More Information on Books
Jump to reviews of
GMAT
ETS, Official Guide to the GMAT, 9th Edition
IMPORTANT: The most current edition of this book is the 10th edition; if you have a choice, do not buy the 9th edition, buy the 10th!
In
a word, this is a great book!
We use this book as the basis for our GMAT preparation--we require all of our students to do all of the exercises in this book before they take the test.
This book has LOTS of practice authentic practice questions. There is no substitute for official GMAT questions--the questions in the practice books are just not the same. Many of the practice books have mistakes and address topics that are not really related to what you will see on the GMAT. It is very easy to doubt these questions and to find fault with them. However, official GMAT questions are not like that--you will almost never be able to find fault with them.
However, this book has MANY problems--it is not a perfect solution for GMAT preparation. Some of the questions are too easy, especially the math questions--many of our students have said that the questions on the real test are much harder than the ones in the book. Many TestMagic students can get over 90%ile on the math section and they think the math in this book is too easy.
Moreover, the explanations are hard to understand--they are written for college professors!! It doesn't make sense--obviously, if the questions were difficult for you, you need explanations that are easy to understand. These explanations are written in the same style as the reading passages--not very helpful for many people!
In fact, many of our students quickly finish this book and need more. Unfortunately, there are no other good materials available. This book is not enough.
Finally, some of the reading passages are shorter than the ones on the real test. We actually called ETS to complain about this and we were told, and this is a quote, "Well, we were just trying to give people an idea of what the test was like." In other words, the reading will be about as hard as the hardest passages in this book--prepare yourself!!
GRE
"The
Big Book"
ETS was in a good
mood when they released this book to the public.
Like all official materials, this book is unbeatable for quality
of questions. None of the other practice books can come close
to the quality of questions you will find in this book.
This book contains 27 actual, full tests which were administered
in the past. This is more than most people would ever need to
practice. However, this book contains NO explanations or strategies--it's
pure practice. If you need strategies or explanations, you will
have to look elsewhere.
Finally, some of these tests were given years ago. Like all the
other tests, the GRE has evolved and some of the question types
that you will see in this book will not be on your tests. For
example, the real GRE reading passages are actually pretty long
(four or five paragraphs) even though some of the passages in
the book are quite short (one paragraph). Moreover, students who
can score in the 90 %ile on the math section will find the math
in the book too easy.
All in all, you can beat the value. This book is the bible of
GRE test prep.
GRE PowerPrep Software
I have to say that ETS got it right this
time! If only they would release more software like this, we would
all be much happier.
The biggest problem with most of the other products out there
is that they invariably have mistakes, have questions unlike those
you will see on the real test, or give you a score that has nothing
to do with the score you'll get on the real test. Furthermore,
in every other book or software program now published, the math
will be easy if you are scoring in the 90%ile and above. This
product has NONE of these problems--you will get hard problems
if you are good in math; and, since this product is "fresh," it
contains material similar to that currently on the tests. Some
of the older materials are outdated and contain questions of a
type no longer tested on the GRE.
So, and I almost hate to say it, this software is PERFECT!!! Well,
almost perfect--the only real drawbacks are that you CANNOT review
your answers after the test and there are no explanations. However,
this program contains two full, actual tests--the score you get
on this will be your real score. Even after you take the two tests,
you could actually take them a few more times--the program actually
contains something like a thousand questions and each time you
take the test, you get a different variety of questions, depending
on your level/performance.
In a word, this is a GREAT product. I wish there were more like
it!!
Good luck on your test!!
Dictionaries
Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary
Noah
Webster wrote the first American English dictionary in the 1806
and his name has come to be synonymous with the word "dictionary"
in the US. As a result, every dictionary in the US that wants
to make any sales calls itself a "Webster's."
The M-W, however, is the original and still the best. I have every
major American English dictionary in publication, and several
British dictionaries, including the Random House, the Webster's
3rd (the unabridged dictionary), Microsoft's dictionary, the Oxford
Dictionary, and several learner's dictionaries.
Frankly, the differences among the top three,i.e., the M-W, the
Random House, and the Microsoft (on CD), are not that great--choose
a word like "efficiency" and see how each is defined. You might
think they were all working together. That said, I have so say
the M-W is still my favorite. Further, the M-W dictionary is consistently
rated #1 in surveys of academics and language scholar.
I am a professional language and test preparation instructor and
rely on good dictionaries for precise definitions of words. The
M-W consistently gives clear, accurate dictionaries and apposite
examples. One extra feature that helps word lovers like me understand
the words better is that M-W lists definitions in the order that
they came into use, with the most recent usage last. This type
of listing is extremely helpful for understanding how a word has
evolved and what it is about that word that remains and what is
not essential to the meaning. Such an understanding of words is
essential for GRE and SAT preparation and is one of the main reasons
I regularly turn to the M-W.
In short, it's your best option for an American English dictionary.