Books for Prep | |
 - Worth itThough several other reviewers seem to find this book mediocre at best, I found that it was very helpful in a lot of ways. The questions seemed a lot harder than actual questions on ETS practice tests as well as on the real GRE, so when it came to actually taking the test I felt that everything was pretty easy by comparison. My score was much better after having studied this book than it would have been without it. Granted, I did come across some wrong answers in problem explanations, but very few when considering the sizable quantity of practice questions in this book. The Quantitative lessons were the most helpful to me, as they provided in-depth reviews of all the concepts that are likely to be encountered in the exam, with practice problems for each concept. The logic sections were also very helpful, especially when it came to practicing how to concisely jot down the conditions of a problem and how to draw the right kinds of diagrams quickly. Finally, the verbal section provided a good review, including a list of 4000 important vocab words. Unfortunately, the vocab definitions provided were extremely brief, and I found it necessary to turn to another study guide for more extensive definitions. Overall, though I didn't manage an 800-800-800 like some reviewers who used this book (I wish I could have gotten that score!), I did very well (well enough to feel no inclination to take the test again). I found that the only factor that lowered my scores at all was the fact that I had trouble finishing all the questions on the quantitative and analytical secitons within the time limits (damn those time limits! damn them to hell!). I was much better off for having studied with this book and I would recommend it to anyone, although I'm sure that most study guides are fairly equivalent. What really makes the biggest difference is the time and effort you're willing to devote to studying this or any other guide. Rating:  - Buy something differentThis particular GRE review book is actually quite difficult to use and does not, I believe prepare you for actual GRE questions. 1. The anylytical or Logic portion of the book (Soon to become obsolete) is ridiculously easy, I scored 800 each time on all the tests in the book, and found they had no helpful strategies in the logic section. While I scored a 760 in Analytical, I did not find anything in this book remotely challenging when it came to test day... 2. The Verbal section of the book does have a helpful vocabulary list, however, their one word definitions are not always entirely accurate in defining these words, thus on test day, you may come up against a word with two meanings such as Purchase (traction or to buy) or Slip (used by potters, or to fall, or an undergarment) and only know one. In addition, their questions for the reading interpretation are somewhat vague and really open to interpretation. 3. Math is my weak point. The math section was thorough enough it seemed to me, but there were several errors. The other complaint I have regarding this book is the unusual percentile scoring which seems to have very little rhyme or reason. While it appears logical, it scores your test very differently than an actual CAT exam would- despite it being on the computer. The book bases your score on number of questions answered correctly, where as the CAT bases it on the weight of the questions you answer correctly...Based on the scores I got from this book I would have had a 1630, when in reality I scored 1860. There are several GRE prep books out there. i would recommend you choose a company that focuses on Test Preparation (ie Princeton Review and Kaplan and a few others) to find a more reliable prepatory course....Taking the test is stressful enough without this confusing document. Rating:  - Mediocre ProductThe book has a good number of analytical questions (they are a bit more difficult than those you would see on the CAT). but it helps to go through these kind of questions as it makes the CAT analytical questions seem easier and you are able to do them faster. The math review section is helpful in refreshing basic math concepts. The Barrons word list is much better than the word list in this book. The main drawback is that the CD is worthless. The questions in the book have just been copied onto the CD. Overall it may be helpful. Best of luck! Rating:  - Worth the moneyThis book is definitely worth the money and time it will take to cover it. With this book, you can pretty much completely prepare for the GRE and it WILL help your score. Some things to watch for are the errors in the math section. There are a few cases where the wrong answer is attributed to the correct letter and there were a few that the problem was simply worked out incorrectly. Also, I was not too impressed with the way this book approached the Verbal section... it implies that you should memorize a list of 4000 words. Even if I had the time to do this, I would not. Memorizing huge lists is not an effective way to study. In all, this book is a great way to approach studying for the GRE, but allow yourself about a month to absorb all of the material. Rating: - It's big, and that's what I neededI got a mediocre score, well pretty good score, on the GRE, but I wanted a better one so I bought this book (and another one the "LSAT / GRE Analytic Workout" by Karen Lurie, since my worst area was the analytic section). The book is full of faults: some wrong answers an annoying tendency to seem to be expression the authors' social and religious veiwpoints and many badly formed questions (amiguous verbal questions, nonpresice math questions, badly conceived and explained analytic puzzles and arguements) I was frequently annoyed by these faults. But there were lots of practice problems, which is exactly what I needed. When I was taking the test the second time, I could see right through it. "This is the goal of this question." "This is where they're trying to trick me." I got an 800 800 800 on my retake, so stuff worked. That's why the book didn't get less than three stars. I'm not convinced that any other big fat book wouldn't have done just as well. In association with Amazon.com | |