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Cracking the LSAT with Sample Tests on CD-ROM, 2004 (Cracking the Lsat With Sample Tests on CD-Rom)

Cracking the LSAT with Sample Tests on CD-ROM, 2004 (Cracking the Lsat With Sample Tests on CD-Rom)

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Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Good For Low-Scoring Students
Review: A simple, easy-to-read book excellent for those with low to average (135 to 150) initial scores. Also, excellent for students who have tried other books and just "don't get it." Keep in mind that most of the practice material included in this book is generally easier than the actual LSAT. Are you more the serious type, or have a beginning score above a 150? Then you may want to consider other resources.

Princeton Review uses simple, everyday terms to describe the different types of LSAT questions and traps and you'll encounter. The terminology and laid-back manner doesn't seem too impressive if you compare with other texts, but for those having a tough time understanding the LSAT's basics, this book is a gem. In particular, Princeton Review's methods for the Logic Games are quite simple to understand. The book shows provides several different examples of Games, and then how to approach that Game and similar Games. Students who have tried other books and are simply lost with Logic Games should strongly consider this book.

Another deviation from other companies ?Princeton Review makes fun of the test, and the testmaker. Why? It's effective at calming students?jitters about the test. Princeton Review cuts the test down to size and help you relax ?an essential element in doing well on standardized exams. This easy-going attitude also makes the book more enjoyable for most people. However, some students do not like this attitude. More the serious type? You may want to consider other resources.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Avoid this if you want to use the CD-ROM
Review: After spending two hours taking a sample test on CD-ROM, the software would quit with an error every time I tried to grade the test. The written portion of the book is fine (but not without errors) just don't spend any extra money for the CD-ROM version.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Don't bother with the CD-ROM!
Review: I found this book to be of very little use, and the CD-ROM was even worse. If you take a diagnostic exam and score 160 or greater, skip this book. While it is an easy read, the concepts are overly simplistic and probably provide you with nothing that you didn't already subconsciously do on your own to achieve the score you did. Also, I tend to be suspect when a book that claims to help you pass the LSAT is chock full of silly typographical errors.

If you start below a 160, this is a good book to help you organize your thinking and strategy for attacking test questions. However, for all users, just buy the book-only version and SKIP THE CD-ROM!!!!

The CD-ROM was VERY poorly edited. It appears that no one at Princeton Review QA'ed it before mass-producing. Not only have the nasty typos from the book carried over, but there are even more glaring mistakes. For example, arguments that have more than one question attached to the same argument will repeat the same question for both sets of answers. In those cases, the question has absolutely nothing to do with one of the sets of answers and you're certain to get it wrong unless you're a lucky guesser.

On many questions, there is more text than the screen can display all at once, so there is a scroll bar on the right side. Unfortunately, even if you scroll all the way to the bottom, you can frequently not see the last line of text. Again, missing important info led to missing several questions unnecessarily.

Finally, one of the games (one of my particular strengths) did not give enough information to solve any of the questions. I printed out this game and questions and gave it to several other people who absolutely agreed that it was the game missing info - not just me. Not surprisingly, I got all 7 questions associated with this game wrong.

Considering that you'll be taking the LSAT on paper, the CD-ROM is clearly not an effective study tool, nor will it give you a very good diagnostic of your scoring potential since you'll miss a lot of questions based on the TESTS' MISTAKES!!! (I scored a 153 on the CD-ROM test and a 174 on the real deal....Hmm)

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: No doubt, the best book
Review: I've read 'em all -- Kaplan, ARCO, Barron's, and Princeton. No doubt about it, this one is the best. Clearly written, concise, but helpful. Buy this and a bunch of real LSATs and you're set.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: A Poor Choice
Review: The Princeton Review LSAT book suffers from many deficiencies. Chief among them are poorly constructed, badly worded, or just plain incorrect practice problems. This stems, in large part, from their tendency to generate their own practice problems, ('similar' to LSAT problems), rather than using actual LSAT questions from old exams released by the testing agency.

Practicing on old, actual LSATs -- which are released by the testing agency and bound into books ten at a time -- is probably the best way spend the bulk of your LSAT study time. But if you want explanations, instructions and analysis -- in addition to just questions and answers -- I suggest the two Kaplan LSAT books. Their basic LSAT book provides a good overview of the test, and their LSAT 180 book, intended for the advanced student, explains how to tackle a number of particularly difficult problems on the test. Both books use actual old questions licensed from the LSAT testing agency, resulting in a much better product.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Overly simplistic
Review: This book is short, overly simplistic, and too focused on tips and tricks that fail to give the reader a true understanding of what is required in order to answer the LSAT questions. Assuming that the reader will not have time to completely read the reading comprehension passages and then urging them to read the questions first (losing even more of the test-taker's time) is one of the ways that this book fails to meet the needs of the student. Luckily, I purchased another prep book that was much more comprehensive and whose authors relied on thorough preparation instead of tricks to increase my confidence and my score.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Overly simplistic
Review: This book is short, overly simplistic, and too focused on tips and tricks that fail to give the reader a true understanding of what is required in order to answer the LSAT questions. Assuming that the reader will not have time to completely read the reading comprehension passages and then urging them to read the questions first (losing even more of the test-taker's time) is one of the ways that this book fails to meet the needs of the student. Luckily, I purchased another prep book that was much more comprehensive and whose authors relied on thorough preparation instead of tricks to increase my confidence and my score.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Helpful but dont stop here
Review: This is a great starting point for studying for the LSAT, but a lot of the strategies offered within are cumbersome and difficult to utilize. Further, the two practice tests in the back aren't the least bit representative of what your actual score will be. I took one of the practice exams, then took an actual LSAT that had been previously administered and noticed a huge difference. It was later explained to me that anyone other than the LSAC can't use actual LSAT test sections, so they have to make up their own. The result? They're either much more difficult or much easier than an actual LSAT section.

Still, the book gives some useful pointers on how to study for the exam (like starting two months before you're scheduled to test, no sooner and no later) and some of the strategies for attacking the section are great. But you'll definitely want to get some of the latest actual LSAT tests and you should consider taking a prep class, though I'd take it from a local university as opposed to one of the corporate outfits if you can.

Good luck.


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