Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

While those hoitee-toitee Harvard kids claim to be selling you a bluebook, most of the pages are white! And last time I checked, a "book" has a spine, not this spiral-bound mess they try to pass off as "literature." I suppose actually that this is to the reader's advantage, as no doubt in fits of rage it is much easier to rip pages out of a flimsy spiral-bound book than your typical hardcover. But...enough about aesthetics. Let's get to the details! The plot is quite contrived and character development is stagnant at best, regressive at worst. Apparently, the authors think we'll automatically care for the protagonist, "Statute." Well, newsflash, Harvard Law Review, we don't! What kind of home does he come from? What are his hobbies? Does he have a girlfriend? All of these answers are conspicuously absent. Personally (and I don't pretend to be an author of any kind), I would have made "Periodicals" the main character, instead of just a on-again off-again third wheel. And he'd have an drinking problem. Also, it doesn't take a genius to realize that for something to be successful nowadays, it needs vampires! What, are law students too busy to enjoy a movie once in a while? There could even be "Team Periodicals" versus "Team Statutes." Think outside the box, Harvard Law Review. Seriously. Finally, you would think a book centered on law would know a thing or two about copyright infringement! Like many of you here, I bet you surprised to see a book centering on law rather than on how much your automobile is worth, right? Me too! Apparently, that's a different Bluebook! What, Harvard, was "Magentabook" already taken? What's your newspaper called? The Times of London?! I wanted to know the value of my '96 Honda Accord, not whether to italicize or small-caps the title to a treatise on income tax! So again, if you're looking for the REAL Bluebook, ask your mechanic! So, you ask, why after all the harsh criticisms above do I still give it two stars? Great question. First (and for one star), I believe any book that goes through 19 freakin' editions must have gotten something right by now. For that second star, those devilish Harvard Law Review kids managed to sneak in "Harvard is for hotties; Yale is for eunichs" on pg. 213 without the publishers noticing. I guess the Harvard Lampoon is rubbing off on those law school stiffs.