Rogues, Thieves and the Rule of Law: The problem of law enforcement in northeast England. . - Reviews - book review

Journal of Social History, Winter, 2001 by Claire McQuoid

A large-scale regional study of crime and penalogy cannot dedicate equal resources to pursue all legal narratives. The theme of gender and violence is particularly under explored for it leaves many questions unanswered on how the law, both official and extra-legal, regulated inter-personal violence.

This is a minor criticism, however, of a study that has achieved notable advances over recent scholarship in the social history of crime and contributed much to regional history. As this seminal study is also written with the clarity and simplicity that one expects from, but rarely finds, in specialist texts on criminal justice history, undergraduate students and non-specialists need not be intimidated nor deterred from consulting it. This leads me onto a moot point however; available only in hardback and retailing at around [pounds sterling]55 means that this potentially large audience is unlikely to benefit from the book's publication.