YOU AND THE LAW

Archer's second person title and chapter headings (You Are the Victim of a Violent Crime; You Go Behind Bars) are an indication of his human-interest approach in this general look at how the law works. Referring constantly to real cases and hypothetical examples, Archer offers some advice as well (how to speak up on the witness stand, what to expect when busted) and, though the level of analysis is superficial, he deals with reality rather than legal pretense in describing such matters as how jury members are selected, how suspects are treated, the system's effective discrimination against the poor, and the role of luck in anyone's legal experience. With all that, Archer still goes further into the procedures of law suits, jury trial, and so on than does Swiger (below)--though he is less likely to answer specific questions about the stipulations of particular laws. Readable--but no substitute, despite the updating, for Dorman's Under Twenty-One (1970).