Rating: 
Summary: Excellent, concise review
Review: This is an excellent review for the certification exam. The exam itself is pretty tricky, because it tests topics that you probably never use in your day-to-day programming. The "Exam Cram" highlights those potential trouble spots, without wasting hundreds of pages on the language basics.I've been programming and teaching Java for about 4 years. I think I would have passed the exam without studying, but it would have been close. Thanks to this book, I did well on the exam.
Rating: 
Summary: Not a good choice, if you are serious about certification..
Review: Lots of books out there on certification, and after having cleared the certification, I can opine on some of the books I used. Hope my reviews would be helpful to other fellow readers. This book was the worst of the 4 books I used for preparation. It had very confusing layout and absolutely no flow of thought. If it reads like a cue card, why then have a separate book called "Exam Cram"?? (Better epithets come to mind!:-) In a vain attempt to make the book "high tech", I guess, the answers to the practice question are on the CD!!! How inconvenient is that? Finally I gave up and printed out the answers. The answers are often wrong - typos. While the printout shows (b) as the right answer, the explanation reads like (c) should be the right answer - Which one do I trust?!? In fact this book unlearnt some of the things I already knew! Please check Roberts and Heller, and Mughal and Rasmussen for your certification book. No one book has the magic bullet, but by covering these 2 books you are in the 90% mark for getting the cert! Good luck!!
Rating:
Summary: A groovy certification book!
Review: I just passed the SCJP exam this evening and with a high score. This book is the main reason why I passed. I would recommend you "Complete Java 2 Certification Study Guide" and this book. Good Luck!
Rating:
Summary: Fast certification in just one book!!!!!
Review: With no prior knowledge whatsoever in Java, this book helped me get certified in just one month! (full time study) Much of the bad reviews this book has recieved must be due to the fact that it actually uses the basic knowledge from the first 7 chapters very severe in the rest of the book. My best advise is to get the basic knowledge before passing on, and use the book to gain experience. Do all the coding yourself, test everything the book states about Java. Be able to answer all of the questions before moving on, and finally: Good luck!
Rating:
Summary: perfect exam cram just as it promises
Review: Just as the other reviews of this book states, this book is perfect for final preparation just before the certification exam. Information was presented very precisely, with no extra rhetoric. The practice exam at the end of this book was actually somewhat harder than the real test! I passed the first time with an 84%.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Review Book....
Review: This book provides for an excellent exam cram - but stops right there. If you need to learn JAVA, look elsewhere! Also take many many many many many mock exams before you sign up - they help immensely. Free mock exams are available [on the internet]Good Luck.
Rating:
Summary: excellent study guide
Review: This book is the only book about the Test you should need (assuming you already have a mountain of Java books like I do). The exam is hard so read this book twice. There was a question on my test about garbage collection that I think just about anyone would have had trouble with.
Rating:
Summary: buy another book
Review: this book is very watered down. i bought it first and ended up having to buy A Programmer's Guide to Java Certification and think it's much better. the only redeeming quality of Exam Prep is the sample test and questions
Rating:
Summary: Good for final test preparation
Review: I used this book during my last week of SCJP test preparation. The practice questions in the book are harder than the actual test questions. This book did a good job of teaching me to read every question very carefully. I passed the SCJP in July 2000 on the first attempt with 85% correct.
Rating:
Summary: Good book with lots of facts but very condensed
Review: The book has a LOT of facts. If someone knows all that is there in this book, the purpose of the book (JCP) would be fulfilled, but the trouble is - the facts are in a very condensed form. There aren't enough explanations for things, and the author expects too much out of the readers. You may hate the book on first reading, but when you eventually learn java thoroughly, you will find how huge the book was in terms of its contents. It would call it a good book overall.
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