Rating: 
Summary: Extremely Thorough and Effective
Review: I have always been extremely strong in English, but I ordered this book for review, just in case. While I didn't spend much time with it, what I saw in it was very good. Every section was comprehensive, even the essays (although it is very difficult to prepare for that part of the test). I got an 800 on the SAT II writing (I only took it once, November of my senior year.) I would recommend this book to anyone who is taking the test, whether they struggle in English or already do quite well.
Rating:
Summary: Very interesting, easy to understand
Review: I have taken the SAT2 Writing tests for twice. The first time I
did not even prepare for it and thus I got a score that really
disappointed me. This time I took it in the Nov 02 test and I use
this Barron's Writing book. I think it is truly helpful. It
contains every detail in grammar, such as verb tenses, redundancy
and wordiness and some others, which, are really helpful in the
real tests. At the end if this book, there are 5 practice tests!
This is esp the strngth of this book, since there are rarely
writing SAT ref books providing so many practices. I have done
all the practice and got very familiarized with the pattern of
wriring test. If you are not good at grammar or the form of this
test, I recommend you thoroughly read this book and take the
practice tests!! By the way, the essay part is also wonderful!
In this part, I have learned a lot of skills needed in composing
an essay in only 20 mins. It's a great book, hence I rate it
a 5 star!
Rating:
Summary: An excellent test preparation
Review: I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to gain a good score on the SAT II: Writing. Not having a natural flare for writing (especially not in so short a time frame), I rather reluctantly registered to take this test, for I thought it would be necessary for me to display some writing ability to employers, universities, and the like. I managed to gain a score of 760 in this test, which greatly exceeded my expectations. Such a score would not have been possible were it not for the practice which this book gave me, most especially in the essay section. It didn't teach me how to write, but it taught me to use my limited writing skills to gain a great score in this writing test.
Rating: 
Summary: The Best Preparation for the Writing Test
Review: I went with another guide before test day and was severely disappointed by the generality of the advice given. It turns out that I didn't need the preparation, as I managed to score an 800, but it certainly wasn't due to the guide I purchased.On the other hand, I was able to check out the Barron's version later on and I came away impressed by the thorough coverage of relevant concepts. This guide covers the specific quirks of the English language that you'll find on the SAT II Writing Test, specifics offered by neither Kaplan nor Princeton Review. As some of the lukewarm reviews indicate, this guide does not offer a covenient distillation of English grammar into a few pages. For those comitted to careful and effective study of the relevant grammar, however, this is the ONLY choice.
Rating:
Summary: The best review book I have ever read
Review: In preparation for all the tests administered by the College Board I'm taking, this book by far has been the most helpful in its category, if not in general. The explanations are very thorough, there are practice and review exercises at the end of every section, and other writing preps written by Peterson, Kaplan, etc. did not even come close to what this book did for me. It gave me a thorough grasp of the grammar and usage concepts tested on the SATII, and helped me write better essays by containing many practice tests with prompts very similar to the one I encountered on the real test. I truly believe this book was a significant factor in me getting an 800 on the SATII. If you only buy one review book, by all means, make this one it.
Rating: 
Summary: Wouldn't recommend Barrons...
Review: The best thing about this book was the section it devoted to the essay portion of the test. It gave great examples of good essays and bad essays, what to avoid and what to exercise when writing your essay. BUT, the review for the other two sections was shotty. It gave decent overviews of grammar, but it doesn't give any practice questions... AT ALL. Only exercises that make you write and are extremely boring. I got a 700 on this test, which is a decent score, but I barely looked at this book because I thought it was just so boring, and I doubt I would have done much better if I did.
Rating: 
Summary: Another thing to talk about.
Review: The book was also very flawed with mistakes ranging from the answer key to anywhere in the text. Plus, people who talked about scores higher than 700 are just lying. This is not possible and this is not the place to brag.
Rating:
Summary: Very helpful and readable book
Review: This Barron's book helped me a great deal to prepare for the SATII in Writing. The book give good instructions in essay writing and has many good examples of essays to study. The author's style is easy to follow and enjoyable to read, since it is both informational and humorous.
Rating:
Summary: A Good Prep Book
Review: This book contains a lot of information test-takers should know in order to take the SAT II Writing. The author is straightforward. An diagnostic test at the beginning of the book will definitely help pinpoint weaknesses. A lot of exercises are provided in each chapter. This prep book can help everyone who wants an 800 on the test.
Rating:
Summary: Quite good.
Review: This book is not only THICK, but it has an in-depth explanation on most things. I would recommend this book, but the essay preparation part isn't that useful at all. You couldn't really 'prepare' for the essay part. The practices at the end of the book are also very similar in the types of questions. Bottom line, a fair, but not excellent preparatory book.
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