More than a simple guide through a complicated text, this book serves both as an introduction and as a distillation of more than thirty years of reading and reflection on Max Weber's scholarship. It is a solid and comprehensive study of Weber and his main concepts. It also provides commentary in a manner informed both historically and sociologically. Drawing on recent research in the history of law, the book also presents and critiques the process by which the law was rationalized and which Weber divided into four ideal-typical stages of development. It contextualizes Weber's work in the light of current research, setting out to amend misinterpretations and misunderstandings that have prevailed from Weber's original texts. Ultimately, this volume is an important work in its own right and critical for any student of the sociology of law.
