Customer Reviews

Cracking the GRE Biology, 3rd Edition (Princeton Review: Cracking the GRE Biology)

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I got this book because it was the most recently published, so I figured that it would have the best review material that encompassed the most relevant subjects on the test. Unfortunately, after taking the practice test included in the book, the practice test offered by ETS, and the real subject test last weekend, I found it to be a pretty poor indicator of what actually showed up on the test. The only thing the review in the book is good for is to give an outline of things you need to know to take the test. I actually used an MCAT study aid to review most of the material, which was a lot more detailed, and a lot more helpful. What's worse is that this book makes you think you're actually learning a lot, when it's really just skimming over a lot of different topics, leaving out a lot of the detail. When I took the practice test, I realized that it was extremely biased towards what the book reviewed so that when you scored yourself, your score would be a lot higher than it should be. Overall, this book could only be used as a general study guide and the test gives you little idea of what the test is really like. The one redeeming thing about this book is that the answers to the tests come with detailed explanations, which I found pretty helpful.

I was pertty worried about the "thinness" of this book when it arrived - well, well well. GRE is a pretty comprehensive exam, and the questions can be pretty picky. If you were to take the actual exam just on the basis of knowledge from this book, you're pretty hosed up. It would have been better for you to just drag out your introductory bio textbook and look through the figures there, that would be much more helpful. I actually bought an official bio study guide from ETS as well, and I found something funny. The simulation test that they have in Cracking the GRE... is pretty much the same as the old exam in the ETS book, with only a slight modification! I guess they could have done it in one of two ways - one, drill-type book, a question after question, whereby you can train yourself to any type of problems imaginable. Two, they could have made it like a small dictionary/reference type of book which emcompasses must-know stuff, condensed version of textbook, if you like. They tried to make this book to do both of these - bluntly, they weren't successful. I personaly didn't like the way they write the book (this can be said to the general test prep book as well), too casual sounding hey-I'm-your-buddy tone of voice, and the way they waste pages and pages by using a large font (with a bunch of typos!) and taking SO MUCH space in answer key pages....