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Paperback
Publisher: Atria
ISBN13: 9780743288392
Condition: NEW
Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
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From first-day nerves to first-year grades, from bizarre job interviews to bar exam insanity, Ivy Briefs pulls back the curtain on the marbled halls of law school, revealing the absurdity often bubbling beneath the surface.Meet Martha Kimes: a naïve small-town girl with strong neurotic tendencies who has (due to an inexplicable stroke of luck) been admitted to Columbia Law School. She's a Midwesterner in the middle of Manhattan, a student on the verge of a nervous breakdown. In her candid memoir -- the best of its kind since One L and the only one written by a woman -- Kimes makes her way through law school, doing battle with a memorable cast of characters: The Sadistic Professor: Every law student's nemesis, the Sadistic Professor takes pity on no one. The Socratic Method is his favorite torture device, and he's got staying power that rivals that of the Energizer Bunny. The Gunner: So enamored with the sound of his own voice, he finds it physically impossible to keep his hand from gunning up into the air every time a professor asks a question. Ten minutes into the start of the school year, everyone is already sick of the Gunner. The Do-gooder: Lurking behind a kind exterior is a pit bull ready to pounce on those who don't plan to devote their legal careers to public service. But would she be so quick to categorize all those who dare go into corporate law as loathsome, soulless warriors for the devil if she, too, had student loans to repay? The Boarding School Bastard: He wears a firmly pressed pin-striped oxford shirt and has a condescending attitude bigger than most European countries. By definition he is better than you because he went to Exeter. And he'll never let you forget it. With sharp wit, dead-on aim, and a healthy dose of self-deprecation, Kimes proves that it is possible to survive law school with both your sense of humor and your sanity intact.
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| Good read for new law students and their families |
| Customer Rating: 4 out of 5 |
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This book is about a young woman's experiences at an Ivy League Law School. Having a son starting his 1L experience at Harvard this year, I found it particularly pertinent and it gave me a peek at what he's in store for. The book is easy to read, enjoyable, entertaining.
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| Well written, funny, interesting and truthful - worth the $ |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
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I went to law school 30 years ago, and this book brought my own memories to life (except that this time, I was able to smile and actually see some humor in law school). I liked everything about this book, from the structure of the writing to the ways the author captured my interest. I think anyone would enjoy the book, but it's especially recommended for law students and lawyers. The author describes the highs and lows of becoming a lawyer humorously yet accurately, so it's a good balance to the more analytical books about law school.
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| Shockingly callous and mean-spiritied |
| Customer Rating: 1 out of 5 |
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I'm starting law school in the fall and I eagerly snatched up a book that touted itself as an "updated version of OneL from a woman's perspective." The author spent most of the book informing the reader that she was A) from Wisconsin B) An IVY LEAGUE LAW STUDENT C) Received good grades! D) Graduated with honors! E) Works at a Lavish Law Firm!!!! I kept on waiting throughout the book for her interest in the law to sound genuine, for her motivations to be something other than naked insecurity and competition, and finally, for her to sound like a caring, compassionate human being. It never happened. I'd like to think that this lack of self-analysis and the two-dimensional way in which she viewed other people (including, as one reviewer mentioned, the icky people at Family Court that she was forced to help for her graduation pro-bono requirement)is really a meta statement on the absurdity of rigidly elitist thought. Unfortunately, I doubt it.
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| Badly Written Elitist Pseudo-Narrative |
| Customer Rating: 1 out of 5 |
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The boring tale of one mediocre writer's journey from relatively principled, starry-eyed Midwesterner to unapologetically entitled corporate shill. The book starts off as simply weak and typical, but slowly becomes the sort of self-indulgent tale of greed that makes you actively root against the protagonist.
This might have been an interesting turn for the story to take if only the author seemed in some way repentant or even mildly conscious of her rapid spiral from public interest to mindlessly subsidizing her shoe addiction and love of status. Even this might be forgivable if the narrative were rendered in some novel or vaguely literary fashion...But no. The words fell startlingly flat on the page, as if they had landed there on a botched skydive.
One of the worst books I have subjected myself to in months or possibly years. Its sole redeeming value is to serve as an explicit reminder of what not not become.
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| Obnoxious and poorly written. |
| Customer Rating: 1 out of 5 |
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I can say without reservation that this book was not only snotty and elitist, but poorly written.
Kimes cannot stress enough that she is, in fact, and IVY LEAGUE LAW STUDENT. Time after time she expresses disbelief that she might have to, say, put in a single week of pro bono work and have to sit in a plastic chair while doing work that is so clearly beneath her. She barely describes the actual work she ends up doing at "Lavish Law Firm" but instead talks about how prestigious it is as an institution, and how highly ranked it is.
Kimes goes on to insult those that she takes the BAR/BRI bar review class with, believing that she will pass only because the other students, grads of lesser ranked law schools, will surely be the failures. A cursory note suggests that she might have learned the error of that type of thinking but the overall tone suggests her superiority complex remains firmly intact.
Further, her description of one character's boyfriend, who also attends a lower ranked law school in NYC is consistent only in that he seems whiny and jealous at every turn. While this might be an accurate portrayal, Kimes seems to use it only to bolster her own self image as an IVY LEAGUE LAW STUDENT! a title she won't let the reader forget.
The writing itself is juvenile and pedantic. Kimes is trying to make you laugh, and trying hard. But unlike the endearing missteps of Elle Woods, this attempt at humor makes Kimes unlikeable as a character in her own memoir. As such, it's difficult to feel badly for her when her best friend purportedly abandons her for her more intelligent Law Review peers. Kimes's husband also rarely appears to have his own agency and appears simply to bolster Kimes along in her struggle.
Overall, I was appalled by Kimes's attitude. Yes, the law is a prestige driven occupation, but is it to the exclusion of humility? I wish I could return this book for a refund. I am writing this review in hopes of dissuading others from wasting their money. Zero stars was not an amazon.com option.
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