Which study aid book is better for SAT?

Question

There are many companies who provide SAT study aid books and services. I went to Barns and Nobles and checked out the study aid section for books on SATs

I got confused, there are many books, and I don’t know which one would benefit me the most. The few I found interesting were, Kaplan’s, The Princeton Review’s, and some by McGraw-Hill Inc.

All books include sample tests and lessons but I’m not sure which one is the most straightforward.

Does anyone know which book/study aid is the best available? Anyone has any experience with studying from those books?

I am looking for books that can teach and examine skills.

Ps. I don’t want be able to take a prep class, so I’m mainly focused on books at this time.

Answer 1

I'd recommend Collegeboard's Official SAT Study Guide. There are a lot of SAT prep books, but Collegeboard's worked best for me. They're the ones who make the SATs so their practice exams are most like the real ones. There are other SAT guides that you could try as well. Princeton Review and Kaplan tend to be easier than the real SATs and Barron's tends to be harder. I like Collegeboard's book the best, but a lot of my friends liked Barron's because it was harder so they felt that if they could get high scores on Barron's practice tests, they'd definitely do well on the real SATs. Each person learns differently so just go to a book store and flip through the study guides and see which ones you think would help you the most.

Try to do 2 practice tests a week (maybe more if you can fit it in or if you're taking the SATs again sometime soon). As long as you keep practicing, getting a high score isn't as impossible as some people make it seem.

Good luck!

Answer 2

I've found that the Up your Score:Underground  Guide to  the S.A.T. works well. It was written by four students who aced the test, and a new, revised version comes out each year.

Answer 3

Well, the creators of the SAT itself have a book "The Official SAT Study Guide"--it's a big blue book. I have that one and it's pretty good, but a bit bland.

I'd say go with The Princeton Review one. They have really good test prep books in general and they make corny jokes and such, so studying is a bit more bearable. Plus, they're the top selling SAT prep book.