Customer Reviews

How to Prepare for the SAT II French: with Audio Compact Discs (Barron's SAT French (W/CD))

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I wanted to prepare for the French SAT II subject test, and I purchased this book because most of Barron's test prep books are excellent. But I had several problems with this book. First, there is no scaled score conversion table in the book. Also, the practice tests were not at all like the actual SATII in length or difficulty. The real SATII I took was much more difficult, and although it too had 85 questions, the test took me almost twice as long to complete.
A good alternative to this book is the one put out by the College Board, which includes real, recently administered, SAT II tests. The practice test provided is much more indicative of the actual length and difficulty of the test, and it comes with a scale score conversion chart so you can see how well you would do in comparison to other high school students.

I bought this book bearing in mind Barron's reputation for publishing overly difficult test prep material. This book, however, is an exception. The grammer review is not terribly informative and, as another reviewer has mentioned, there are no excercises after the chapters to give practice using the concepts learned.

The practice tests are much easier then the actual test. The listening section and reading passages in particular bear very little resemblance to the actual test. I scored much higher on all of the tests in this book then I did on the actual test.

Do NOT buy this book, it's a waste of money.

I agree with the previous two reviewers. This book was a disappointment. I took the French SAT II with Listening, and I was not prepared. The blame cannot be placed entirely on the prep book, true, but this book has numerous flaws.

The sample listening exercises lure the reader into a false sense of security. There are very few speakers used, and, after a while, you become accustomed to their accents/voices. On the real test, I was caught off guard and found that I had to listen a lot harder.

The grammar reviews, too, are weak. Some very important and useful concepts are covered, yes, but a lot more could have been done. Additional grammar problems with immediate explanation to cement concepts would have been helpful. There are several spelling errors in the book; some are hard to catch, so beware.

Last, but certainly not least, I shall reiterate: the practice tests are much easier than the real thing. I wish I had practiced with something else instead of becoming confident in my ability to score well. (By the way, in this book there is a mistake in the instructions for calculating the score range: one bit says to multiply rather than to divide a number.) I'd suggest taking the practice tests in the book under very test-like conditions: low on sleep (you know it!), uncomfortable chair, no rewinding/stopping of CD.

I've heard that normally Barron's review books are pretty good, but I'm not so sure I'd put my trust into one after this experience. All complaints aside, this is the only SAT II French with Listening review book I could find, and it's better than nothing. Just don't trust it too much, and be sure to do plenty of outside preparation.

This book was not what I expected from Barrons. Usually Barrons is over-detailed which makes you know even more than there really is on the test. However, this French book did not have a lot of vocabulary that was present in the real SAT subject test and their practice tests in the book were a lot easier than the real SAT II. I got a 740 on the French SAT II...but still...I think I could've done better with a more thorough book.

my son is studying to do the SAT tests and this book, together with the CD, was well recomended. I was really disappointed when the CD didn't come. I called already the customer service twice, but never receive any reply. I'm returning the book and buy in the local bookstore.