Customer Reviews

Barron's AP Biology

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

By WWHS student

I love this book. It helped me get great grades on tests in class and a 5 on the AP exam! Our textbook was more than 1200 pages -- too long! I bought this review book a few months after the class started. But I should have bought it at the beginning of the year because once I began to study from it, I started to do better on class tests.

My teacher always gave us essay questions on her tests and the Free-Response Questions and Answers at the end of every chapter are really great. They really explain the material clearly. Also, the review book has 1 diagnostic test and 2 practice tests. That's more than any other review book that I saw.

English is my second language and got a 5 in the exam. Before I got this book in April, I always had 3 in practice exams (finals at school). In class, my grades were C (first semester) and B (second semester).

The best thing about this review was that it was well-organized unlike many other reviews that the topics were all-over. This review started off with diagnostic test that had higher standard than the AP exam and finished off with answers in detail. In every chapter, it had enough graphs and figures to remember the detail figuratively rather than memorizing word-for-word. (Someone said that the number of diagrams was superfluous but I learnt much quicker with detail AND diagrams) For every important terms, it was in bold or italics so that I was more aware of what I was expected in the exam. The chapters finished off with multiple-choice questions which I knew whether that chapter was dead easy or I needed to reread the chapter pedantically. There were also few chapters that clarified the nature of the essay scoring. (The essay part can make a huge difference to your grade as an average AP Biology Free Response score is 3 out of 10). Also, the two model tests at the end are difficult but are helpful in the actual exam. (They are not confident booster) I got between 3 and 4 in the model test but managed to find the exam much much easier with a 5.

This is an excellent review book anyone struggling with AP biology. If you have the determination to engage in reading paragraphs and writing practice essays, this book can endorse you to get the highest grade in the exam.

*The book was delivered as the date specified and was in perfect condition.

So I got this book about 2 months before the AP test. I opened it like 5 days before the AP test and started cramming and cramming non-stop. Please do not use this approach unless you find the world of Biology fascinating. The five days with this book, I must say, were torturous but very helpful. Now you need to understand that I probably have the worst AP Biology teacher imaginable, he covered 30% of the topics and did pointless labs the entire time. Anyway about the book, it is very well organized, no mistakes, errors, and probably the best substitute for a textbook. I got a 4 on the AP exam using this book and some released exams in 5 days work.

Now for many of you who can't settle for anything but a 5, I will tell you what you need.

Getting a 5:

- Get this Book
- Get released exams (easy to find, try this site:[...]) and do them all.
- Read this book once throughout the year. Then read the book again 3 weeks before the test until the test day.
- I can't stress the importance of not slacking off like I did. If you have a good AP Bio class (unlike me), do all the homework!


After the test, I felt pretty confident about getting a 5. I think not enough detail in the Free Response messed me up or something. But I am happy with a 4. I know a lot of people who would trade a 5 day study session to get out of a semester of freshman Bio. But getting that 5 would have got me out an elective Bio semseter UGHHH.....

oh.. and yea.. DONT GET CLIFFSAP unless you think you are already sweet at Biology. This book has a lot more important detail.

Getting you a 5 will only cost like the 13 bucks you pay for this book and a couple hours finding all those exams at that site (just make an account and start asking, people are really friendly.)

I actually used this book to review for another exam other than AP, as I'm out of college, but it was a great way to review and refresh some of my "rough spots." My only complaint would be that it lacks some information on the human body - there isn't much on the skeletal system, and it would be helpful if it went into more depth on the circulatory system.

The three practice exams and section practice questions are a really great way to study.

My AP bio teacher recommended this book to our class.
he owns every version out there of study guides and test preps, and recommended the Barron's version to us.

I defenitly agree with him...
it prepared me very well for tests in class and the final exam.
It was very simplified, easy to read, and diagrams that were easy to understand. It goes over all the required labs, has questions and answers, possible essays, etc.

It's a GREAT resource to have- and i recommend it over the cliff's version!

you won't regret buying it..!

I purchased this book to help prepare me for the biology section of a standardized test for graduate school because in the end, biology is biology and my goal is to attain as much biology information as possible. In order to fully prepare, I also purchased the Cliffs AP Biology book along with other prep books, with the rationale that one book would cover any gaps found in the others. Even though Barron's AP Biology presents nice diagrams not found in Cliffs to help visualize the teachings, there were way too many factual mistakes in the content. I am a college Biology major with A's in all of my biology courses and spent many hours fully preparing for my standardized exam and thus, possess enough biology knowledge to know when something is incorrect. Before the halfway point in this book, I basically tossed this in the trash as I spent too much time verifying their mistakes and it became counterproductive. Thus, it was a complete waste of money and I could have better spent that money on ice cream or a beer or something. I feel sorry for the students who won't know any better and will soak up this misinformation just to get it wrong on their AP Bio exam. I recommend purchasing Cliffs AP Bio instead as it's a more reliable source and comprehensive for the most part. The only reason why I gave Barron's two stars instead of one is because it wouldn't be so bad if they could correct their mistakes. But then again, an academic book is absolutely worthless if the information is factually incorrect.

Now suppose your English essay writing is just average, and you keep getting B's in your AP Biology class (using Campbell's Biology). You do not need to worry. Just use Barron's AP Biology half an hour a day for 2 months and you will see the perfect result.

I was confident in my understanding of Biology but this book helped my panicked-race in reviewing for the exam. I think I got a 5 and this book is by far the best preperation. I also recommend AP Biology Flash Cards (Barrons) and 5 Steps to a 5 is pretty good, too. However, Baron's AP Biology is incomparable with any other competition.

I found most of the book a thorough review but would not attempt to learn new concepts from it, as it could be a confusing introduction. The multiple choice practice questions are more difficult than actual AP questions, but still a helpful tool. Overall, I found it excellent preparation and would definitely go with Barron's for biology review.

I like the summary of the book, which shows the important points, making it easier for AP Biology learners to follow the topics. It would be better if there were more practices on the back. Now there are only 20 to 30, which I think is far inadequate.