Customer Reviews

Barron's SAT 2400: Aiming for the Perfect Score

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

With the help of this book, as well as some difficult classes, I made a 2350 on the SAT (Math-800, Reading Comp-800, Writing-750). I only took the SAT three times: June 05, June 06, and Oct 06 and used this book for the last two times. I improved my score 370 points and I loooove this book.

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone taking the SAT that can already make a decent score and can handle most of the basic questions. This book does what is says it will and shows you how to handle the tricky level 4 and 5 questions. I like how the math is divided into topic sections (algebra, geometry, stats..) and how it provides tips for each type of question that you'll see in all three sections. However, don't expect this book to teach you what you don't already know although it does review stuff with you and show you how to work the problems. It's important to take hard classes and learn all you can. That way you don't have to study a book like this or cram vocabulary words but can simply review the tips and topics.

Even though some colleges weigh your SAT scores pretty heavily, don't forget that it's just a number and it really won't matter that much once you're in college. It's not like you're going to tell your grandchildren what a great score you made. Well, I hope I was some kind of help. Good luck and don't stress out =).

I didn't take any review courses so I depended soley upon this book and practice tests for preperation. It offered tips that I would have never thought of on my own, especially with the Critical Reading sections. I didn't use the math sections, but did use Writing and Reading extensively and was happy with both. I highly recommend this book. With it I went from a projected score of 2110 on my PSATs to a 2310 (1560 for Math and Reading) on my SATs, first try. Big help.

I know Mrs. Rosalyn Teukolsky, she is the computer science teacher at the high school where she taught me computer science. She is a fantastic math teacher and really knows her stuff. Nearly all of her students get 5's on the Computer Science AP exam due to her skill at teaching and the strategies she has developed over the years.

Speaking of strategy, Mrs. Teukolsky loaned me a copy of her book while I was studying for my SAT's and that is exactly what this book is for. It says right in the beginning that this is a book for those that know the majority of the material already, and that just need that extra edge to get a 2400. The tips, tricks and strategies in here are great, and I highly recommend this book to anyone who feels that need that edge to get a perfect score.

So, after scoring a 2040 on the SAT as a sophomore, I was looking for ways to ante up my skills. Barron's 2400 had what someone like me, who knows how to take standardized tests, needs -- practice with the hardest level of questions. This book is useful, but you need to couple it with a bunch of practice tests to test out your newfound skills and strategies (I recommend the official SAT book) in order to maximize your score.

So if you read all the strategies in the book, take lots of practice exams while applying the techniques you've learned, you'll probably raise your score significantly. This strategy worked for me, and it can probably work for you, too!

I got a 2340 on my second try : )

The first time I took the SAT, I didn't really study that much - I just took two practice tests the week before. I got a 2120, which is an okay score, but not what I was hoping for. After studying from this book for approx. 2-3 weeks, I got a 2330 on my second try. Although it's not perfect, I'm really happy with this score. 1st try: 720 cr, 680 math, 720 writing --> 2nd try: 740 cr, 800 math, 790 writing. So it really helps! Good luck :)

Never in a million years would I dream I would have gotten a 2400. But I did, and it was not at all due to this book. All the tips in this book were just glorified tips found in other less pretentious, unassuming books that did not tout "2400." Moreover, the vocabulary section, which is supposed to be super challenging, was questionably easy for me. The math as well. It was disappointing. After completing one section of each, I never touched it again. Also, the book promised college advice, and the college advice was along the lines of "Get everything done early. Relax. Your SAT score isn't everything."

When it gets down to the SAT, nothing works better than practice tests, or at least practice sections. Books like these -- which are touted like quick fixes and easy solutions -- are definitely not worth your money. Get Barron's Workbooks, Princeton Review's Practice Tests, McGraw Hill's Practice Tests, all of which I used to earn my 2400!

I do NOT recommend this book, because of typos, unhelpful advice, and the image of being a quick "panacea." (SAT word!)

When I bought this book, I expected it to be better than the Official SAT Guide at preparing me to get a 2400. However, after going through the first few chapters, I realized the questions are HORRIBLE.

I've gotten an 800 in both Critical Reading and Writing sections on the SAT both times I've taken it, and really just wanted this book to help with math. But, since I bought it, I figured I should look at the Critical Reading and Writing sections anyway. I was surprised to find how different the practice questions are from the actual SAT-Barron shouldn't be able to say the questions are based on "real SAT" questions, because they are obviously not.

The questions seem very basic, like the authors didn't want to spend much time at all making them. They throw in a lot of (the same) "difficult vocabulary words" into the questions, but these really can't hide the fact that the questions themselves are extremely lower-level. And once you've done a chapter or 2, you know ALL the vocab words Barron uses-for instance, the word "myriad" was used in three separate questions in the same section---definitely NOT what happens on the actual SAT.

The answers for the questions are even worse. No answer seems to be the "best", they all seem to be equally correct or incorrect. The explanations for the answers are weak, with some of the "correct" answers so obviously wrong that I couldn't believe they even attempted to explain why they were right. The answers would NOT be correct on the SAT, so by learning what Barron deems "correct", I'm sure a lot of people would do worse on the SAT than they should.

On the otherhand, the strategies are refreshing and a lot different than the typical strategies given by other guides. They are concise, and only about 2 pages per section-they are much easier to read through than the Official Guide to the SAT, which is extremely long.

But that being said, the horrible questions (and even worse answers) ruin this book.

On the positive side, there's a helpful vocab list in the back (although it's pretty short, and quite basic) and the strategies are new and interesting, even if you don't decide to use them.

However, DO NOT buy this book if you are looking for helpful practice questions that will improve your SAT score. I'd recommend using the Official Guide---actual SAT questions from the maker---if you need them. Barron's SAT 2400 is good for brief strategies, but if you want to actually increase your score through practice, DO NOT buy this book.

In the spring of my junior year I took the SAT for the first time-- I got a 730 CR 700 W 700 M, but I still wanted to do better. I read all the reviews for this book and it seemed to help many people, so I bought the book about two months before the October SAT. I studied off and on during that time, and I finished the math and reading sections but I only had time to skim the writing section. When I got my scores back I was a little shocked. I had spent most of my time studying the math section and not so much on the reading, but I ended up getting an 800 CR and a 670 M (30 points below my spring score). I got a 670 Writing (an 8 on the essay which was the same as the spring, but a 690 on the grammar multiple choice subscore which was 40 points below my spring score). I wasn't too concerned about the CR sections and just took my time on them and used Barron's piece meal reading method, but I thought that both the math and writing sections had gone really well and was expecting better score. I checked my score report and I still ended up getting the hard questions on the math wrong (even though I had been confident that I knew how to answer them with Barron's methods). I went very quickly while doing both the math and writing because I was confident I know how to do them all from Barron's. So it is a good book I guess, the reading techniques were really helpful. But WARNING: do not get overconfident when taking the test (which I think was what happened to me).

I just received this book yesterday, and after reading through it, found some of the stuff to be very helpful. There are some insights this book share that others don't. This book is for those who strive for a perfect 2400 on the SAT. If you want to familiarize yourself with the SAT first, then you should read Barron's How to Prepare for the SAT. That book has a lot more information about taking the SAT, but it will only tell you how to guess on the hard questions. Unlike this book, which tells you how to actually handle and solve them.

I took off one star because I thought this book would have more pages (it has 373). Math is a full 171 pages, compared to only 180 pages for the reading and writing pages combined. I would like to give this book 3.5 stars, but by the rules of rounding, that's 4 stars :D

I bought this for my daughter after she already received 99% on ACT and was preparing for SAT. After the test, she said that this book was most helpful of any other source she used.