Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia is teaming up...

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia is teaming up with legal writing expert Bryan Garner to write a book on “the art of persuading judges.” I own the excellent Garner’s Modern American Usage (based on David Foster Wallace’s rave review), and have admired the prose (but usually not the arguments) of Scalia’s decisions – so although I have no professional need for this book, I still think it will be an interesting read.

Submitted by crazymonk on Tue, 11/27/2007 - 5:00am.

Comments (5)

They have divided the writing equally, Garner says, adding that with all the changes and rewriting, "we can't tell anymore which of us wrote which sentence."

How can I possibly respect myself if I buy the new Scalia book, but how can I possibly resist buying the new Garner book? Ugh. Now I know how Jean Valjean felt when he sang "Who Am I?"

Josh Eveleth | Tue, 11/27/2007 - 5:18pm

Really, Josh? That seems extreme.

Geoff | Tue, 11/27/2007 - 6:13pm

Get it from the library!

Lorelei | Wed, 11/28/2007 - 2:17pm

Good point about the library. Unfortunately, they don't approve of my margin notes in their books, a habit that's especially present in my copies of Garner's books.

Geoff, I agree that my words here may be extreme, but I've found that ever since Scalia displayed his selective federalism in Raich (as opposed to his take on Wickard) I can have only the most visceral reaction when his name comes up.

Josh Eveleth | Thu, 11/29/2007 - 2:14pm

Browsing through the comments, I must say that the price tag on the book is quite small compared to the wealth of information and knowledge that is within. I just got the book and I have used it on several occassions in formulating both legal and common-day arguments. I don't think that the book is geared toward the legal mind solely and I think if you like GMAU, you will love this book. Scalia and Garner are co-hosting a CLE program for the day on July 25 at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. I think it will be fascinating to see both of them in action and working off each other's energy.

Buy the book, it is worth it.

Anonymous | Tue, 07/15/2008 - 10:08am