How to Prepare for the PSAT/NMSQT

Rating:
Summary: Too many errors
Review: Although the number of practice exams was helpful, this book was filled with errors and the answer explanations were hard to understand. Look for another book.

Rating:
Summary: awesome book...
Review: Covers all topics in great detail... The 1300 word vocab list is excellent, and covers just about every word you need to know in order to get an 800 verbal. LOTS of reps in ELEVEN full practice tests with explanations for every question.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Practice for the PSAT's
Review: I agree somewhat with what other the reviewers said that "this book has too many errors," and it does have a lot of erros. However, I don't think that there is another PSAT book on the market that parralels all the things in this book. First of all, the writers went into great detail about all the question types and there were TONS of practice problems and a test to review each question type to diagnose your weak areas. Then there was a 1300 word vocabulary list and a succint PSAT high frequency word list. There was even roots to help with unfamiliar words that you may encounter on the day of the test. And lastly but not leastly--there were 10 practice tests. This is probably the best PSAT, SAT, and even SATII:Writing book that there is out there. The mistakes are nothing compared to the breadth of knowledge and tips that this book provides. This book is definitly worth every last penny.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Practice for the PSAT's
Review: I agree somewhat with what other the reviewers said that "this book has too many errors," and it does have a lot of erros. However, I don't think that there is another PSAT book on the market that parralels all the things in this book. First of all, the writers went into great detail about all the question types and there were TONS of practice problems and a test to review each question type to diagnose your weak areas. Then there was a 1300 word vocabulary list and a succint PSAT high frequency word list. There was even roots to help with unfamiliar words that you may encounter on the day of the test. And lastly but not leastly--there were 10 practice tests. This is probably the best PSAT, SAT, and even SATII:Writing book that there is out there. The mistakes are nothing compared to the breadth of knowledge and tips that this book provides. This book is definitly worth every last penny.

Rating:
Summary: Too many errors
Review: I bought this book as an impulse after seeing it contained eleven practice exams, plenty of practice. However, the questions are terrible representations of actual questions, the answers are often mistyped, and wrong portions of sentences are underlined. The format of the book is not conducive to a true test either. If you are studying for the PSAT I recommend getting the Princeton book and a solid SAT II Writing book. Don't be conned by the many practice exams inside, they won't help you at all.

Rating:
Summary: this is jsut as good as their SAT book!
Review: I used Barron's SAT review book this spring and did fantastically on the May exam. My younger brother is taking the PSAT in October so he got this book to get ready. I looked it over and realized that all the good strategies from the SAT book are here. And it has all the stuff from the PSAT as well. When I studied for the PSAT this book wasn't out yet. How lucky is he. It is the only book that I have seen that has more than 10 practice PSAT's---including the writing skills part.If you are in 10th grade and are taking the PSAT next year, you should get this book!

Rating:
Summary: Too many errors
Review: In my sophomore year I took the PSAT and got 1140. Last year I used this book to prepare for the PSAT--I got 1330 (a 190 point increase!) and received a National Merit Letter of Commendation. I went through the whole book and found about 6 or 7 typos and 2 actual errors--out of thousands of questions. no big deal. but my sister just got a copy (mine was all marked up, so she got her own) and in her later printing, the typos were gone! She really likes the different tactics for the math and even though I am a slightly better student than she is, she may get an even higher score than I did.

Rating:
Summary: It helped me--now it's helping my sister
Review: In my sophomore year I took the PSAT and got 1140. Last year I used this book to prepare for the PSAT--I got 1330 (a 190 point increase!) and received a National Merit Letter of Commendation. I went through the whole book and found about 6 or 7 typos and 2 actual errors--out of thousands of questions. no big deal. but my sister just got a copy (mine was all marked up, so she got her own) and in her later printing, the typos were gone! She really likes the different tactics for the math and even though I am a slightly better student than she is, she may get an even higher score than I did.

Rating:
Summary: Barron's How to prepare for the PSAT/ NMSQT mistakes
Review: My aim was to buy a PSAT prep book that would prepare for the test. I, knowing very little about the reputations of various SAT prep companies, ended up purchasing this book because it was the cheapest on the rack at Borders. I was, however, immensely disappointed on the quality of instruction it offered. The first sample test was utterly glutted with errors and mistakes. I also heard later that the questions weren't even real PSAT questions. Personally, I plan on contacting Barron's so I can receive a full refund.

Rating:
Summary: Thank you Barron's
Review: Thanks to this book I did so well (1360 -- I only got 1040 when I took the PSAT in 10th grade) that I am really feeling confident about my SATs this spring. The book taught me everything I needed to know. I improved much more than my friends who took courses. The tactics REALLY helped a lot. I found out that I could get a higher score by not trying to answer all the questions. The math sections in particular were great. Even though your PSAT scores aren't sent to colleges, you want the experience of good scores before you take the SAT. GET THIS BOOK!