 | Summaries and Customer Reviews are supplied by Amazon.com | The #1 independent voice in test prep - complete SAT advice from the expert students trust. For more than 30 years, Dr. Gary R. Gruber has been the leading authority on testing and test preparation - his Gruber Method has helped thousands of students develop critical thinking skills, dramatically boosting their scores on standardized tests. Now in its 13th edition, Gruber's Complete SAT Guide is the best and most effective complete study guide for students tackling the most important test of their lives. Using the exclusive Gruber Method, Gruber's Complete SAT Guide points students toward a personal study plan that shows them their strengths and weaknesses through a revolutionary approach - evaluating not just what answer the student chose, but why they chose it! Once students know this, they can focus their studies on the areas that will boost their scores and increase their knowledge for life. Featuring five full-length practice tests, Gruber's Complete SAT Guide has all the tools students need, including targeted sections on the math, reading and essays sections, plus everything students need to know for the new SAT format. The Fastest, Easiest Way to Improve Scores - Quick quiz gives you a personal plan—strengths, weaknesses and what to study
- Proven strategies based not just on answers, but why you chose the answer!
- Inside info on how SAT questions are created
- Student-praised grammar and vocab sections
- Five full SAT practice tests - as close as you can get without taking the real test!
What the Media Is Saying:
"Gary Gruber is the leading expert of the SAT." -Houston Chronicle "The only commercial book I've seen that would actually help a testtaker." -David Owen, Washington Post "His methods make the questions seem amazingly simple to solve." -Library Journal "Gary Gruber is the most prominent guru of SAT preparation." -Chicago Tribune What Students and Parents Are Saying: "In just two hours, you were able to boost my son Lance's SAT scores by 200 points." -Amy Loomis,
Mill Valley, CA "I've gone through almost all the SAT books I can get ahold of, and so far the best is the Gruber's SAT book. I wish I could have found it earlier." -Online review "With the aid of your books, my scores improved so dramatically that I am now anticipating acceptance into schools that I was reluctant to even apply to." -Lauren Frascieloo, Princeton, New Jersey "In regards to the breadth and quality of material offered, the difference between Gruber's and other publications is quite astonishing. Indeed, only Gruber's deserves the highest recommendation in SAT preparation." -Online review |
Average Customer Rating:   Good book, but my son found mistake Book is great for testing strategy and quality of tests. Just wanted to share one mistake that my son found in this book (he is 12 so he couldn't write this review) - Math, test 4, Section 8, Task 13 - right answer is A, they wrote 8x+ky=19 in answer instead of 8x-ky=19 as in task itself. This is THE BEST SAT Prep book... By using this book alone and this book alone, our daughter raised her SAT score by 330 points from the first time she took the test! AMAZING!!! Good, but watch out for the practice exams! Great preparation, amazing list of vocabulary, fabulous verbal preparation. I've been tutoring for a while and just bought this book to add to "the arsenal". The practice exams are a tad difficult, which could be a good and bad thing. However, I've noticed that several (not just a few!) math questions in the practice exams in the back of the book are incorrect in that either the answer choice does not appear in the choices or there are two correct choices for one question. I'm glad the book was able to educate my students enough so that they pointed out these errors, though. Excellent strategies, with hard tests. I work for a tutoring company. With my employer's permission, I use this book after my students have exhausted all of my company's prep materials.
This is an excellent book for SAT tutors; a average-to-good book for students using this book as their sole source of preparation; an excellent book when used in conjunction with the SAT exams published by the College Board.
This book teaches critical thinking strategies which are essential for not only the SAT, but other examinations you will take in high school and college. I cannot recommend the strategies highly enough. Other SAT test prep books teach you tricks. The Gruber book teaches you thinking strategies which will serve you for years to come.
I will focus especially on the math content, as that is what I usually use this book for.
-Critical Reading Section-
The questions in the review tests are a little harder than the actual SAT. The critical thinking strategies are useful.
The vocab list is extensive, and perhaps a touch overly difficult, but it would be a good list for a student to work with if they want to do very long term preparation (12+ months plus) for this test.
-Writing Section-
The writing section is an afterthought, in terms of content review other than the practice tests. The section on writing a good essay is helpful (see below), but the guide lacks numerous practice questions for the multiple choice writing questions. The practice test questions are a touch harder than the actual SAT questions.
However, this book has a section on writing the essay which would be helpful for many students. It also has a section on grammar that should be required reading for every high school student in this country. Grammar is not taught extensively in schools anymore, and this book gives you a back to basics course in the subject.
-Math Section-
Math Practice Test Questions- Unlike the SAT, the questions sometimes seem to be randomly placed within the section. An entire section can be very easy, and the next section can be brutally tough. The questions are tougher-to-much-tougher than the actual SAT. (Students using this book on their own should be made aware of that.)
Questions on the practice test are linked by a numerical code to the content review (covered below) as well as the general math strategies (covered at the start of this review). As such, they can serve as a reminder of the general math principles that the were just part of a specific test question. It's helpful if you get the question wrong, or omitted, and can even be helpful if you get the question correct.
Math Content Review- Excellent. If anything, it overprepares you for the test. It covers some areas (such as set theory, and certain geometric formulas) that are not covered on this test. This section can be a godsend if you are weak in this subject.
After each content review section, there are 50 practice questions which cover what you reviewed. These questions are much harder than what's on the test.
-Summary-
This book prepares you for a test that is more difficult than the actual SAT. But the strategies it teaches, as well as the essay review and grammar review sections mentioned in this book, are worth their weight in gold.
This book should be used in conjunction with the book of SAT exams published by the College Board. (The Official SAT Study Guide) You will likely score higher on those more realistic practice tests than the harder Gruber practice tests.
-Addendums-
The 10th, 11th, and 12th editions of this book are 99.95% the same as the book under review. If you can buy a copy of those books (at what I assume would be a very inexpensive price), you are getting this book.
Another, less effusive way of saying the same thing: This book hasn't been really updated in at least 5 years.
But that's a personal quibble of mine. You should buy this book.
Great Help! This book, hands down, is the SAT help book available! It seems to be a little unknown secret, as most buy Barron's or the blue College Board book.
The math section is a great help. It shows great shortcuts, and ways to approach the "trick" problems. Though with that said, you still have to know Algebra, as it is not an Algebra help book. It just explains time saving tricks to use while taking the SAT.
The CR and writing sections are also better than other books.
Overall, this book helped me raise my score by 170 points! 60 points in Math, 30 points in CR, and 80 points in Writing.
This was the best $14 I spent on test prep! |  |
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