Customer Reviews

McGraw-Hill's LSAT with Cd-Rom (McGraw-Hill's LSAT (W/CD))

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Talk about bad...OK, others have said it, but I'll elaborate. Roughly 10 percent of the answers to the questions and examples in this guide are completely and obviously incorrect. Not in the way of, "Well, if you think about it, this answer is a bit more appropriate," but in the way of, "This is the exact opposite of what they're asking." There are very important words such as "not" or "is" completely removed, and numbers and constraints wholly changed when explanation times come around. Considering this is a thirty dollar book, with less than 100 pages of actual study aid, this is complete and utter b.s.

It's especially frustrating when you come across one of these errors (and you will, like me, in the first few minutes of reading the guide) because part of preparing for this test is learning to build momentum and self-confidence, both of which are shattered when you are repeatedly told you are wrong for choosing the obviously correct answer. You lose momentum, because the time you could spend moving forward is spent wondering how you could have messed up (you didn't), and you lose confidence because it makes you question your judgment on things you shouldn't waste your time on. And if you take these mistakes as accurate, it will totally mess you up when it comes time to take the test.

If you choose to get this book, please don't mark it up. You'll want to return it. And don't remove the CD. It only has two practice tests; the other six are the same as the paper ones in the book.

I wonder how so much error is possible. Then I remember that all my McGraw Hill textbooks in high school had the same problems. This isn't an isolated incident. This is McGraw Hill's laziness. There is no excuse for a lack of proofreading or accuracy in teaching materials. Let us make our own mistakes. Don't force us to make unnecessary ones.

What a joke. There are incorrect answers and errors abundance in the book as well as in the cd exams. Do not buy, waste of time, and you will go besserk trying to figure out why your answer is wrong, until you realize the book is wrong.

Aside from the errors the other reviewers mention, on the cover and in the introduction it states that you get free online help and additional practice on the curvebreakers website. Wrong. The only free option on the website is a discussion board. I attempted to ask a question about a problem in the book and I was told that I needed to pay for private tutoring. Do yourself a favor, and just buy the books from LSAC or Kaplan.

The previous reviews pretty much sum it up - loads of errors, ambiguous questions and answers, and style very different from actual LSAT material.

Also, it claims 8 practice exams on the included CD - there are only 7 (at least on mine). Let's just say that I knew I was in trouble when I read the help section on the CD and it was talking about the SAT, not the LSAT. I seriously wonder how Harvard feels about their name being liberally attatched to this book...

Save yourself the trouble - don't waste 2.5 hours taking any of the tests in this book. Get a REAL LSAT book with REAL LSAT questions!

First, let me point out that the person(s) who wrote this guide is an alien obssessed, meditation hippie. It is comical how many alien-related questions there are in the book. The funniest one is a logic game puzzle where 8 aliens are walking in Texas, come upon a oil well and want to shake hands with it. You have to figure out the order they shook hands with the oil well. The second thing that jumps out at you is how many questions are dedicated to music, but not as a topic in it of itself, but of what emotions it stirs in people - questions relating to it are all over the place. BUT THAT IS NOT WHY I RATE THIS BOOK SO LOW.

One of the reasons for the 2-star rating is the incredible inconsistency between the types of questions offered in the book and what actually appears on the LSAT. The questions are much too easy. In fact, if you just use this book as a main study guide, and then buy one of LSAC's official "10 Actual) books, I'd bet you'd score no more then 100 (with 120 minimum possible score, mind you).

That is not to say that you'll score 180 on the tests in the book. This brings me to my next point. The questions, and often the answers, in all sections tend to be extremely vague and often ask you to make inferences that you'd be hard pressed to make on your own.

Then there are errors that this book is littered with, but that was covered by the previous reviewer.

All in all, the reason why I did not give it 1 star was simply out of consideration that perhaps someone may want to start off with "easy" stuff before moving on to real questions. I would guess this book may serve this purpose. However, I score 160+ on practice tests before I picked up this book, and outside of a few laughs and some puzzled expressions, it did absolutely nothing for me.

Trust me even though I am an idiot who bought the book without glancing at the reviews or rating. This book is counter productive! The assessment that about 1 in 10 of the questions is fundamentally wrong is probably about the real rate, if not an understatement. I spent hours a day for a week drudging through the errors in this book only to find out the items that happened not to be flat out wrong don't really look much like the real LSAT anyway.

And sure there is an errata sheet online but that doesn't help at all with the tests the poorly navigable CD includes.

On top of that, the claims of free online help from LSAT coaches could be considered out right fraud and I wish the publisher was held accountable for these things.

We are not over exaggerating. THIS BOOK SUCKS.

Never again will I trust something just because it has a name I recognize (In this case McGraw Hill).