Kaplan LSAT Advanced, 2009-2010 Edition (Kaplan LSAT 180) [Paperback]

Kaplan (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 360 pages
• Publisher: Kaplan Publishing (November 4, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1419552562
• ISBN-13: 978-1419552564
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #366,056 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good Idea, Poor Execution, May 18, 2009

By 

Redacted - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kaplan LSAT Advanced, 2009-2010 Edition (Kaplan LSAT 180) (Paperback)

This book is theoretically a good idea. It contains only real LSAT questions selected from various tests that students had the most trouble with. While I wasn't a huge fan of a few of their explanations/diagramming techniques, I would imagine that most people using a book of only the hardest questions would have a pretty good grasp of the material already anyway so that wouldn't be a big deal. The benefits of having all the hard questions in one place to test yourself with outweighs the shortcomings of a few inadequate explanations.

The larger issue (and a dealbreaker for me) is that this book is HORRIBLY edited. The errors and typos are egregious and a little ridiculous. An example includes an instance where they present a question, but offer an explanation for a DIFFERENT QUESTION so you have no idea what the right answer was supposed to be. This is a problem when they also don't tell you what test these questions come from so even if you have all the tests, you still can't use the answer keys to figure out the correct answer.

Additionally, the problem of not listing which test the question came from means that you have no way of avoiding questions from tests you haven't taken yet. This means that it could skew your diagnostic tests so that's something to be wary of.

I think some people could still find this book useful. However, because of various limitations, I wouldn't recommend it unless you're almost done studying so you won't ruin all your diagnostics, and that way a few insufficient explanations here and there won't bug you a lot.

Just don't review using this book too close to your test date -- in case something is unclear due to a poor explanation or typos that leave you confused, you don't want to be wracked with insecurity on your test date.

I'd give this 2 and a half stars if that were an option.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars A great collection of tough questions, but large number of errors reduce its value, November 18, 2009

By 

Pete Riley - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Kaplan LSAT Advanced, 2009-2010 Edition (Kaplan LSAT 180) (Paperback)

As a final tune up for the LSAT, this is a great collection of the most difficult problems. However, there are just too many errors for it to be a truly valuable resource. Consider the frustration of agonizing and deciding on an answer only to find out that the given explanation (and answer) is discussing a different problem. What do you learn?

Overall, I would still recommend working through this book if you have run out of other material and want to focus on the most difficult aspects of the LSAT. Just be prepared to be a bit frustrated every 5-10 pages!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Too Many Errors!, July 7, 2009

By 

JO to JD (Georgia, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kaplan LSAT Advanced, 2009-2010 Edition (Kaplan LSAT 180) (Paperback)

I have the advanced book and the LSAT 2010 book. The standard book is racked with errors. I find new ones every day. For the most part, you can search around to find the right answer/explanation because in most cases they just switched them around. I am astounded that such a reputable company printed errors into thousands of books. My fault for assuming the quality would match the reputation. Seeking a refund...

It's not that it's been a total waste of time, but I definitely recommend looking at other options for basic instruction and only taking official practice tests (the LSAC book of 10 practice tests, for example).