Rating: 
Summary: I like Dummies, but this time go with Kaplan
Review: I didn't grow up in the US education system, but I'm applying to graduate school over here, so I was looking for a book on what to expect from the GRE. I'm a mild fan of the Dummies books -- they're reasonably priced and good for getting a rapid lock on the basics of a new field -- so I bought the Dummies book (and I'm talking about the 2000 edition here, by the way). If you're buying just one book, the Dummies guide may not be the best way to go. 1. It's hard to believe that anyone proofread this edition:
- some of the practice questions in the quantitative section are missing (e.g., p.146, second example),
- there are some typographic errors (e.g., p.128 states that 39/90 = 13/90),
- some text is repeated erroneously (e.g., "Some schools don't use the analytical ability score. Don't use the analytical ability score. Check with each school individually..." [sic]). 2. The layout is mediocre. 3. Coverage of the CAT/CBT is dated -- this book appears to date from the period where the GRE was changing from pencil to CBT. That changeover is now complete. 4. Coverage of the analytical section in this book is weak (50 pages on Verbal, 80 on Quant, but only 10 on Analytical - you do the math); there's not much to help you improve if you're struggling in this area other than working through and reviewing the practice exams at the back of the book. On the upside the tone is light and ironic which may help if you're running scared and some of the jokes are not bad. The approach to increasing vocabulary power uses less common words in the body of the text and provides synonyms in parentheses immediately afterwards -- a low-threat way to boost your vocab. I found the sentence building for antonyms and comparisons useful, but this is something that all the preparation books stress. On the math section, there were a few shortcuts for finding the area of figures that I hadn't already encountered in other prep books. The Dummies guide stresses time management; it encourages you to use the examples to discover your weak areas so that, if you're running short of time, you know whether to invest time (it's a question type you usually figure out correctly) or guess (question types that you usually get wrong) when you're getting bogged down on a question. This approach makes sense given the time-limited nature of the GRE, but seems a little defeatist at times. If you're looking for a book that is easy to read, you don't need any real help on (or don't care about) the analytical section, and you're going for scores in the 50-70th percentile then you might want to consider this book. On the whole, though, if you're looking for one book that will boost you significantly, I'd recommend the Kaplan 'Cracking the GRE' - better layout, almost error free, and, right now, more up to date on the CAT.
Rating: 
Summary: Upped my score...and quick, too!
Review: I flipped through several "traditional" GRE self-study books, but with little time to prepare (i.e. two weeks) and no desire to memorize lists of obscure vocabulary words, I bought this book. After a week of learning strategies and understanding how the test works, my practice test scores soared! And I wound up scoring well over 600 on the math and analytical portions of the test. Thanks to the author for the first EFFECTIVE book for taking a standardized test!
Rating:
Summary: Great Study Aide
Review: I found this book to be entertaining as well as informative. Studying for the GRE is a arduous task, but Suzee Vlk makes it somewhat fun and gives a lot of tips to use and practice. I haven't yet taken the GRE, but I feel more prepared for it after reading this book - and I love how she incorporates the vocabulary through out the book! The math section is great - it really simplifies the formulas you need to remember. In comparison, the verbal review is much shorter, and the analytical review is very very short. All in all, I would highly recommend it to someone panicing about taking this test!!
Rating: 
Summary: OK so it's been 20+ years since I last took the GREs and ...
Review: I found this helpful as an intro to how the test has changed since I last took it in the 80's. I would have rated it higher, but the math sections really are a bit too glossed over. I would recommend a separate book that focuses specifically on the math test. I had to go back to my old college math texts for explanations. However, all BUT the math parts are VERY WELL done with no BS and just enough levity to keep me from becoming lacrimose and lugubrious about my aging brain. (See, the book successfully taught me some fancy words.) Wish me luck!! And best of luck to you too! (My advice - don't wait 20+ years before going back to school.)
Rating:
Summary: OK so it's been 20+ years since I last took the GREs and ...
Review: I found this helpful as an intro to how the test has changed since I last took it in the 80's. I would have rated it higher, but the math sections really are a bit too glossed over. I would recommend a separate book that focuses specifically on the math test. I had to go back to my old college math texts for explanations. However, all BUT the math parts are VERY WELL done with no BS and just enough levity to keep me from becoming lacrimose and lugubrious about my aging brain. (See, the book successfully taught me some fancy words.) Wish me luck!! And best of luck to you too! (My advice - don't wait 20+ years before going back to school.)
Rating: 
Summary: A thorough, yet concise prep tool - very helpful.
Review: I purchased this book 2-3 weeks before taking the computer-based GRE. I went through all the material and took both practice exams. I found the book to be extremely useful in terms of the many tips for doing well, even though you may not have the material totally mastered. I am 40 years old, married, two kids, and work full-time. I needed something that could help me get it done quick. This book really proved to be well worth my time and money. I will say that I found the analytical and verbal sections on the actual test more difficult than the practice exams. Nevertheless, I scored just as well on the actual test as on the practices: V-580, Q-530, A-580, for an overall score of 1690. I needed a 1600 for the masters program I am applying to. I really think the strategies I learned from the book are what helped me, because there were several questions on the exam I felt clueless about. Thanks Suzee!
Rating:
Summary: Very helpful
Review: I purchased this book last year and found it more annoying than helpful. The author's "cute" rhetoric was more distracting than helpful nor did I find any of her advice all that beneficial. The examples were overly simplistic and did not reflect the difficulty of the test. Her approach is superficial at best and downplays the rigorous nature of the test itself. This book was definitely a waste of money. The Barrons vocabulary list is far superior to anything in "Dummies." I am going with Kaplan this time and anxiously awaiting the new edition of the ETS book.
Rating:
Summary: Don't bother
Review: I purchased this book last year and found it more annoying than helpful. The author's "cute" rhetoric was more distracting than helpful nor did I find any of her advice all that beneficial. The examples were overly simplistic and did not reflect the difficulty of the test. Her approach is superficial at best and downplays the rigorous nature of the test itself. This book was definitely a waste of money. The Barrons vocabulary list is far superior to anything in "Dummies." I am going with Kaplan this time and anxiously awaiting the new edition of the ETS book.
Rating:
Summary: Fun, but not helpful in real test!
Review: I read it with great joy and fun, but the strategies the author provides cannot be that applicable to the real test because the major strategies in this book are pretty old. The code of modern CBT GRE is not that simply broken. Of course, it is true that first five (I think the first ten at least) questions are extremely important. But trust me! Do not rely only on the first five questions because ETS conders the most how many questions the test takers answer correctly. You can enjoy this book. But if you prepare GRE only with this book, I am sure that you will be greatly abashed. Math is good, but GRE math is getting complicated. For math, it would be better to review the Math section ETS freely provides through its website.
Rating:
Summary: Very Helpful
Review: I used The GRE for Dummies as well as the Cracking the GRE CAT (with CD Rom) to study for the GRE. Both had their strengths. In the GRE for Dummies, the math review was superior, the prefix, suffix, and root review was excellent; and especially helpful was the note that prior to studying, one should see whether or not the graduate school requires all three scores. I did that, found that I would not have to spend very much time studying for the analytical section, and was appreciative of the time saved. Using these two books, I did quite well on the GRE!
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