Rating: 
Summary: Frustrating but all the better for it
Review: This is a VERY comprehensive book from which to study the SCJP exam. I have read both it and Kathy Sierra's books. They are different paths to the same goal. Where Kathy's is easier to read, Mughal goes to greater depth. Kathy's questions are easier, Mughals are generally more difficult and searching. He poses questions that are extremely subtle as times...hence being very frustrating...but then, they do make you better because you really have to read, think and reason a question out properly(A skill that I needed to develop...and one that reading this book has aided me in developing). A glance is typically not enough in the case of this book. But challenges either make us or break us and this book will challenge you (Do the practise exams on the CD and see what I mean!).I have to admit, at times I resented this book...wanting to throw it with annoyance...but perserverance in times of frustration is what is needed. This book takes it to a deeper level than Kathy's...since she is teaching you just what you need for the exam. Mughal does this plus adds depth and scope so you are getting a more complete education in this area. Actually, I think both books do compliment each other in a way: Start with Kathy's, then read this. This will check how much you really know (just don't throw it at loved ones...:)) Only criticism: the UML diagrams are probably unnecessary since a SCJP exam is being studied for. WHile I appreciate their purpose (vale adding to your Java education), they do require effort to interpret that could be better spent elsewhere. All concepts have coded examples, though for some of the questions you really have to read the text to find the answers...but this is a good thing (if you have the I'll-be-damned-if-this-is-going-to-beat-me gene...at lets face it, you'd better have it if you're gonna beat the SCJP exam). So buy this is you want a thorough SCJP exam study guide and also a good Java language reference book that you can use after the exam. It has more reuse than the SIerra book in that respect I think (though Kathy's book does cover Developer exam, kind of). COnsider it a sublcassed version of the Sierra Book...:) (yes I know that joke was tragic...but, it works...kinda, sorta...:) Better to laugh than cry!)
Rating:
Summary: The best book on the market
Review: This is a very good book. It's very well written. It is not an easy book, it covers a lot of details. If you learn this book you
will have a VERY high score on the exam! I can really recommend this book. This book stands out from the rest of the crowd. Sadly
you can't say this about many books out there today...
Rating: 
Summary: The best book for preparing SCPJ2 1.4
Review: This is an excellent book for preparing the exam. I did not use this book to prepare and pass my SCJP2 1.4. I received this book from publisher for review. After reading the book, I wish I had used this book for my preparation. It would have been much easier and faster. I found the content of this book is very well organized and tired to the exam. It uses a lot of diagrams to illustrate the concepts. However I feel the UML and OOP are a little bit over-kill for programmer exam. That is the focus of J2EE architect certification. The mock exams are very close to the real exam. Even this is a very good book, I feel it is extremely useful to use another book for reference. The more excises you have, the better chance you will pass the first time. The other book would be by Kathy Sierra, Bert Bates. Do not use Philip Heller, Simon Roberts's book. The excises are not even close to the real exam. This book will definitely help you to pass. Good luck.
Rating:
Summary: Great reference, learning guide, and prep tool
Review: This is an excellent text to learn Java from. I have studied Java in my spare time for years and come from a Visual Basic background and I don't know C or C++. I hope to write the exam early next year. Notice the many charts and diagrams in this book. For example, the charts for the collection classes, which show how each collection and their interfaces relate to one another, along with their differences. The same goes for the section on inner/outer public/private classes. Without these charts I would find the different combinations very difficult to keep track of. The examples are very uncluttered relative to many I see in books, and I can't find any errors either. The only thing I found is the large amount of text describing the concepts is initially very difficult to follow. However, if you jump ahead a bit and practice many hours with the examples you find yourself later reading the text and slowly comprehending all of it. I am very happy with this book as a reference, a learning guide, and an exam preparation tool.
Rating:
Summary: Perfect for Certification
Review: This is the best book in the market for java certification, it covers each and every aspect of the certificate exam and just doesn't limit to that but also have in depth and detail matter that can serve as reference and a guide in solving some trivial issues that take countless hours of debugging and quashing bugs. A Must have
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