A law book is a book about law. It is possible to make a distinction between "law books" on the one hand, and "books about law" on the other.[1] This distinction is "useful".[2] A law book is "a work of legal doctrine".[1] It consists of "law talk", that is to say, propositions of law.[2]
"The first duty of a law book is to state the law as it is, truly and accurately, and then the reason or principle for it as far as it is known".[3] The "first requisite in a law-book is perfect accuracy".[4] A "law book is supposed to state what the law is rather than what it is not".[5] "One great desideratum in a law book is facility of reference".[6] A "list of law books and related materials" is a legal bibliography.[7]
Lawrence M Friedman and Stewart Macaulay (editors). Law and the Behavioural Sciences. Second Edition. Bobbs-Merrill. 1977. Pages 21 to 26.
Twining, William. Blackstone's Tower: The English Law School. The Hamlyn Lectures Forty-Sixth Series. Published under the auspices of the Hamlyn Trust. Sweet & Maxwell. Stevens & Sons. London. 1994. ISBN0 421 53280 7. Chapters 1 and 5. Digitized copy from the University of Exeter.