Customer Reviews

Mastering the MBE: Test Taking Strategies for Scoring High on the Multistate Bar Exam (Legal Survival Guides)

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Best book ever read on the taking of the MBE. Not only does Talamo tell you what to study, he tells you HOW. Ive read dozens of books on taking the MBE. Talamo is by far the best. He explains how to tackle the test itself. He has an easy to follow strategy for focusing on the most important areas covered on the MBE, and how these areas should be handled. If you have mountains of books from your bar review course and don't know what to do with all of it, this book is a must! Im a repeater for this bar exam and this is the first book I have ever read that is helping me learn how to study for this exam. This book is one of those you will read from cover to cover over and over again. It has given me a plan for taking this exam. As a result, Im not as stressed out over how Im going to learn all this material. Instead, I am learning how to focus on the most important stuff and learn it really well. Talamo explains how it is a waste of time to try and learn everything fairly well. He shows how you will do better on the exam by knowing just a few key areas extremely well. I can't say enough about this book. It has taken my anxiety level down a couple of notches, and given me a feeling of confidence that I CAN pass this exam!

Regardless of two glowing reviews that preceed by those who clearly Never read any real preparatory materials - I am here to tell that this book is worthless. I keep it in my bathroom in the event one day I run out of paper. So what then is in fact good material? Go straight to "Strategies & Tactics" by Walton and Emanuel. It is well organized, detailed, intelligently written, and thorough. Unlike the absurd sweeping generalizations made by Talamo's text, "Strategies & Tactics" delineates the several different types of questions, how to rephrase certain questions, and how to find the otherwise impossible answer. Each of the MBE subjects are treated separately because they each have a unique style affliated with that area of the law. Example: Con Law vs. Real Property. There follows each dedicated section of MBE law, MBE style questions, followed in turn by detailed answers that illucidate why a particular answer is correct or wrong, and what the trick or trap has been laid by the writers of the Exam. And a whole lot more.

I read this book AFTER I failed the NY bar exam the first time around. I took the full Bar/Bri course and spend countless hours in preparation for the exam, so I was frustrated that I would have to start studying hard all over again.

This book was very insightful in helping to understand the MBE and the best method for studying. I felt much more confident and less stressed taking the bar again this past February, and I am surprised how much of that I can attribute to what I learned in Mr. Talamo's book!

I highly recommend that ANYONE taking the MBE read this book. I read the book through once, then skimmed it again many times. I spent a few hours each day on practice tests and wow, what an improvement - his ideas really work! Not only was I doing better, but I gained more confidence as well.

I plan to give this book as a gift to others taking the MBE too!

EDIT:
I PASSED the NY Bar Exam the 2nd time around, and I give MUCH credit to the tips in this book.

* I can't recommend this book enough! *

Here is the content. Do ten practice questions, study your answers and do ten more, repeat as necessary. Plus filler about get sleep, eat right, take a bar review course, speed read, learn english if a foreigner. There are NO STRATEGIES on how to take any type of test, just vaigue general common sense that could apply to any test. Do you really need a book that tells you to get plenty of sleep?

Because this book on the MBE was great. My scaled score was 152, which I'm told puts me near the 90th percentile. If only I had known how to study for the essay section. :(