This work has been co-authored by three academics who have devoted much time and energy to producing a book and online resource, but even that description does not really begin to do it justice. In fact the cover describes it best, as an interactive online resource with an accompanying book. The book itself is impressive, containing 32 chapters addressing virtually every skill a law student is likely to need, of which more shortly. But it is the materials other than the book which make it really relevant by making excellent use of the online resources to teach legal skills. The preface says that, although it is recognised that learning skills is important in ensuring academic and vocational success, they envisage that the approach of this book could well be adopted by textbooks addressing substantive areas of law and they are probably right. A resource of this kind to teach land law, for example, would help to bring that demanding subject to life and force students to engage with it.

Even before the preface it can be seen that considerable thought has gone into the design of the book. The reader is told before anything else that everything including the text of the book is online, and purchasing the book gives the student four years' access to the online account, so in effect one buys the book and obtains a four year lease of the website. The site contains over 170 interactive activities, starting with a skills audit. These are complemented by some 50 video recordings demonstrating bad practice as well as good, an eminently suitable approach to practical skills acquisition in such areas as presentations and mooting. Additional elements include a reflective diary (encouraging the student to stop and think), and information made available via the hyperlinked glossary and cross referencing. Most of the activities provide scores so that the student is continually made aware of how well they are performing and what areas might need to be revisited.

So what kinds of skills are addressed? The book is divided into five main parts including an introduction, comprehensive glossary and list of common abbreviation and a helpful index. The first part deals with basic study skills beginning with time management, what and how to write when taking notes, working alone and in groups whilst avoiding plagiarism, thinking critically and creatively and reflecting on one's work, all of which comprise one quarter of the 522 page book. Part 2 covers research and technical skills, providing a comprehensive account of how to use the law library to begin research followed by advice on the various sources – law books, legal journals and databases and how to cite sources. Parts 1 and 2 comprise the first 18 chapters and 240 pages.

The second half of the book starts with legal method in Part 3. The student is shown how to read, understand and interpret statutes and no fewer than four separate chapters explain the skills and approaches required to understand case law. In Chapter 24, for example, an explanation is provided about how to tackle a difficult case, the one chosen being A v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2005] 2 AC 68 and students are told that to take it seriously at least two or three hours should be given to reading it and not just prior to the seminar. The chapter explains the process in close detail with four main steps, a number of sub-steps and ten activities. Serious and conscientious students cannot fail to engage with this process if they access the available resources and the approach is infinitely more interesting than simply reading a textbook. The chapter ends by emphasising the importance of reflecting on one's work.

Part 4 contains four chapters on basic academic and assessment skills: how to write essays, extended essays and dissertations, how to tackle problem questions and the process of revising and preparing for examinations. In Part 5 the four major practical skills of making presentations, mooting, interviewing and negotiating are covered. Presentations, formal or informal, are what most people have to do in a variety of circumstances, whether for assessment or simply to disseminate information. For lawyers they are especially important, and students are encouraged by practical advice as to their purpose, how to set about preparing one, with videos showing how real law students fare. The text provides reassurance and advice and the chapter demonstrates graphically how useful and beneficial the interactive activities can be.

The starting point for the authors is that nowadays the student body is so diverse that law teachers cannot take much, if anything, for granted about student experience prior to commencing their law degree studies and the approach taken as a result of that absence of presupposition is an imaginative and diverse use of current technology and dependence on the computer. The preface shows that they consulted extensively, not only the academic community but many other people, which enabled them to produce a resource with encyclopaedic coverage.

For a final example, take the chapter on critical thinking, something which law teachers strive to explain to students, although only too often without much success. Chapter 8 deals with this, explaining why it is so important to lawyers. The first page of the chapter provides the glossary and a wide range of cross-referencing links to indicate why critical thinking is important for statutory interpretation, taking notes, contributing to seminars and answering problems. One activity brings out the importance of understanding what is required – “advise” is a very different assessment instruction from “define” or “demonstrate”. There are a variety of approaches to developing strategies to improve and enhance critical thinking, but at bottom it means asking questions of the law and considering what is being said in context, and why. If the student understands these basics, and reflects on them, they will quickly become much more effective at learning and aware of what needs to be done to succeed. In that objective this book provides an excellent and valuable vehicle.