Customer Reviews

LSAT Logic Games Workout (Graduate School Test Preparation)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

The LSAT is a difficult test, and the preparation for it can often be frustrating. As such, you don't need added frustration from a poorly edited book. The previous reviewer noted how the answer explanations can often be confusing, so I don't feel that I need to go into that particular characteristic of this book. Rather, I'd like to share one of many examples of the type of error you will encounter if you decide to use this book:

On p. 260 (a timed section designed to emulate the exam itself), a question prompt describes a situation involving contestants being selected for a band, and then gives 3 clues that you must use to answer the questions. One of the clues reads:

"If contestant 4 is in the band, then neither contestant 2 nor contestant 4 is in the band."

Obviously, this statement is nonsensical, and if you turn to the answer explanations later in the book, you find that they meant to say contestant 5, not 4. Of course, when you are timing yourself to replicate the conditions of the test, AS IS THE PURPOSE OF THE EXERCISE, you cannot turn to the answer section to try to deduce what they actually meant to say. I have noted many similarly grievous errors in other exercises, to say nothing of the answers.

Obviously, if the Princeton Review had paid a single research assistant to sit down and actually test these problems, they would have found such errors immediately. The fact that they are still there is a testament to the carelessness they must have employed when making this rush-job. BOTTOM LINE: DO NOT BUY!!!

Seriously, DO NOT buy this book. Like the other reviewers have said, it's full of errors. Little errors, but they make a HUGE difference when you're trying to time yourself on practice tests. It ruins your entire practice session if you have to flip to the answer section to figure out what the book's authors MEANT to write.

As a test-taker, you really need to have full faith in the logic of the test-maker. When you're taking a test, you need to be certain that any confusion is an issue YOU need to work on -- NOT something the book's editors did wrong!! I've found so many errors on these tests, I have no faith in the book anymore. It's just stressful to try to use it, especially if I'm trying to time myself.

There are some useful tips in the beginning of the book, but I'm sure you can find other LSAT books with useful tips. It's just not worth buying this book.

I totally agree with other review about proof reading. At least the error he pointed out can be caught while taking the test because its a contradiction in the rules themselves. A more common and much more frustrating error is when the answers are not fitting to the question. On page 216 question 2 for example, the answers (once the test is over and you are frustrated beyond belief that you couldn't solve this problem) you find out that both C and E are acceptable answers. The chart provided in the answer section clearly shows that the cobalt dress fits in either the fourth or sixth scene. The answers even say, and I quote, "This leaves either b or c for each of slots 4 and 6, though it's not certain which element is in which slot. The question asks about where c could be placed in the diagram. The only choice that matches either of the possibilities in your diagram is choice C." HOWEVER, the answer choices are A)second scene B)Third Scene C) Fourth Scene D) Fifth Scene E) Sixth Scene.

Now correct me if I am wrong, but if it fits in either fourth or sixth scene then in what way is C the only possible answer? This is just one other example out of the TIMED TEST SECTION. You know, the section that emulates the test? This book has caused me far more stress in studying for the LSAT than anything else I could have done. Having wrong answers in a timed test section is just unacceptable. It is abundantly clear that there was ZERO copy editing done on this book prior to publishing.

If you want another example, on page 111 the answers for question 4 and question 5 are the same. IE they put the answers from question 4 in question 5 instead of the answers for question 5 in question 5. Needless to say, there isn't even an answer there that is remotely right. They don't even make sense. The answers for the section talk about it as if there was no problem at all. While studying for the LSAT using this book I came across many such errors. It got the point where if I couldn't solve a problem, I assumed that they printed it wrong, instead of trying to figure out if I was doing something wrong.

If you are thinking of buying this book... DON'T! FIND SOMETHING ELSE THAT WILL HELP YOU. THIS BOOK JUST PLAYS MIND GAMES AND MESSES WITH YOUR HEAD. DO NOT BUY THIS BOOK!!!!

I have done really well in other practice tests getting prepared for my LSATs so I just picked this up to do some extra prep on the games section - and I have to completely agree with the bad reviews others have had to say on this page. First and foremost the only get the answers right a fraction of the time, and when they manage to do that, they only provide half the answer. For example in a lot of these problems when you are working with 6 elements and many of them can fit into the many "slots" there can be two answers that will be allowed on the exam, but they fail to mention or provide that answer - so therefore you assume you are wrong. This book is a total mindf@#k and will make you feel like you have no idea what you are doing even though you are completely doing your work right. I recommend just taking the regular practice tests (they will actually tell you when there are multiple answers) and for extra games help the The PowerScore LSAT Logic Games Bibles are amazing.

[ASIN:0980178207 The PowerScore LSAT Logic Games Bible]]

Agree with everything else that has been said. The answer explanations are poorly written, but the really galling thing is that a number of questions you will come across are simply unworkable due to typos or logical errors. It's very frustrating to read the explanation for a Princeton Review "answer" and find that the given answer violates one or more of the inherent rules of the game. Or to find out, upon turning to the answer page, that an entity was actually mislabeled on the exercise page, therefore throwing the entire game out of whack.

I would not recommend this book to others preparing for the LSAT.

I've written a more detailed review of this book on my LSAT blog. However, I just wanted to briefly note that this book contains a MAJOR problem aside from the typos.

The vast majority of test-takers who use this book believe it does not contain real LSAT logic games.

One previous reviewer wrote: "This book does give good practice games when you don't want to waste real LSAT logic game sections. The games are really similar to real LSAT games."

Another wrote: "it might seem at first like a bad thing that the problems are not real LSAT problems, but it wasn't for me. they are very much of the same type and it offers extra practice"

The truth is that it DOES contain several real LSAT logic games.


Evidence:

In my review of this book on my LSAT blog (the blog post is titled "Princeton Review LSAT Logic Games Workout - Exposed"), I list 8 Logic Games included in this book and match them with 8 real, and recent, LSAT Logic Games (from actual LSAT PrepTests). (I picked these 8 particular Logic Games simply because they're the ones you can see online through Google Books - this way, the interested among you can compare for yourselves.)

The Princeton Review fake games and the LSAC real games are virtually identical. The topics and variables are changed, and some other unimportant things are switched around, but the rules and inferences are the same, as are most of the questions.


Conclusion (why this matters):

By using this book, you'll unintentionally expose yourself to real, and recent, LSAT logic games before you take timed practice exams. Later, when you take those timed practice exams to determine whether you're ready to take the LSAT, you'll have inflated practice scores. Why? Because you will have seen many of those Logic Games before - in this book. You won't have a realistic sense of where you stand. When you take the actual LSAT, you may score much lower than you did on those inflated practice exams.

Given that law schools see all scores on your score report, you only want to take the LSAT when you know that you're absolutely ready. This book can make you think you're ready when you're not.


Bottom line:

I would not recommend using this book.

This book helped me get started with logic games practice, but should by no means be your only pratice with LG's.

The diagramming that is found in this book is among the simplest, most easy to grasp and use as a test-taker, and I've adopted a lot of the diagramming strategies from this book as a result.

This book does give good practice games when you don't want to waste real LSAT logic game sections. The games are really similar to real LSAT games. The only downside to this book is that the explanations are really bad and hard to understand.

I would advise anyone looking to improve their logic games skill to invest in one of the Powerscore books as they are much more useful. This book, while at times having some quality games to work with, was by and large a complete waste of money. Very poorly edited games, like these, will only add to your frustration.

This book is garbage. At first I thought I was making mistakes and misinterpreting rules, but then I realized this book contained errors on every page.. such garbage.. DO NOT BUY