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Great Gatsby >> The Doppler Effect applied to the star rating of books In brief the Doppler effect addresses the perceived frequency of waves such as a fire truck s siren by taking into account the actual frequency and the relative speeds of the source of the sound and the observer So too with books your opinion is so ofte
The Things They Carried Spark Notes Edition >> A thoughtful poetic book that confirms my convictions for opposing the Vietnam War At age 15 I marched in the first anti war protest in Seattle At age 17 as a scared high school kid I sang Feel Like I m Fixin To Die Rag at another rally From age 18 to 19 I went from 2S to draft resister to conscientious objector to 4F The war brought strong feelings then and it still b
The Hobbit Or There and Back Again >> Must read for any and all fans of fantasy It s hard to write a review about a classic like The Hobbit You can t help but be awed by the history and literary significance of the books and I include both The Hobbit and the trilogy that follows when I say this upon which so much of epic fantasy literature is now based Everything from the h
Author : Gary S Thorpe M S Total Page : 504 Publisher : Barron s Educational Series Publication Date : 2009 02 01
Barron s AP Environmental Science with CD ROM Barron s AP Environmental Science W/CD >> the new dust collector 3000 my class was pretty comprehensive so i never found a need to use this book other than the required taking notes after each chapter It s all good though >> Good but not quite right This book was well written and has a good amount of visuals which help a lot in understanding concepts in environmental science However good the book was it didn t seem to reflect what was on the actual AP exam very well It claimed that pollution would be about 30 of the test when really I only remember a handful questions on pollution Also not everything that was on the exam was covered
So it s good but it didn t quite hit the mark for what the APES exam actually is and covers >> There are Better Books Out There This book has been very frustrating to read I have found many errors for example life life I think they meant half life and many other typos The content is too general I know it s suppose to be a review book but I feel like they could have built on ideas a little more The review questions at the end of each chapter address things that either don t come up until the following chapters or that don t even come up at all In addition some of the answers to the multiple choice questions are wrong Overall this book is not worth the money My advice would be to go to the collegeboard webiste a purchase a more qualified review book there
Author : Marilynn Hitchens Total Page : 528 Publisher : Barron s Educational Series Publication Date : 2007 10 12
Barron s SAT Subject Test World History Barron s How to Prepare for the Sat II World History >> Lots of mistakes There are so many problems with this book I don t really know where to start The mistakes of facts buffoonish attempts at political correctness omissions of important facts opinions masquerading as facts vagaries grammatical errors manipulations of semantics and maudlin emotion which has no place in a history book that I can not list them all
By the way I am reviewing the 2009 3rd edition which I couldn t find listed on Amazon I guess it doesn t really matter since many of the jumbled facts in this 2009 edition are 10 years out of date
I actually trained as a language and literature teacher and have very little training in history I turned to the SAT and CLEP books because the few books geared toward the Praxis history test are crap I can only imagine how many more mistakes an actual historian would find in this book I began to see the value of literature teachers becoming literate in history after a book called So Far From the Bamboo Grove made its way onto required school reading lists
Again due to space and time limits I will only list some of the more egregious stupidisms in this test prep book
1 Further is temporal and farther is spacial Between two and among three or more
2 Huang Ho is not pinyin and it is not the Mandarin standard Putonghua dialect that would be Huang He At the beginning the authors make a note about the difference between the Wade Giles and the pretty much standard pinyin spellings but they continue to confuse the two Also Madame Mao s name is Jiang Qing not Jian Qing If you go looking for The Sinkiang on a modern map I doubt you will find it as most standard maps use the pinyin Xinjiang
3 The Cultural Revolution did not end in 1968 It began in 1966 and ended in 1976 The authors managed to get this correct in another part of the this book Furthermore it only ended because of Mao s death and it was not a genocide as the authors maintain neither was the Khmer Rouge mass murder
4 There is no index and thus no way to look up specific information This is after all a review book
5 It hasn t been called Zaire since 1997 For the last 12 years it has been called the Democratic Republic of Congo Again this is the 2009 edition Many of the statistics given in this book stop circa 2000
6 On page 406 it says In 1952 Fulgencio Batista assumed dictatorial control Immediately guerrillas led by communist trained Fidel Castro who was backed by the Soviet Union led a successful overthrow of Batisita and instituted a communist backed government in Cuba The latter actually did not happen until 1959 So much for immediately Communism has basically been dead since the 1990s but this book gives the impression that is its still a thriving threat
7 Facts omitted Several notable historical figures are absent The authors are fond of using native terminology for concepts but I noticed when it came to describing the Islamic conquests they shied away from using terms like dhimmi They also make it seem that Europeans were the first and only people to enslave black Africans failing to mention that Arabs started it a millennium before the Portuguese Moreover on page 433 in describing the Arabs present day enslavement of black people in Sudan the authors refer to the victims as rebellious African Christians This tends to give the impression that they somehow deserve to be raped enslaved or murdered
8 In spite of their political correctness the authors demonstrate a definite bias in favor of democracy They give the impression that any government that isn t democratic is inherently backwards and evil Democracy doesn t necessarily work for everyone I would give examples but they would be my personal biases and some countries do just fine being ruled by royal families The authors need to be more respecting and open minded
9 Picasso was not a surrealist page 426 He invented the Cubist movement
10 Gross oversimplifications and omissions of explanations The flooding in Bangladesh is listed under the heading of Genocide and the authors fail to mention anything about one of its major causes deforestation page 433 In mentioning Afghan refugees fleeing to Pakistan there is no mention of the fact that ironically Pakistan has also caused a lot of the problems in Afghanistan
11 I started becoming suspicious of a lot of the stats given in this book So I looked some of them up in multiple sources On page 430 the population of China is give as 1 6 billion The official number given by the Chinese is 1 3 Personally I suspect the actual number is much higher but suspicions don t have any place in a book of facts The authors also put India s population at 1 3 billion As of 2009 it was 1 17 billion
12 Lack of coherency At the very end two rambling paragraphs are devoted to genocide Only here is Turkey s genocide against Armenians mentioned It is referred to as a disposal and no explanation is given The last chapter is a redundant platitudinous potpourri like some presidential speech Out of all of the ills the 21st century is facing again this book seems to stop at 2000 the booming illegal sex trafficking industry is not even mentioned
13 As of 2007 there were 27 EU member countries On page 434 of this 2009 edition it is listed as 17
14 On page 393 it is claimed that Egypt was A protectorate since 1914 it gained independence in 1922 Egypt did not gain true independence from Britain until 1956 According to Encyclopedia Britannica it was dominated by the British from 1882 1956 and an occupied protectorate from 1882 1922
15 Arab/Israel conflict page 393 The authors mention that Jewish population in Palestine increased during the interwar period but fail to mention that the Arab population increased as well On page 394 mention of one million Arabs fleeing Palestine during war of 1948 but no mention of the 500 000 Jews expelled from Arab lands in response to the formation of the Jewish state
16 On page 428 is a list of famous protest literature Absent from this brief list are Dr Zhivago which was banned by the USSR and 1984 by George Orwell This might explain why so many people under 30 think that Big Brother is just a silly TV show
17 Ambiguously worded test question Incorrect answers This is only of many
Page 51 Question 18 Which of the following societies developed a lasting concept of monotheism a Hebrew b Egyptian c Non Nok Tha d Chinese
According to the authors the correct answer is the Egyptians It is a theory that an Egyptian pharaoh came up with a short lived version of monotheism hence it wasn t lasting Therefore I would credit the Hebrews with that It not only lasted but spawn two other major religions Moreover Abraham the first monotheist pre dates Akhenaten the monotheistic sun god worshipper So this brings me back to the Hebrews
18 Maudlin apologetics The authors point out that the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were controversial and that some liken them to Hitler s genocide of the Jews This has to be the most non sensical analogy in the entire book I would like to challenge those who share the authors view to take a few moments to consider how there lives might have been different if Germany or Japan had invented the atomic bomb first they came pretty close
Absent from this ersatz text is any mention of Japan s Unit 731 the Rape of Nanjing Mitsubishi s the auto manufacturer brutal enslavement of American POWs or the Bataan Death March
19 Those evil European barbarians At every turn the authors let everyone know that X was invented by such and such centuries before the Europeans Using a bit of inductive reason I maintain that if the Americas had not been conquered by Europeans it would have been Arabs or Chinese They had the maritime technology before Europe The Arabs controlled the overland routes to Asia and thus had no reason to go searching for a northwest passage According to one theory the Chinese landed in North America in 1421 At any rate they were on their way to making in roads when suddenly there was a change of dynasty and the emperor took an isolationist attitude >> This is all you need to get an 800 I have to disagree with the other poster The closest thing that I d had to an introduction to world history was an AP European History class my sophomore year As I realized that I had to take SAT IIs and I m more of the humanities type I decided to self study for World History This mind you was during November of my Senior year
Practically everything that I learned about African Asian Middle Eastern and Native American history came from this book After reading it intensely for two weeks I felt as though I had learned a ton Needless to say the European sections of the book were certainly equally as informative Come late December I found out that I had received an 800 on the test Thanks Barron s
Indeed the text is jam packed with details but unfortunately the World History SAT II is a very detail oriented test If you want an 800 on the test this is all you need >> WAY too much and WAY too scattered This book did not help me at all I read more or less skimmed the entire thing HUGE mistake I ended up reusing my AP World book to prepare for the SAT The ideas in here are way to concentrated on the details a lot more than even what other Barron s does and the information will never be tested on the SAT So I decided at first this book might be a reference book for the future if I need to look up something really quick but as I read through I realized the thing is a piece of junk NO ORGANIZATION FALSE GENERALIZATIONS VERY POOR CHRONOLOGICAL ARRANGEMENT To make things worse the tests in here are practically impossible and it s not just me I felt the actual thing is somewhere around 100 times easier and there were mistakes to at least 5 or 6 questions The explanations are short and useless and because the book is so poorly organized it is difficult to search the correct information in the text If I could give one piece of advice to the authors here it is Stop trying to show readers you can outcompete other review books on how much history you stuff here and stop trying to show readers how creative you can get putting the history together Give them what they want and that s a book with a good SAT II review I am so disappointed with Barron s right around now I am switching review books to Princeton
Author : Christopher Black Total Page : 672 Publisher : McGraw Hill Publication Date : 2008 06 24
McGraw Hill s 12 SAT Practice Tests with PSAT 2ed McGraw Hill s 12 Practice Sats PSAT >> For me it was better than Barrons Princeton Review The reading in McGraw Hill s 12 SAT Practice Tests was really helpful since the answers give not only the reason why one was wrong but also the meanings of the vocabulary words in short concise synonyms for easy memorization Ever wondered what does that word mean in a reading question McGraw Hill s 12 Sat Practice Tests explains it clearly something that other books don t offer
I think this is a great book in which a potential SAT student can reap great rewards Good luck on the SAT s guys >> Practice Heaven McGraw Hill is great for critical reading and writing I did not notice any typos and the 12 practice tests are enough for any ambitious teenager I only completed 4 The font is different from the actual SAT and that always bothered me
However I always thought the math was too easy or worded strangely I preferred either Princeton Review or Barron s Math workbook to prepare for the math portion
I believe that SAT preparation requires a cocktail of different prep books so one can do sections according to current skill level >> A Great Way to Prepare for the Ordeal that is the SAT This is a great book with very few if any typos For anyone that is looking for practice before taking the actual test this is the book to get The answers are well designed the explanations are clear and its an economical buy My only criticism is that the sat converter that comes with the book is too lenient I m relatively certain that one cannot get a perfect score on the writing section with more than 3 questions wrong
Author : Kaplan Total Page : 384 Publisher : Kaplan Publishing Publication Date : 2005 05 24
Kaplan Nursing School Entrance Exams >> Helped my TEAS at first i was gonna return it cos it seemed like it didnt have the parts or topics that i wanted to work on i thought it was a wrong buy then i read the math part cos thats where i do bad and i saw that their review and explanation was way better then the ATI reviewer the school lent me i would probably have failed if i didnt go through the kaplan book i especially loved their tips and for every subject they had tips for you to easily remember tips codes strategies this book was a good purchase >> 1st review more to come I bought this book to take the Kaplan Nursing school Entrance Exam It is not till July so I will let you know how acurate the book is after the exam So Far the book has a ton of Information 2 practice test and a 65 question test that tells you where u should focus Its almost 400 pages long filled with tough questions and the math section has me nervous to take my Exam But it seems to be a good book to study with I will let you know >> Kaplan Review Book This is a good book but there is SOOOO much information I recommend buying it WAY before you have to take the exam becoming extremely familiar with the material before going to take the exam b/c the exam is really hard I felt the material in the book was a bit overwhelming but it was helpful There was a lot of marking in my book which also wasn t the most helpful but oh well what can you do Anyway I would recommend the book for preparation
Author : Dr Janet Wall Total Page : 608 Publisher : McGraw Hill Publication Date : 2009 06 23
McGraw Hill s ASVAB Second Edition Mcgraw Hill s Asvab >> mcgraws hills asvab i ordered this book for my grandson who is going into the military he says it has been very helpful >> this is the study guide to get I am very pleased w/ this guide It is very thorough and well written I would recommend it to anyone in the market for an ASVAB study guide I haven t tested yet since reading this book so I can t tell you how well it worked I did however take the test right out of high school and I expect to do better after using this guide
Author : John McCannon Ph D Total Page : 504 Publisher : Barron s Educational Series Publication Date : 2010 02 01
Barron s AP World History with CD ROM >> Helping my Son ace the exam More help for a great son These exam aids are great if used and assist good students in getting a 4/5 on the AP Exam >> Great study tool This is a great tool to get an overview of everything that will be on the Ap exam since textbooks have too much information to possibly remember at once and tend to go into unnecessary details The Barron s book provides a good and detailed summary of every time period and lists economic social and political developments that are necessary to know for the essay portion of the exam It also provides good sample multiple choice questions in its practice exams though its essay topics are definitely not like actual essay questions However the book still offered me a comprehensive and detailed summary of all topics covered on the test without going into extra detail I got a 5 on the AP test >> Barrons doesn t cut it for the AP World exam but OK if you re taking the class I had to purchase this review book for my AP World History class My teacher had us highlight and write themes on the side throughout the year Although i really wanted it to be the ideal book for the exam it was far from it The review is crowded together with so many details that will distract you from the key points that you actually need to know The review questions are too easy as well and don t really require the analytical thinking that you need to do well on the exam
The one positive thing that actually gets it an average 2 5/5 stars is that I used it a couple of times as a reference book for the class But then again isn t that what a textbook is for
So overall if you re looking for a book to review for the AP World History exam I would suggest looking for another book 5 Steps or Princeton Review should do the job
Author : Law School Admission Council Total Page : 48 Publisher : Law School Admission Council Publication Date : 2009 07 31
Official Lsat Preptest 57 >> Great product just verrrry slow The test was great you can t find these prep tests ANYWHERE but it took so long getting to me over three weeks that it didn t do me any good for my LSAT It arrived the week following my test All in all great product but order early to make sure it s actually there before your test
Cracking the AP U S History Exam 2010 Edition College Test Preparation
Cracking the AP U S History Exam 2010 Edition College Test Preparation >> Great Content This review book is even better than I expected Princeton Review is certainly the better review book especially if you re barely buying the book and are going to be on a short leash
Spark Notes The Little Prince >> a short but VERY impressive story It s a very lovely story that i fell in love with Just amazing i know some people who are desperately in need to read a story like this one to see the most important things in their lives I enjoyed every line in the book and it s wonderfully designed i love it so much
Cracking the AP Calculus AB BC Exams 2010 Edition College Test Preparation
Cracking the AP Calculus AB BC Exams 2010 Edition College Test Preparation >> fast shipping and book is in good condition Shipping is fast and the book is in very good condition just like it described Very good service
MAXnotes for William Golding s Lord of the Flies MAXnotes
MAXnotes for William Golding s Lord of the Flies MAXnotes >> A Masterpiece There are quite a few negative reviews on Lord of the Flies and of course I had my own complaints with the book too
But I still give it 5 starts because this is an instance where the whole is greater the sum of its parts
Ernest Hemingway s the Sun Also Rises Barron s Book Notes
Ernest Hemingway s the Sun Also Rises Barron s Book Notes >> Great oldie Read this book many years ago and still love it Someone once told me I reminded them of Brett of course ran out immediately bought to read I think I was 19 but just loved about time to read again
