An Excellent guide for FTB's

Recently purchased this to help in buying our first house. Has proved to be an excellent resource with a clear and very well layed out information for every step you need to take. I would say this book is more for the FTB than investor although there is many chapters which are dedicated to those intrested in Buy to Let / Holiday lets / Commercial lets with information on how to obtain property not advertised on the open market.<br /><br />All in all a recommended read!

Confusing

I also found this book very confusing. Not only does it not have full legislation, just some excerpts, but also the arrangement is fairly annoying. I suppose if you get used to it after using it many times, maybe it would make sense, but writing an essay on say, sexual offences legislation would require one to go back and forth between different parts in the book where the statues are scrambled.

Best book on Manson

This is the book the Mansonites don't want you to read. You might not be aware but there are Manson Family advocates out there running a website and music and books and videos hailing Manson as a hero. This is the book they hate because it exposes Manson's true evil. This is an excellent book which though lengthy, reads like a fast paced detective adventure.

Roman empire

This is a brilliant introduction to this topic. It is no way dry or dull to read and gives great insight into Roman life and how they administered their empire. It looks at symbols in Roman architecture and how they are used to increase the legend of the empire and emperor, as well as link into local tradition to prevent dissent. It also looks at local life and households, as well as Christians and their martyrdom in the Colosseum. You can find out what aspects of the empire intrigue you most before going on to the massive range of books out there that are more specific. Simply superb.

Good information for new and experienced mediators

This is a book for every mediator, new and experienced. It is well organized and covers both the theory and practice of mediation very well. Before every mediation, I review it, together with"Basic Skills for the New Mediator" by Allan H. Goodman. I consider both of these books valuable references.

A clear, focused and pertinent guide

Fantastic! This is a really useful, easy to read guide for all us British expats who are trying to settle into a new life here in Spain. I really found that Mr King's book provided us with invaluable information on many aspects of life here, we have picked it up time and time again. I can't imagine trying to deal with the scary spanish law without it.

Train hard, fight easy (as they say in the Army).

This book contains a lot of practice material. Unusually, it also contains useful information on results, which gives a good guide as to how you compare with other candidates. The questions are slightly harder than you will find on the LNAT itself; but it's probably better to be pleasantly surprised on the big day than thrown by anything more difficult than you've encountered before.<br /><br />On the down side, there are some errors in editing, especially towards the end of the book; and, in common with similar publications, the advice on grammar is poor - some of it is wrong, some correct but with an inaccurate explanation.<br /><br />This book won't give you a logical brain if you don't already possess one, nor could it really compensate if you haven't been taught how to read and write reasonably well by the time you apply to university. Preparing with this or similar books doesn't guarantee success; and a good score on the LNAT won't get you into a top university by itself. It shouldn't do you any harm if you use this book sensibly, however, and it might help you practise your technique and thus gain confidence. (I achieved 25/30 - the national average was 16.8 - and got a place at my first choice university.)<br />

Excellent

This book is quite simply the best researched and best written book that I have ever read. Truely horrifying but was unable to put it down. A must read for anyone interested in Northern Ireland.

A good primer for fulfilling company secretary obligations

Having used this book for over a year now I have found it an accessible text for provision of legal obligations when setting up and running a limited company in the UK. The book lends itself to the typical scenario where one individual fulfils the role of company secretary, accountant and managing director. It has a good index, and has proved particularly useful with (1) holding and minuting official company meetings; (2) Basic company accounts preparation. However, it does not pretend to be an accounting book, and it is recommended that the purchaser also acquire a text on basic company book-keeping - do these yourself and minimise unavoidable accounting fees!

A good place to start thinking about law

This book is an excellent way to get a taste for what it is like to study law at degree level. It tackles all seven core subject areas giving the reader a good introduction and case study to see how that aspect of law functions. Some of the book is a little exhaustive, however you should reassure yourself that all will become clear in the classroom. <br /><br />A good place to start for all prospective law students.

Fantastic Background Reading

This book has really helped me to get an idea about what the differences are between solicitors and barristers, the costs and process of becoming a barrister and also what Junior Barristers do on a day to day basis. There is a fasinating section of"a week in the life" stories from a variety of different diciplines which I found very helpful. <br /><br />Kramers book is honest with the difficulties faced in ultimately getting a tenancy but there is an underlying optimism about the profession, acknowledging the competition but stating happily that the cream will float to the top. A reassuring concept for an non oxbridge graduate like myself. <br /><br />A practical, helpful guide and reference. <br /><br />

The courts where some are more equal than others before the law

The most elementary principle of justice in a democracy is that all are held to be equal in the eyes of the law. On the evidence of this book it is now abundantly clear that a father, far from being equal in disputes over access to his children, is held to be of no account in the secret family courts. He is liable to be dispossessed of all contact with his children at will by his former wife or partner on a whim or as part of a family feud. Mark Harris' one mistake was to marry into a family of vindictive sociopaths who forcibly abducted his wife and children and smashed up the family home. That he stayed in touch with those children and stuck it out through truly Kafkaesque abuse of legal process by the secret family courts and their corrupt mendacious judges, counsel and so called experts for 10 years, until the passage of time allowed his children to make their own choice, is a tribute to human endurance on a parallel with any other I have read about. The lengths the authorities went to in smearing and crushing the harmless organised protests that fathers in similar situations put on, show what kind of state we live in. This book is also a wake up call to defenders of civil liberties, people with whom I normally do not have much sympathy. It turns out that even the alleged plot to kidnap Leo Blair was probably put about by the security services. Was the so called desecration at Stonehenge a matter for grave disquiet? Not really; it was an imaginative publicity stunt and did no damage to the monument. Until the family courts are brought out into the light of day and scrutinised properly, the grave miscarriages of justice described in this book will continue. It used to be said that an Englishman's home was his castle until his wife decided to take it away from him. To that can now be added that his children are his own until the lady decides to remove them with the backing of the courts and legal establishment.

Useful

A good book, with helpful information. Well written and easy to understand. Definitely recommend it for those in need of a little help in a very confusing field.

A sorely needed refresher course

I have no hesitation in giving Professor Grayling's book five stars. <br /><br />It is an education and vigorous refresher for anyone like myself who recognises names like Spinoza, Locke, Voltaire, Milton, de Tocqueville, but has only a hazy understanding of what they stand for, and only a patchy idea of the significance of the Glorious English Revolution of 1688 and the American and French revolutions, but has now in these times an uneasy feeling that the ideas and principles underpinning free societies are neglected. In as little as three hundred well written pages he explains it all.<br /><br />I will let others extol the virtues of the book and here draw attention to one serious flaw, or to be kind to the author, to draw attention to an issue on which I wish he had said a lot more. <br /><br />His priorities are wrong.<br /><br />The book is exactly what it says it is"The Story of the Struggles for Liberty & Rights" but the opening and closing chapters discuss the threats to Liberty that we face today.<br /><br />In the opening chapter he poses the question, in relation to the growing Muslim population in Europe, of how we deal with those whose ideas on Liberty and Rights are different from ours and who if they got their way would bring an end to the Liberty that we have painfully gained over the last 500 years. He doesn't answer this question.<br /><br />Mistakenly, in my view, in these opening and closing chapters he concentrates on the threats to Liberty posed by the anti-terrorist measures taken by the US and UK governments. <br /><br />As awful and as worrying some of these anti-terrorist measures are [1][2] they can at least be discussed. Your life will not be threatened, the Politically Correct (PC) roof will not fall on your head, respected national figures can and do state their views. But, these measures and the terrorism that brings them about are only symptoms, symptoms of an underlying religious malaise, and that is Islam as it mainly manifests itself in the world today.<br /><br />He could say a lot more about the threat to Liberty from Islam. Perhaps his views are constrained by the observations he makes in relation to the persecution of minorities in Nazi Germany. <br /><br />Religion is a very sensitive subject [3]. It is a sobering thought that a US presidential candidate who said openly that he wasn't too sure about God or that he was an atheist, wouldn't stand a chance. Could it be that the authors of the American Constitution, a beacon of Liberty, would be rejected by today's American voters?<br /><br />Could we discuss openly and have a debate at a respected political level of the problems and potential problems caused by Islam in Liberal societies, and in the way we discuss measures to combat terrorism, discuss what we should and will do about it. I fear not.<br /><br />We have started 2008 in the UK with a prime example of the difficulties. The Bishop of Rochester has drawn attention to the voluntary segregation of Muslims in the UK and the enclaves they have created which he says have become"no go" areas for Christians. <br /><br />Of course, the bishop's use of the term"no-go" was a mistake. It has too many wrong meanings. The PC roof has fallen on his head, political figures from right, left and centre are falling over themselves to criticise or distance themselves from the bishop. <br /><br />But the bishop is essentially right. There are a growing number of places which are growing in size in the UK where the culture around you is Islamic. Mohamed in its various spellings is now the most popular name for a boy in the UK. The bishop didn't say it, so I will say it for him. It wont be long before these Islamic communities will be demanding Sharia law. What then Liberty?<br /><br />Not all Muslims, perhaps only a minority, believe and practice the aspects of their religion that are so inimical to free societies. But these beliefs and practices<br /><br />- women are essentially male possessions<br /><br />- death is a just punishment for apostasy and insulting Islam or the prophet<br /><br />- that Islam trumps all other religions<br /><br />- Muslims have a sacred duty to impose Islam everywhere, by force if necessary<br /><br />to name a few of the worst, cast a dark shadow wherever Muslims live.<br /><br />The bodies that represent Muslims are a cause of concern. Western suits and PR officers are no guarantee of a modern outlook or reasonableness. The secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain when asked if stoning was a bad thing said it"depended on the stones". He also thinks arranged marriages are a good idea and we in the UK should have them. His predecessor, whom the UK government rubbed shoulders with, is notorious for having said of Salman Rushdie that death was too good for him. <br /><br />Perhaps a very great danger is not having a clear idea of what or who represents a form of Islam that can truly be part of a Liberal society [4]<br /><br />These are the sorts of issues and threats that I wish Professor Grayling had given more space to and, from his philosophical standpoint, offered some ideas on how they can be dealt with.<br /><br />Notes<br /><br />[1] That a high American official made out a case for torture must have had Torquemada laughing in his grave.<br /><br />[2] Professor Grayling is spot on in his criticism of the UK ID card scheme. I speak with some authority having studied the subject. Prof Grayling refers readers to the press in general to learn more about this nonsense, to which I would add and strongly recommend the Report and Evidence published by the UK Parliamentary Committee concerned with home affairs. The pages of my copy are stained with tears of laughter and rage.<br /><br />[3] Having read this book I checked out Amazon readers comments on other works by Prof Grayling. I was shocked at the virulence of some of the attacks on him because he is, apparently, an atheist.<br /><br />[4] Irshad Manjii in an excellent review of"Arguing the Just War in Islam" a recent book by John Kelsay, writes:<br /><br />The moderates whom Kelsay has studied"do not in fact dissent from the militant judgement that current political arrangements are illegitimate. Some moderates agree with militants that"democracy" implies a kind of moral equivalence between Islam and other perspectives. And such a situation is dangerous not only for the standing of the Muslim community, but for the moral life of humankind"<br /><br />[International Herald Tribune, 5-6 January, 2008]<br /><br />I would add to this that 25 percent of UK Muslims sympathised with the London bombers.

Hi

We found this very useful if you are considering an application. It lists the points you will gain for your skills and professions etc, so you know in advance if you've a chance of successfull immigration. Everything else (the low down on each state etc) is pretty dull & in some cases inaccurate. But we bought this with the pure expectation of the book telling us what we needed to have to get australia citizenship, and it did that 100%.

Mental Health Act 2007 - Explained at last ...........

As a mental health student nurse studying for a BSc (hons) Degree, there are two areas that I continually struggle with day in and day out, the first is medication and the second is the Mental Health Act 1983, can you imagine the confusion when the Amended Mental Health Act 2007 came out. This book has been really good for me as it not only includes the full mental health act but also the amendments from 2007. also, this book includes mental capacity act. Basically, it has everything you need to help you plough through the current legislation in preparation for the 2007 act implementation in October. Details of certain mental act sections are easily located and explained. I did ponder about awarding 4 stars to this publication as a lot of the work tends to be a little wordy and could have been written in a much more basic form, but it cannot be faulted for it's content, therefore it got 5 stars. I am a degree student and found some of the chapters really hard going, but saying that, the mental health act is very difficult to read through. the book is concise and accurate and does explain a great deal about legislation background and how the amendment came about and what fuelled it's implementation. Overall this book would benefit any psychiatric student, mental health worker, approved social worker or mental health related doctors. Basically anyone who has dealings with mental health services on a professional level. as a student, i am very selective of the publications I purchase, this is one of the very very very few books that bring in the new 2007 mental health act, therefore it warranted a purchase and I am very pleased I did. It is well written, contains detailed explanations and above all, set out easily so certain information can be easily and quickly found. To keep its different sections apart it is split into 2 sections, the first is around the reform of the mental health act and the second is in regards to the mental capacity act. As it states in the book the title is a little misleading as it is really a book about two pieces of legislation, the mental health act 1983 and the mental capacity act 2005 as they have been amended by the 2007 act.<br />Overall, a great book, well put together. I would recommend this book to anyone who is studying to be in or already in the mental health services. Paul Bowen has put together a publication that can put to bed any confusing thoughts you had around the mental health act and as I have said before, in great time as the new act comes into affect in October 2008. This book is a credit to my collection of mental health related academic literature.<br /><br /><br />