the writer's fault but more of the lack of interest I had in pursuing a legal career and even though Turow tries to tie the legal classes to the daily tribulations for us non-law inclined, the second half of the book dragged on. I highly recommend this book to anyone contemplating law school and the legal profession, but it could prove difficult for anyone else to finish it.

I think this is an excellent book about law school. I can't vouch for its accuracy as I have not yet attended myself, but Turow does an excellent job of describing his anxieties, hard work, relationships and concerns about legal education. Turow writes very well and has an excellent eye for details, so the book is fun to read, but his honesty and personal insights are what really make this book memorable. I can not imagine the intensity and competitive nature of the classes, but I think it is valuble to know it exists and the worst of what I may want to be prepared for in law school. I don't know how contemporary the book is and the complaints that the book doesn't paint an accurate portrait of law school anymore are probably fair, but I think it is still worth the short time it takes to read. I think this would be an enjoyable and interesting book for people interested in education in general and particularly for people who are hoping to pursue a legal education.

One of my classmates told me about this book about six weeks into my first semester of law school. I read it and it scared me to death; I'm glad I didn't read this book BEFORE I submitted my application to law school.
As an academic prima donna in college who really never had to WORK to get good grades, the tenor of this book was something of a shock. Looking back, I found it to be pretty accurate. It also helped me to understand that I wasn't the only one who felt out of my league. Turow's descriptions of the mood of his first year class in those innocent, early weeks to the shell-shocked dread he describes just before finals is really close to what I saw in my first year. Unlike the other reviewers, I saw some of my classmates crumble. I heard about the panic attacks first hand. I saw marriages disintegrate, nice people become really weird and pedigreed academics like me get cut way down to size. Finally I watched as the attrition rate kick in, and I knew it for what it was. This book helped me understand what it was I had gotten myself into. Turow doesn't hold any punches. I, for one, appreciated his candor. It was something to hold onto during those sleepless nights.
My advise to anyone who is thinking about trying for law school: Look before you leap and find out as much as you can about what you are getting into. Law school is nothing like college. And Turow illustrates that pretty clearly in this book. That having been said, don't let Turow scare you. Your first year is going to be ugly, but once you make it through, and you will, you're a completely different person.
Dan Lobnitz - University of Denver College of Law (2L)

I have heard about this book from talking to friends about mystery writers. Scott Turow's name came up, and a mention of an auto-bio story about his first year at Harvard Law Scool. It has been a while since I read non-fiction, so I picked it up. All I can say is that this is one truely great book. You will get hooked from the first page to the last page. I only wish Scott Turow could write more about his other two years at HLS. I have an interest in law ever since I took a law course at Suffolk University in Boston. I have also thought about attending law school. After reading this book, I know that law school will be challenging, yet fullfilling. Scott Turow does not hold anything back about what happens at HLS. It is all about succeeding and working very hard. I recommend this book to anyone who is thinking or will be attending any law school.

I read Scott Turow's `One L' because I just got accepted to law school and I wanted something to give me a good, solid idea of what I was in for. In ways it did just that but in a lot of ways it left me lacking.

Make no mistake about it: Scott Turow is a great writer and he knows what he's talking about. On the other hand the book suddenly got very intrinsic sometimes and went off on a personal journey of discovery. Where it lacked was in the greater details of the law school environment, what it took to get in, and maybe the evolution of law school.

Another critical point is that it was written in the late 70s. By all accounts law school has changed A LOT since then. Another critique, and this is of no fault for Mr. Turow, but he's older and married in his first year of law school. The new entering classes are much younger and don't have the experience or maturity that Mr. Turow had. If you're on your way to law school and you're serious about it, you might skip it until AFTER your first year. On the other hand if you know absolutely nothing about or you like legal novels go for it.

One-L's premise is that to be a top lawyer, you need to be a driver, competitive workaholic. His classmates were all top students in college, some had master's degrees, others had been successful at previous careers. Law school, especially in the Ivy League, is going to be draining, and even more if you want to be in the top percentile. To get a job in a top firm, a legal clerk position for the Federal judges is perfect. But to get that job, you need to work in the school's law review, and that will take up all your time.

This is a must-read for anyone considering the legal profession.

Turow's description of his agony as a first-year law student at Harvard provides "the rest of us" with a look inside the Ivy League. Turow insists that those who regard themselves as the best and are awarded said label are forced to stumble just like the rest of us. But the best parts of One L are those which do not focus on starched-collar-stiff-rod Harvard. No. The best comes when Turow talks about trying to get up for class then chill on the rare weekend in the mountains. He describes how he can't get to sleep the night before his first finals. No pills, no sex, nothing will get him to a peaceful rest.
During year 1L, Turow's most fascinating realization for this reader lay in the discovery that despite intellectual prowess held by Harvard students and faculty alike, it is their human foibles that makes their stories most readable. And "One L" is just that.

Heard ONE L, the account by best-selling author Scott Turow
(PRESUMED INNOCENT, among others) of his first year at
Harvard Law School . . . although he was a student some
25 years before he wrote the book, it still gave me a gripping
account of what being a law student then was all about . . . and
though I've never attended law school, friends have told me
that much of his account still holds true; i.e., it is certainly not
an easy experience.
I particularly enjoyed Turow's account of his various professors and
why he liked some--and detested authors . . . in the latter category,
he placed this one individual who had this to say on the first day
of class:
It is the hardest course you'll take. . . . I am not an easy person.
I expect you to be here every day. . . . I expect you to be very
well prepared every day. I want to be absolutely clear on that. I
have never heard the word "pass." I do not know what unprepared
means.
Now and then, there are personal problems. We all have these
at times, which will make full preparation impossible. If that is the
case, I then want a written note handed to my secretary at least
two hours before class.
Now, personally, I'm not sure that I will ever go that far in addressing
my students at the beginning of the semester . . . yet that said, I
do like the one part about expecting students to be very well
prepared for each class . . . I might just incorporate that one
part into my opening remarks!
Paul Rudd did an excellent job of narration.

For anyone considering attending Harvard Law School, or any other law school for that matter, do not let Turow's 1L intimidate you. I'm currently a 1L at Harvard Law, and Turow's account of life here is not completely accurate. Most people I've met are not like the jerks he knew, nor is the quality of life anywhere close to how he portrays it. The consensus among 1L's here is that times have changed, and more importantly, that Turow was a paranoid wimp while in law school. The opportunities and advantages of attending Harvard far outweigh the little inconvenieces that Turow encountered, like not seeing his wife for a couple of hours. If you've seen The Paper Chase, lump it together with 1L and cast them aside, for Harvard is not the monster it's portrayed to be.

This book was intimidating. I would like to go to law school, but reconsidered after I read this book. However, it also excited me for the challenge of law school at the same time. If Scott Turow can make it through, why can't I? Right?
I cannot yet say how accurate the book is, but I did enjoy it. I don't think much of Turow's advice will come in handy when I'm a One L, but I do think that it should be read by all those considering going to law school. Overall, this is a great read that kept me wondering what was going to happen next. I'll revise my review in a year after completing my first year of law school and report on how my "turbulent first year" was.

Simply because the events Mr. Turow relates may not happen across the board at most law schools today, does not negate the fact that his story is interesting, and at its core, presents the truth about the emotional highs and lows of most 1Ls.
I am returning to law school as an evening student. I have raised two children, and worked as a research paralegal for 18 yrs. Nevertheless, I am more than a bit on edge about the "time" factor and the work load, not to mention the first set of exams. These issues were, are, and will remain universal, no matter the law school or the "kinder" professors. My son graduated from law school two years ago, and while no professor would dare to have pull the yarn that Turow's Contracts professor did, the pressure and arrogance was [and will always be] ever present. Turow is a beautiful writer, and a heck of a nice guy, as well. Read it kids, cuz it's true!

Even though this memoir was first published almost 25 years ago, it is still the best depiction of what law school is *really* like. When I went to Harvard Law School (starting in 1995, exactly 20 years after Turow), everyone told me "It's not like One-L anymore." That's only half true -- One-L is overly dramatic, but the basic events and emotions he depicts rang true again and again. Of course, as the other reviews show, some law students are able to blow off the intensity, others (like Turow) become consumed by it, and the rest (like me) swing back and forth between panic and enjoyment. All in all, this is an excellent peek at the law school experience. Just don't use this as your only basis for deciding whether to go to law school and/or to Harvard.

I didn't like this book when I read it at the beginning of law school, and I still feel the same way, now en route to graduate. I suppose it's a testament to the book's staying power that I remember it some 3 years later, though that's not a good thing in this case.
I thought the book was unnecessarily melodramatic, as if the author was trying to make sure his law school experience read like a cliffhanger or shoot-'em-up blockbuster, and that he kept the reader's attention despite the tale not being that interesting to begin with. Granted, getting called on in class and vying for a law review position are mildly harrowing experiences, but I imagine they aren't like being on the front line of combat in war, or performing open heart surgery for 14 hours. However, the author sets the kind of tone to make you believe he equates the two. Although I realize law school isn't all laughs, I thought more levity would have been appropriate, and I kept wanted the author to "lighten up".

In one L, Scott Turow not only vividly describes the the overwhelming demands expected of first year law students, he also addresses the presence of the "human element" in law school. As I head to law school this fall, I have been worried that I will abandon my values and principles and become just another bad lawyer joke. As Turow battles his own demons and overcomes his "enemy," he encourages others to examine the human element inherent not only in their law school curriculum, but in every aspect of their lives.

Turow is a great writer and this book does an excellent job of telling the story of his first year in law school.

Turow's writing style is excellent and saves the book from just being a story about law school. The essence of the story is how the author faced and survived a great personal challenge. The challenge could have just as easily found its setting in some other arena such as the military or some great athletic undertaking.

Before I attended law school I looked for any and all resources I could find in order to get a good idea of what to expect. This book and the movie "The Paper Chase" were the two most enjoyable and informative resources I found. "Planet Law School" was also informative, but after attending law school I would say that it was packed with lots of bad advice.

Turow is a gifted writer and does an excellent job in conveying the frustrations, challenges, and pressures of the first year of law school. My only caution to potential law school students who read the book is that law school today is definitely not as horrible as Turow's experience apparently was. Law school has changed since the 70s. The professors by and large are not as tough as the professors who bullied Turow. That is not to say that the current law school experience is not demanding. It is, but there is a range of acceptable academic performance and each student is given some freedom to decide where they fit in.

If a student is attracted to the law school experience because of the intensity that Turow describes, and is really looking for a similar kind of personal challenge -- then that kind of challenge is definitely waiting to be had. Set your sights on making law review and getting ranked at the top of your class and you will find an incredible challenge. However, most students get through law school with much less pain and fear than Turow apparently experienced.

A very enjoyable book by a talented writer.

Book was a good story of what law school is like. Some of it is a little off, as it is about Harvard and is a little outdated. But the idea and concepts are pretty much the same. If you are looking for a narrative idea of what law school is like, this is the book for you. I docked it one star because it got a little boring near the end

I thought this book was an interesting portrayal of an Ivy League law school - I read it the summer before I began law school at a Jesuit law school on the West Coast.
Many of the 1L experiences will be the same no matter where one attends - the stress from competition, for example - I liked to characterize it as "the thrill of victory" (to get a cherished A) or the "agony of defeat" (to make an idiot out of yourself in class, which, I am sorry to say, I did on more than one occasion!)
My advice to prospective (and current) law students would be to buy the book, and read it with a grain of salt. I believe that each person has the ability to create their own destiny, and there's a hell of a lot more to learning the law, and succeeding in your chosen profession, than being in the top 5% and on law review - make friends, have fun, and most of all, use your knowledge to help more less fortunate than you, no matter if you went to Harvard or number #176 on U.S. News's list of 177 law schools. That's the key to success as an attorney, and in life, for that matter. Just my $.02!

I had my wife purchase One L for me because I wanted to be reminded of what it was like to be a law student again. It has been a long time and quite honestly, I had forgotten.

I had forgotten about study groups and the terror of the Socratic Method. I had forgotten about that law students can be terrified of their Professors, and that they are intrigued by the fine points of law which seem so new and unique to them.

Pushing back the frontiers of ignorance. It is what I do. It is what I hope to do better.

Empathy. One L has given me empathy for my students.

This is a great read, and I would recommend it to anyone, but especially the spouses of law students. Just like it happens in other areas of academia, these graduate students have to block out the larger world in order to focus and succeed in their own sphere. It's fascinating to watch the political struggles that go on over various issues and professors. This is among Scott Turow's best work, as his fiction beyond "The Burden of Proof" really deteriorated.

I thought this book is a good book to read before starting law school. Granted people must take into consideration that this is Harvard Law, set in the 70's and from one man's point of view. I enjoyed the book and found it interesting and insightful. I'm not taking everything he says in it as an absolute truth, but it does help to gain some insight into how one may feel while going through your first year of law school. I would recommend it to other people.

This is a second read for me. I read this book severwl years ago and I have thought of it often. Scott Turow was a teacher before he went to Law School. This book is really a journal of his first year at Harvard Law. I think it is a wonderful book, that has whetted my appetite to learn more about the Law and to read everything I can on it. I definitely would recommend it to anyone wants to go to Law school.

My title says it all: this is one of the best books of non-fiction that I have read. Perhaps I feel this way because I was considering attending law school so I had an interest in it. However, Turow's talent as a writer is evident with this, his first book, so for that reason alone you might enjoy it. Also, if you know of anyone considering law school or perhaps even already there, this book would be a GREAT gift.

While some reviewers have criticized One L as irrelevant to the modern law school experience, they miss its fundamental contribution to the preparation for today's law school. One L continues to sell thirty years later because it is a book about what competition in law school feels like. Thus, it matters not whether the events portrayed in One L are real or whether today's law students experience the same teaching style as Turow did at Harvard in the 1970s. Competition still reigns supreme. An excellent comparative read with One L is Scott Gaille's 2002 fictional account of "hidden" competition at the University of Chicago in The Law Review. Both books make the reader feel the vital competition that still defines the law school experience, albeit in different eras. Reading these two books is better preparation for law school than any of the "how to succeed in law school" volumes. To the extent books like One L and The Law Review romanticize law school competition, so be it. The feelings they capture are real.

As a lawyer who followed Turow into Harvard Law School's hallowed halls a decade later (I'm certain they raised the standards after I graduated), I found One L entertaining. Unlike Turow, though, I actually enjoyed my experience -- and I was not one of the top students. Aspiring law students should read Turow's book, but not take it too seriously. I think most 21st-century U.S. law schools -- including Harvard -- are more humane institutions than the place Turow describes. For those who have read One L, I highly recommend another book, Dead Hand Control. In fact, I'd go so far to say that novel should be required reading for anyone considering law as a career, especially if their only insight into law school is from One L. Dead Hand Control chronicles a second-year law student's journey through classes, interviews, and the law-firm environment. The author, Tim Stutler, is an attorney who attended Harvard as well as Boalt Hall (U.C. Berkeley). The law school experiences described in Stutler's book are much closer to my experience (and far more entertaining) than those in One L. Equally enlightening is the book's depiction of life after law school. I don't know if One L or Dead Hand Control will change anyone's decision to attend law school, but they certainly reveal little secrets of the profession never mentioned in law school brochures. That can't be a bad thing.

This was a recommended read for my law school orientation, so I bought and read it. This could truly scare a person away from law school. Turow uses a dramatic license, of course, but I think the book makes law school out to be much worse than it really is. Yes, you do get called on in class to discuss the case and if you are not prepared you can be ridiculed and yes the only grade you get is the exam at the end of the semester. And every class has that one student that loves to talk and make it seem as if he or she knows it all and there is always that one professor that everybody fears. But, it's like that in undergrad as well. After I read this book, I was seriously reconsidering my decision to go to law school, but I'm glad I continued through with it. Turow assists in making Harvard and law school seem dark and mysterious and nearly impossible to complete, but don't believe it. Harvard Law may still be impossible to get into, but law school is not as impossible as this book makes it out to be. Don't waste your time, read a good hornbook instead.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and have read it several times. I usually read it at the beginning of the school year to inspire me to work hard. Turow has written an excellent account of his experience at Harvard Law. You live everyday with Scott Turow the student. He gives you a real feel of what it was like in 1975 as a One L. It is great book for pre-law students, college students and others. A must read.

Though I never attended law school, I have attended a number of "boot camp" education experiences. Turow's account accurately describes the atmosphere and intensity of a total enviornment where suvival may depend on your ability to push yourself further than you thought possible. I encourage all of my students to read it, either before they go - or while they are trying to decide to go - to law school.

Turrow's autobiographical tale provides a warm feeling of satisfaction
Sometimes in life, although not always, you can get a good idea of a book by the cover. Tell that to a teacher and a sharp look and the, "give everyone a chance..." talk will be asserted. After reading this book I changed my philosophy, because quite simply, this book and its cover reflect the uniqueness and distinctness they both poses. Scott Turrow's One L, was a joy to read because it felt like a note from a good girlfriend. The author does such a good job of embracing the reader into his life, through classes, cases and the like that a feeling of live presence could almost be suggested. What Turrow accomplishes in this novel accedes a higher level than just completion. Turrow dives into the world of law school and challenges head on the myths and misconceptions associated with the big bad year of one L.
The only literary device that could defend why this novel is so inviting is the tone displayed forth from the beginning. Right away a tone of comfort and sincerity is promoted. His tone reflects his own journey as the protagonist and those bumps along the road that got him where he was. It seems as if before he reached his new school he was a believer in those "Harvard Urban Legends" as well. Overall I enjoyed the novel, mostly because the language used was introduced and explained just as it was in the journey Turrow took. His overwhelmingly positive from the start tone sets up a nice relationship with the reader to come back and converse with him. I would highly recommend this novel as a fun rainy-day activity but I also enjoyed reading it on my own time as well. Because, how often do a book and the cover it possesses get to be alike?

Turow writes a gripping account of his first year at law school. Fortunately for many future "1L's" this account is a less then accurate depiction of a first year law experience. Law school is intense, especially the first year. No one doubts that. But his accounts of grade comparing, crying, panic attacks, etc. are not what law school is about. Law school is an academic challenge that is not impossible. Turow does encapsulate the friendships built in law school quite well. A delicate balance between loyalty and hard work, with a dash of competitiveness. This is not unlike anywhere else in the world; including undergraduate academia. I enjoyed reading this novel, and would recommend it to others as long as it was understood that law school has changed. Sure the Socratic method still prevails, but professor aloofness, backstabbing competitiveness, and law review or bust mentalities are all things of the past. I recommend it as an easy read for someone who understands the context under which the book was written(HLS in the 70's), but not for someone seeking an insiders account to law school in the 21st century.

I read this book because I want to go to law school. I searched the web sites of various Law Schools for recommended reading lists and this book appeared on more than one list. And for good reason. It is a great book for someone considering law school. It describes how Harvard Law School breaks down its students in the first year as "One L"'s before building them back up. It also describes, better than other books I have read, the impact on the rest of your life a commitment to law school has, including your family and social life, or lack thereof.
This book may make some people question whether the path through law school is the one for them. But if anything, I am even more anxious to go and face the challenge.

There should really be two separate ratings for this book: realism, and entertainment value. As entertainment, insofar as it tells a great story with the skills of a good author, it's a good read. As a primer for law school, it will prove a disservice for those prone to paranoia. Unfortunately, in law school, over half the students are paranoid and over-stressed. Also, as some reviews have said below, not all law schools are created equally. Harvard is surely at the bottom of the quality-of-life scale, as can be seen in objective magazine reviews.
As a contrast, law school constituted three of the best years of my life. I made great friends and have terrific memories of my time in Tucson, AZ at an upper-echelon school. Turow, however, focuses on the worst year of law school at a school containing mostly kids who are educational zealots by definition and thus not well-rounded. In that sense, it's not a very educational book insofar as it purports to "prepare" the reader for law school.
In sum, most law students will enjoy "One-L" for its entertainment value and to appreciate how much better they have it than did Turow. Prospective students, however, should not read it as a Bible regarding whether the law school environment is for them.

This book, started out kind of exciting, with Scott going off to law school. Then it got boring and really kind of high falutin.(pretentious) He goes on a little too much about how Harvard is so special and the love of the law and all that. However, the final half of the book got good again when he got into the details of studying for exams and competition. So overall I give it 3 and 1/2 stars, it's just that the store does not let you give a half.. It would be good for someone considering going to law school. Don't pay attention to all the people who reviewed it saying you should not read it until after first year. I would have appreciated reading this prior to my first year.

Scott Turow exposes the reality of the life of law students everywhere. Definitely grab this essential and easy to read book the summer before you start law school. And for a revealing look into law school faculty life, grab "Improbable Events : Murder at Ellenton Hall" by Michael Seigel, a dean at UF law school, who sets this fictional murder mystery in a realistic law school setting. Very entertaining and eye-opening! Sure to become a classic, just like One L!

I'm not sure what to make of Turow's book. Here is a guy who goes to Harvard Law School, an institution which has existed in its present form for well over 200 years. As a first year law student, he has the nerve to have all these criticisms of the institution -- that it's hostile, that the law is not warm and fuzzy, that there are clear boundaries in the law, which seem to indicate that he has choosen the wrong field. He seemed to be quite selfish in that he wanted the school to change many of its most cheerished methods of teaching to satisfy one alienated, empty-headed student.
All readers assume that one's first year at Harvard Law School is challenging. Ironically, it does seem as though Harvard may have listened to Mr. Turow's complaints since I have not heard of the difficulty of the institution from other students/graduates. It is possible that they have dumbed-down the curriculum to satisfy those who would prefer to complain than learn.
At the same time, this book certainly opens our perspective in how the law school class is set up, including the Socratic method, to which I was already quite familiar with. I would urge readers not to think that Mr. Turow's experience is at all shared by most at Harvard -- or any other institution. Remember that Mr. Turow just happened to want to write about his experience, but many others who choose not to write probably had drastically different experiences. Maybe they choose to learn and excel rather than to criticize an institution ten times their age.
Mr. Turow's analysis of the other students also appears rather superficial and shallow. The students are essentially grouped into the achievers, the complainers (who think of themselves as "intellectuals," but who, in reality, are no more intellectual than a kindergardener with a crayon), and the professors who "harass" the students. What about the exact types of questions one faces in law school. How are the questions different from undergraduate life? Is law school merely a tarriff to prevent competition in the legal professsion? Also, as with most people who advocate change, Mr. Turow is remarkably short on specifics on how he would change the law school experience. The lack of specifics is common for those who gripe about the present but are unable to explain an alternative system to which they aspire.
This is certainly an interesting book, but I would hesitate to think that it is the Bible of the Law School experience. It is merely one story about one institution in a particular year.

I read this book for the first time during my first year of law school. Some of my friends warned me not to read it because they thought it might cause me to pack my things and leave quickly. Fortunately it did not cause me to flee, and I am now in my second year. I liked the personal accounts of the classes, group sessions, and egos that he confronted at the law school. I noticed many similarities in our experiences, but every time I became a little discouraged about my situation, I looked at that book perched on my shelf and thought, "well, it could always be worse." I liked being able to relate to the good, bad, and unique occurrences that can only be found in a law school. I would recommend this book to anyone who has survived law school or is enduring law school now. I would also recommend it to anyone who is a friend, parent, or relative of a person who is attending law school, so that they can have some understanding of what we go through.

Plesae do not read this book and expect a how-to for law school. "Law School Confidential" would be my recommendation for that. This is an autobiography and a good one at that. I will be starting law school starting Fall '03, and I wanted a lighter book after all the LSAT prep guides and how to books I read. It was good story and an enjoyable read. Worth the bucks (or a trip to the library). BTW, the afterword was worth reading.

One L is a classic story that has stood the test of time. I am currently a 1L and have found that this book is fairly accurate. The personalities he portrays are still very alive today. I would encourage anyone who themselves is heading to law school to read this book. In addition I would recommend it to the significant others of future law school students.

I read this book after I was accepted to law school and prior to meeting with current law students and lawyers. It gave me a good background to formulate the questions I wanted to ask and how I should prepare for law school.
The best advice: Don't let the competitive nature get you down. Just study as best as you can, and find a good group for discussion. DON'T DEPEND ON ANY ONE ELSE TO WRITE YOUR OUTLINE.

For someone like me, who is considering law school, this book is definitely a worthwhile "peek inside" the experience of law school, or at least the first year. Not being a law student I don't have anything to compare it to, but reading about Turow's experience and comparing to the experience of lawyer acquaintances makes it seem to hold a lot of truth. True, it's probably a bit dated, but it's a worthwhile read for anyone who's considering law school.

"One L" is a must read for anyone who has ever thought of going to law school. The book takes place at America's oldest and most exclusive law school, Harvard. "One L" recounts the tough first year of law school and the unending quest for the top grades, a seat on the Law Review, and of course, the top jobs. This is a great book and I highly recommend it.

While Turow is a skilled writer, he appears to be a less skilled editor. This book expounded upon every last conceivable detail of the first year of law school, and, in my view, would have benefitted from more brevity and less exhaustive detail. I read this book after having completed my second year of law school, and found it to be a slow and painful recap of every moment of my first year. It is accurate, but to one who has experienced it, it contains no fresh insight on the experience. Good for those contemplating law school, ho-hum for those who have already gone.

I loved this book! Turow is gifted in his ability to describe the intensity of the first year. Having been through Medical School and preparing for Law School, I found this book helpful in that Turow's description of the emotional aspects of the first year of Law School are similar to what I experienced in Medical School. The fear, the competition, the realization that you are surrounded by people who have always excelled, and chances are good you're going to be average for the first time in your life. I assume that things have changed greatly at HLS since Turow's day, but I can say I'm glad to have chosen a smaller, more practical, less pretentious school!

I loved this book! Turow is gifted in his ability to describe the intensity of the first year. Having been through Medical School and preparing for Law School, I found this book helpful in that Turow's description of the emotional aspects of the first year of Law School are similar to what I experienced in Medical School. The fear, the competition, the realization that you are surrounded by people who have always excelled, and chances are good you're going to be average for the first time in your life. I assume that things have changed greatly at HLS since Turow's day, but I can say I'm glad to have chosen a smaller, more practical, less pretentious school!

This book should be required reading for every person who's ever wanted to go to law school. There simply is no other book available that does a better job of telling the reader what the experience is like. The outcome is self-ordained: if you like what you read, you'll like law school; if you hate what you read; you'll hate law school. So before you decide to go, BUY THIS BOOK!

If you are considering going to law school, you should pick this book up before you make your decision. It will make you laugh at times, but also has the capacity to make you analyze your own abilities and desire to succeed. It gives you an inside look at the emotional rollercoaster you jump on when you enter law school. It's even a good read if you have already "been there, done that". If you are into books about lawyers and the legal mumbo-jumbo, you might get a kick out of the trials and tribulations of a soon-to-be lawyer. I highly recommend it for pre-law students, law students(not that you would have time to read it), lawyers, and any wanna-be's out there.

I originally read ONE L, I think, because I was a big fan of The Paper Chase. This version includes an afterward, written after PRESUMED INNOCENT was published.

As a first-year law student, Turow had to study the law of Contracts, Torts, and Property, Criminal Law, and Civil Procedure. A lot of this reminded me of the Paper Chase with professors using the Socratic method in which students are interrogated at length on selected court cases from which they are expected to deduce legal principles.

Rudolph Perini, Turow's Contracts professor, will definitely remind you of Professor Kingsfield. "Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, the mornings we have Contracts . . . I'm nearly sick to my stomach. . . . I can't believe it, but I think about that class and I get ill," Turow complains.

Another Paper Chase element is the study group. A small number of students, usually between four and eight, would meet regularly to discuss common concerns. Turow valued his group for its therapeutic function. At first Turow and his cohorts in the study group disdained grades, but that gradually changed as Midterms drew closer. The top five or six people in each 1L section would be elected to The Law Review the next summer. Those elected would glean faculty contacts, the opportunity to teach at a law school, and the possibility of a Supreme Court clerkship.

Some parts of ONE L are rather funny. For instance, students often retaliated against a professor by hissing, "a piece of student weaponry frequently used when a professor dismissed a student's comments unfairly or said something hardhearted". Another instance would be the night before Midterms when Turow took a sleeping pill, and a Valium, but still couldn't get to sleep. He got up and had a drink, then another, had sex twice with his wife and finally fell asleep at three. Also, on test day, Turow brings along earplugs, paper, four pencils, four pens, three rolls of mints, two packs of cigarettes, a cup of iced coffee, a Coke, two chocolate bars, a pencil sharpener, an extension cord for my typewriter.

We also get to meet a rather famous personage. Turow signs up for Constitutional Law taught by Archibald Cox, but quickly drops the course because Cox is a dull lecturer. There is also the beginning of fundamental change. Nearly a quarter of American law students were now women. In Turow's class ten percent were black, three percent Latin, twenty-one percent women. The first female president of the Law Review was also elected.

Turow has several suggestions on how to improve Harvard Law school, especially the first year: Smaller classes, more opportunities for students to write and to make contact with the faculty, different formats for evaluation of student performance, election to the Law Review without reference to grades. He also felt that being frightened was more detrimental than motivating. He would supplement case reading with film, drama, informal narrative, and actual client contact.

Turow ends by suggesting more of a practical application. Students should be taught "brief writing, research, courtroom technique, document drafting, negotiation, client counseling, and the paramount task of gathering the facts." He would also emphasize legal ethics, suggesting that the general public has a dim view of lawyers, rating them only slightly higher than used car salesmen. What are the ethical imperatives for a lawyer who is confronted with a client who wishes to save his business, his liberty, his life, by lying under oath? he asks, implying that this sort of thing happens more often than one might think.

The book is a fascinating look at life for a 1st year student at what is, arguably, the best law school in the United States. And, the look is interesting and eye-opening.
The but part is that it drags and gets repetative. It was about 1/2 way through when I started thinking...all right, let's get to the end of the year.
It's a book worth reading, but don't expect it to keep you glued to your seat.

This is a great book with a lot of good insights about law school, but whatever you do, do not read it before you start your first semester in law school. Several people recommended it to me, and I read it in the week before packing up and moving 6 hours away from my college town to start law school. I was terrified when I walked into my first class after reading this book and spent most of the first semester that way until I realized that most professors aren't nearly as bad as those described in this book. Get through your first semester then read this book. You'll feel much better that you aren't at Harvard in the 1970s afterwards.

In this book Turow does an excellent job of describing the first-year experience. This book should ideally be read after at least one semester of law school, I read it betweent my criminal law, and civil procedure exams. If you do read it before beginning law school, fear not, its not as bad as it sounds.

While I am not attending Harvard Law School, I looked to this book for a few reasons.

1) For an account of a first year in law school

2) For an account of the emotions and atmosphere

3) For any insight as to the workings of law schools

I found satisfaction in all that I was looking for in this book. It is always good to read historical accounts even if they don't totally apply to the modern law school. This is one of the few, if not only, book that I know of that is about the first year of law school much less from an active law student.

Going to law school? If the terrors of the socratic method, and the other horrors of the school sound wonderful because they're terrifying and horrible, then, and only then should you consider becoming a lawyer

And don't mind wjc down there, he's just bitter he could not hack it in law school.

All I have is two words for Turow's work in One L: c'est magnifique
Well perhaps I have a little more...to say...
First I shall commence by mentioning that most will agree this text is far from literature intended to prepare you to begin legal studies. Instead, Turow stresses the very challenges one may possibly stumble upon as a first year law student, "1L." One L is not "true scholarship" per say, but is exceptionally informative and includes critical legal vocabulary that all first year law student ought to be aware of.

This work should be used for entertainment purposes and nothing further.

For anyone considering law school, don't worry about this book. Before I went to law school, I heard from numerous people that I needed to read this book (and watch The Paper Chase--which, as other reviewers have pointed out, has many similarities).

I don't think either gives a very accurate portrayal of law school today though. Yes, there is a lot of work to do; yes, some--perhaps many--people still use study groups; yes, there are "gunners"--the people who inevitably feel the need to talk in every class and want to outdo the professor. But there's a lot of fun too, and I don't think the stress level ever reaches some of the extremes portrayed in this book.

My law school (not Harvard, but still in the top 20) had kegs in the courtyard every Friday (similar events on campus or at bars are referred to as Bar Review at many schools), and people found a lot of time to blow off steam and otherwise have fun.

Read this book if you're interested, but don't stress about it.

A good, entertaining book. Mr. Turrow, for most of the book is just boasting of how wonderful it is to be at Hahvahd.... His book bored me half to death. If you want a book dealing with how to prepare for the study of law, get "How to succeed in Law School." This book is by Barrons. It is available from the store.com.....The author is Gary Munneke...

Turow offers great insight into the tribulation of first year law school that only a survivor can convey. If you are a reader simply curious to read about the stress of Harvard law school then I highly recommend this book. However, if you are a reader looking for a solid reference to the first year law school experience then you will probably find this book a little dissapointing. Turow tells a great story and emphasizes the high and lows of law school, but law school has changed a lot since the antiquated 70's and the commanding tone of Harvard Law does not necessarily resonate among all law schools. It's a good read overall but lacks applicability.

This autobiographical recount of year one at Harvard Law School is overly dramatic. Either the author was naive upon entering HLS or he was so in awed of this trade school that he allowed it to dominate his life and ruined his marriage. This book makes me want to go through Yale all over again

This book was recommended to me by a friend who recently graduated from law school. I had asked her about interesting reading material before my first year, and she felt that Turow's "One L" would be a good start for me. As soon as I picked up the book, I was captivated by the narrative and honest tone of Turow's account. Although the account itself is from the 70s, there is a timeless quality in Turow's writing that brings his law student experience to life. This novel is definitely worth reading, especially for those who are thinking about law school.

turow addressed all my feelings of inadequacy and fear before i ever stepped into the classroom. his light writting style makes for a quick read which makes this a perfect summer read for the busy summer prior to entering law school

I was given this book by a friend who had just graduated from Albany Law when I admitted my own interest in attending law school. He told me to read it, and that although Turow attended Harvard that all law schools possess types of peculiarities not all that different from those spoken of by Turow. Upon the completion of the book, I was better able to gauge my own "enemy" and realize that while my fears were warrented, they were also surmountable. I now look to law school not as a challenge in mastering the law, but as a lesson in challenging myself.

Turow in One L makes a valiant effort to convey the rigors, stresses, and challenges of a first year law student at the prestigious Harvard Law School. He attempts to do this by divulging some of his diary entries from his time as a "One L." Although informative, Turow could have brought this story together in a more coherent and plausible manner. The story jumps around quite frequently from one idea to another. However, do not let this inconsistency in Turow's writing dissuade you from reding "One L." He provides the novice and inquisitive with a perspective into the mythos of Harvard Law. Bravo Mr. Turow!

When I read this book (guess at least 10 years ago) it was during my internship.
Maybe I should point out that I studied law in Italy, where things run a little bit differently: 4 years to get your degree (but, at that time, most people took more than 5 to end up all courses and examinations...) and 2 mandatory years (after the degree) of internship in a law office (mostly without retribution whatsoever... fortunately not in my case) to be admitted to written and oral exam at the bar.
I had to wait one year and a half to learn I had passed written exam and oral exam followed 5 months later..... oh God!
However, just for the sake of... originality, I recommend this book to all boys and girls who wish to begin legal studies in continental Europe: they will learn how different the approach to law and law school may be elsewhere (U.S. in this case) and then wonder if they might take it as seriously as it needs.
If the answer is "yes", forget law school; if it is "no", try it.
In this case, you'd better keep a fresh smile before any law, statute, authority or doctrine and remember that, after all, it's man who makes the law and not the contrary.....
Now excuse me: I must prepare a closing statement in a manslaughter case and I can't find a lively gag to start with....

As someone about to embark on their first year of law school I read this - since it's on everyone's list and I've been told about it over and over. I suppose if you didn't know anything about law school it would be terrifying but if you have a little knowledge of the process you realize how outdated his account is. Which by the way is fine - it makes for an entertaining story - and it is a personal account. Thankfully it's not the dog eat dog world Turow portrays in the book - at least not where I am going to go to school.

This book is a surprise. It is a great read. You may think it will be on the predictible side, but Turow is a creative writer who understands what readers want. You can't miss with one of his books, this one is an easy read.

This is a decent read, and lots of law schools have their students read it before they get to law school. But without some book that gives direct advice as to how to succeed in law school, the messages of this book will be of little use. Instead of spending time on the silly, philosophical books law schools tell students to read, get the practical books. They will do your soul the most long-term good.

Really captures the essence of the first year law school experience. I found it a page turner, couldn't put it down. In my view, this book is absolutely a "must read" for anyone planning to go to law school. But it's a first class book for everyone else as well.

Amazing and vivid description of one man's turbulent lifestyle at Harvard Law School. The 269 page book was hard to put down once you delved into Turow's world. As a college bound high school senior and prospective law school student, I now have a better glimpse of "law life." Competition, envy, jealousy and the occasional back stab all make better the reality of a law student's life. Any who wishes to add a new perspective for the life of a lawyer should keep this as a "MUST READ!" Harvard Bound!!

Turow writes candidly about his first year experience at Harvard Law, warning us of the travails of law shcool yet inspiring us with the insight such an experience brings. He is glib and perceptive, clearly expressing the many intricate, bitter-sweet moments of being a "One L." Turow's book is a magical blend of entertainment, instruction, inspiration, and conciliation. I fervently recommend this book, especially to anyone planning to attend law school (like myself).

This book may have had some value if you went to law school 30 years ago and you went to Harvard. Beyond that, its pretty useless. The impact technology has had on law school and the study of law is tremendous. Obviously, Turow doesn't comment on this because it didn't exist then. This book hasn't been updated because naive, would-be law students still buy it in droves making him a boat load of cash, so why should he update it? It also is MUCH MUCH too specific to his particular situation. Being married, attending Harvard, carries some unique elements while going through law school that do not exist for that vast majority of law students. Reading this book will inform you about some aspects of law school, but will also severely misguide you regarding others. I think it leaves you worse off than if you had simply not read the book in the first place.

I have read most of Scott Turow's books. This one is different, but extremely captivating. Reading of his life as a first year law student will be entertaining to anyone who contemplates law school or simply wonders what law students go through to obtain their degree.

As fiction, Turow's book is a decent read. As a portrait of Harvard Law School today, it's a dud. I haven't experienced a moment of the backstabbing competition Turow claims to have found everywhere 30 years ago. I have never heard anyone discussing his or her grades. The class is not ranked. Study aids are freely shared. Turow was simply going to a different law school than the one that exists now.
Bear in mind that Turow arrived at HLS with a contract to write this book. Drama, conflict, and agony are necessary ingredients of any good expose, and he provides them in abundance. My happy One-L year would have made the world's most boring book.
Read it for your own entertainment. It isn't bad literature. But don't let it scare you away from law school, or from Harvard.

"ONE L" offers numerous insights into law school paradigms that seem all to foreboding and foreshadowing, as I plan to eventually enter law school. Painfully honest, and full of sincere introspection, "ONE L" is unquestionably capitivating and entertaining. Although it has instilled me with a bit more respect, if not outright fear, of what my future educational experience may hold, it was simultaneously entertaining and somehow encouraging.

I actually read One-L after my first-semester of law school, and could not believe how similar my experience was to the one Turow describes. I heartily recommend it to anybody thinking about going to law school, and anybody else interested in the experience generally.

Great exploratory read for those interested in what the first year of law school is like at an prestigious institution. Accessible enough to imagine yourself in the everyday shoes of the writer. It helped me, to an extent, form decisions about where I chose to attend law school. Other recommendations available on the store:
"The Bramble Bush" by Karl Lewellyn
"The Paper Chase" by John Jay Osborn

As someone who is in the application process for law school, I'm hoping that indeed the events depicted have been 'dramatized' for the sake of the book.

A recent law grad told me pretty much the same thing I've seen from other reviewers here...thatthis has a heaping grain of truth, but it's pretty sketchy to use this when deciding whether to go to law school.

I think this book was fantastic. Of course, my knowledge of its accuracy is very limited being only in high school and thinking about a career in the law. This book caught my eye off the shelf, and I found that I truly could not put it down. I was anxious to know how it unfolded at every turn. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys books about the law and law school, because it does contain legal heavy sections.

I thought that One L was a great book, but I am very interested in law and am seriously considering law school. A person who wasn't as interested in the law as I am may not find the book so interesting or informative, although they would probably still find it enjoyable. Turow is a great writer and the book reads easily regardless of the subject. One question: Are you practicing law, Scott, and if so, what type?

For anyone interested in possibly attending law school--this is a must read. Turow is highly entertaining and informative throughout the book. Despite the many vicious and competitive scenarios, this book has encouraged my desire to attend law school. Even those of you who are not interested in a legal profession, it is a great read. Now i would like to read the sequel to this book.

This book was a joke. I have no doubt that Turow and his fellows at HLS did indeed conduct themselves with the frantic lunacy that he so wearyingly describes in this book. I'm sure he simply told the truth and that law school was indeed that miserable for him, but that is exactly the problem. Having been through 1L at a somewhat less elite school, I can assure you that its only as bad as you make it. That HLS is an even more competitive school than mine only adds credence to the one thing I must say to Turow and the rest of the HLS graduating class of 1978: Get over yourself. You graduated from HLS. You could have finished with a 2.00 GPA and still drowned in the job offers that many top performers of other law schools can only dream about.

"One L" is a severe disappointment. As I know that books about the law school experience are very popular gifts to students entering their own "1L," I have a duty to go ahead and tell you that for 99.992% of all students, this book is of absolutely no help in preparing someone for what they will face when they get to law school. Turow's view from America's tallest ivory tower not only presents an experience totally divorced from the real world, but does so in a ridiculously dramatized manner that forces upcoming law students to respond with either incredulity or sheer terror. Don't bother.

I am heading into law school in a few months and was given this book as a gift. It was a really easy and quick read. I feel even more excited to head into school now than ever. I also feel it was good perspective on what law school will be like (according to my friends who are already there).

This book was a joke. I have no doubt that Turow and his fellows at HLS did indeed conduct themselves with the frantic lunacy that he so wearyingly describes in this book. I'm sure he simply told the truth and that law school was indeed that miserable for him, but that is exactly the problem. Having been through 1L at a somewhat less elite school, I can assure you that its only as bad as you make it. That HLS is an even more competitive school than mine only adds credence to the one thing I must say to Turow and the rest of the HLS graduating class of 1978: Get over yourself. You graduated from HLS. You could have finished with a 2.00 GPA and still drowned in the job offers that many top performers of other law schools can only dream about.

"One L" is a severe disappointment. As I know that books about the law school experience are very popular gifts to students entering their own "1L," I have a duty to go ahead and tell you that for 99.992% of all students, this book is of absolutely no help in preparing someone for what they will face when they get to law school. Turow's view from America's tallest ivory tower not only presents an experience totally divorced from the real world, but does so in a ridiculously dramatized manner that forces upcoming law students to respond with either incredulity or sheer terror. Don't bother.

I am heading into law school in a few months and was given this book as a gift. It was a really easy and quick read. I feel even more excited to head into school now than ever. I also feel it was good perspective on what law school will be like (according to my friends who are already there).

I have read this book twice. A very rare thing for me to do. I have practiced law for over 30 years and this accurately portrays the trials and tribulations of law students. I volunteer as a career mentor at Franciscan University of Steubenville. Another attorney and I place this at the top of our suggested reading list for students who are curious about the legendary legal education environment. Good stuff.

I read One L and enjoyed Turow's story. I do think the sharing of his daily life and emotions as a first year law student is beneficial. However, I have also read The Law School Breakthrough by Chris Yianilos. Yianilos gives a very detailed description of the tools and techniques needed in order to not only survive the first year, but to excel in your class. While I did like reading One L, I feel like the Law School Breakthrough is the book to get if you're looking for concrete guidance for law school success.

This book sheds a great light on the darkened world of Law School. It shows the good and bad from both a physical and emotional since. If you are thinking about Law School or just want to know what "One L's" go through this book will help. It is a must read for prospects of Law School.

I read this when my wife was about to go to law school in the UK. It's a terrific read and I just wanted people to know that what Harvard is like is pretty much true of law school over here. Have no interest or connection in/with the book--it just came up in conversation with a friend recently.

Responding to the post that stated that this was no longer true, I can only say that was true in 1980's in law schools across the country. I am happy to hear that situation and teaching methods have changed.

This book is absolutely amazing. As merely a high school student, I can still understand some of the stress dictated within the novel. Turow's portrayal of a mediocre first year law student at Harvard makes you feel as if you are right there along with him in his perilous journey

A must-read for future law students. The competitive nature of law school and the overwhelming workload create a haven for the ugliest side of the best and brightest minds. I recommend this book for all who are considering law school and those who want to enjoy a chilling tale of graduate school.

What a WUSS! Actually, on the taped version, Scott practically admits this himself. Here's a little test; Go to a law school library, and read a couple of cases...
From "One L": "Tried to read a case today. It is harder than hell."
Uh huh.

Could this guy whine just a little bit more? Oh....Harvard Law....too much work.... sketchy explanations....do it on your own.....gotta take responsibility for my own learning........Harvard Law.....almost guaranteed first year salary of high 5 figures and 3-4 year salary in the 6 figure range.........permanent prestige....write your own ticket.........

IMHO being able to have that opportunity should leave any student leaping for joy every single morning and evening and thanking God that they got accepted.

Listen kids, an education is NOT a right. Ask all the people who are not able to go to college in this country. Education is a privilege. The more prestigious the school, the more of a privilege it is.

Don't follow in this guys footsteps and whine all the way through it.

He might be a Harvard Law graduate but I really hope his character has grown since his 1L days.