Cracking the SAT II: English Subject Tests 1998 ED (Annual) [Paperback]

John Katzman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 18, 1997 | ISBN-10: 0679778586 | ISBN-13: 978-0679778585

WE KNOW THE SAT II: ENGLISH
The experts at The Princeton Review study the SAT II: English and other standardized tests each year to make sure you get the most up-to-date, thoroughly researched books possible.

WE KNOW STUDENTS
Each year we help more than two million students score high with our courses, bestselling books, and award-winning software:

WE GET RESULTS
Students who take our courses for the SAT, ACT, and many other tests see score improvements that have been verified by independent accounting firms.  The proven techniques we teach in our courses are in this book.

AND IF IT'S ON THE SAT II: ENGLISH EXAM, IT'S IN THIS BOOK
We don't try to teach you everything there is to know about English--only the techniques you'll need to know to score high on the SAT II exam.  There's a big difference.  In Cracking the SAT II: English, 1998-1999 Edition, you will learn to think like the test makers and:

*Eliminate answer choices that look right but are planted to fool you
*Ace the writing test by mastering the most important grammar rules
*Earn more points by learning to quickly identify sentence errors
*Write better essays by knowing in advance what the graders want to see
*Score higher on the literature test by more effectively analyzing prose, poetry, and drama

Practice your skills on the five full-length sample tests inside (three writing and two literature).  The questions are just like the ones you'll see on the actual SAT II: English exam, and we fully explain every solution.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Cracking the SAT II: English Subject Tests contains reviews for both the English Composition and English Literature tests. Learn to crack test-makers favorite question types, then test yourself using the two diagnostic exams. This edition includes special methods for acing English Composition and Literature, as well as how to avoid this test's common traps. Everything in this book will help you raise your score on the English Subject Tests. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Inside Flap

WE KNOW THE SAT II: ENGLISH
The experts at The Princeton Review study the SAT II: English and other standardized tests each year to make sure you get the most up-to-date, thoroughly researched books possible.

WE KNOW STUDENTS
Each year we help more than two million students score high with our courses, bestselling books, and award-winning software:

WE GET RESULTS
Students who take our courses for the SAT, ACT, and many other tests see score improvements that have been verified by independent accounting firms. The proven techniques we teach in our courses are in this book.

AND IF IT'S ON THE SAT II: ENGLISH EXAM, IT'S IN THIS BOOK
We don't try to teach you everything there is to know about English--only the techniques you'll need to know to score high on the SAT II exam. There's a big difference. In Cracking the SAT II: English, 1998-1999 Edition, you will learn to think like the test makers and:

*Eliminate answer choices that look right but are planted to fool you
*Ace the writing test by mastering the most important grammar rules
*Earn more points by learning to quickly identify sentence errors
*Write better essays by knowing in advance what the graders want to see
*Score higher on the literature test by more effectively analyzing prose, poetry, and drama

Practice your skills on the five full-length sample tests inside (three writing and two literature). The questions are just like the ones you'll see on the actual SAT II: English exam, and we fully explain every solution. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 258 pages
• Publisher: Princeton Review (February 18, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0679778586
• ISBN-13: 978-0679778585
• Product Dimensions: 10.7 x 8.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,197,422 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not bad, January 29, 2001

By 

Michael M. Camacho (South Brunswick, NJ) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cracking the SAT II: English, 1999-2000 Edition (Paperback)

I used the Princeton Review book to help me review for the SAT II: Writing and SAT II: Literature. Overall, I thought that the PR made sure to get all bases covered for the SAT II: Writing, which is basically grammar. The review was not bad at all, and allowed me to point out pretty much all the types of grammatical errors presented in the Writing exam. However, I felt that the author was rather frugal in giving the readers enough exercises, and found myself reviewing the same exercises over and over again to learn a certain aspect of grammar (typically, for one type of mistake you'd only have ONE exercise). I found myself going online, reviewing resources from the PSAT Writing section, etc. etc. Basically, you cannot use the book by itself--you probably need some supplements, some of which just take some time to find online or elsewhere (collegeboard.com, and I'm sure there are a lot of resources on the internet for grammar rules). Nonetheless, I made the very best I could of the book and was able to manage an 800. And yes, the PR is KNOWN for being extremely gimmicky in their techniques--take it with a grain of salt, because the author practically imbues the book with these so called ingenious techniques.

As for the Literature section, don't even look at it in this book. The whole review basically consists of looking at a few passages and answering very basic questions on theme, voice, tone, literary devices, etc. To be quite honest, the Literature test is extremely demanding and I'm sure that doing the PR's exercise failed to help me one bit. In order to be thoroughly prepared, one should be a strong English student overall...

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book, July 17, 2000

By 

skumar5000 - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cracking the SAT II: English, 1999-2000 Edition (Paperback)

TPR has once again defended its impeccable reputation. It has created a great book with the most review in the shortest amount. Not only does it teach you the grammar you need to know, but it teaches you how to deduce the answers. Plus, it includes the Literature section. Its much better than any of the other review books: Barrons, Kaplan, and Arco. However, I have noticed one error in the tests, but otherwise, it is good. P.S. Despite its review on the back, it lacks the explanations to the answers.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Better than most PR books, but not enough to be used alone, August 4, 2000

By 

"trekkie963" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cracking the SAT II: English, 1999-2000 Edition (Paperback)

I am sorry, but I have serious objections to the Princeton Review manner of creating study guides. While some attention is given to actually reviewing the material that is on the test, much information is dismissed as unlikey to appear on the test and therefore unnecessary to remember. Princeton Review bets on statistics of what material is most often tested when deciding what it will teach you.

Likewise, and more importantly, the Princeton Review encourages students of its book to rely on chance and statistics in regards to guessing multiple choice answers. Princeton Review teaches the students the techniques that are most likely to help them and, on the side, teaches the material that is most likely to be essential. Well, that which is most likely is not the case 100% of the time. While some suggest that tests are so unlikely to have three questions in a row with the same answer that a student should be overly skeptical if he or she finds his or her self marking three questions in a row with "B", the fact is that I have taken many tests and many times have I had the same answer for four or even five questions in a row. I got these questions right because I did not doubt my answers based on some test-taking techniques I picked up in the Princeton review but because I had learned enough of the material to be confident.

The English AP book is slightly better than other Princeton Review study guides in the amount of actual material it presents to you, largely because of its helpfully organized vocabulary section. Still, the book is not enough to prepare fully for these tests. Since the book does include information and practice test for bothe the Language and Literature tests, it is a reasonable value for the money and deserves a slightly higher rating than a book with comparable quality but only one test covered might.