<p>hi,</p>
<p>This is a nice thread, but I was wondering, do you all read the class textbooks also to prepare or just these review books?</p>
<p>DO NOT USE KAPLAN FOR AP CHEM
Seriously kids, I didn’t think it was that bad until equilibrium (first free response question on every test), when it started telling me that the answers to the practice questions weren’t even answer choices, then proceeded to give me work shown from a different problem…multiple times.</p>
<p>I would definitely suggest PR-my teacher lent me hers (i found out she got all of our test questions from there…at the end of the year), I did a quick skim and the mc questions (much more comprehensive/realistic than Kaplan’s), and got a 5, though I still think I deserved a four.</p>
<p>I used Zumdahl for my book, but hardly ever used it for anything but extra practice problems.</p>
<p>And if anyone has a suggestion for AP Spanish Lang, I would love you forever.</p>
<p>I’m doing independent study for the AP psych exam. Any advice on good books? So far, I’ve only heard of three that most people liked. Barron’s was byfar the most popular, PR was second and 5 steps for a 5 was last. I will probably buy Barron’s and maybe one of the other two. Just say which book was your favorite out of these three and why, or recommend another book. Thanks so much!!</p>
<p>omg rocker read this thread
thats what people have to suggest</p>
<p>I had a AMSCO spanish book that we got from our school that was really good and now this year they are using Una Vez Mas…i’m not sure how it is.
the test has totally changed from last year, so the i don’t know how much the older books will do…</p>
<p>I only need to take the AP Macro exam this year. I am currently taking the course online, no textbook.
I really want a 5 on this…
Can somebody please recommend a study guide for me… im so confused now… some really like PR… some say barron’s… some say PR is better than Barron’s at Micro but i really dont care about micro… just MACRO.
THANX!</p>
<p>Hay, I don’t know if anyone used it but i heard 5 steps to a 5 is really good in econ (micro¯o), biology(some even say better then cliffs), and US gov. and pol. Anyone else here any of this (amazon is where i got it)
Also it is soppose to be a simpler way to understand world history (but not better, then barrons)9i used barrons, but boy is it long, and easy to forget)</p>
<p>How do these sound?:</p>
<p>AP Environmental Science (APES) - Smarty Pants or Barrons
AP European History - REA, PR, or Barrons</p>
<p>I know Barrons is terrible for invirental sci (smarty pants seems to be rated good by some well terrible by others, i still don’t know if you can just self study it and get a 5 using only that book.</p>
<p>If you’re too lazy to spend large amounts of time comparing prep books, just pick the thickest one. It’s usually better anyway.</p>
<p>Or buy/study from both.</p>
<p>I agree with fizix. This isn’t always the case, though. Barron’s books are usually the thickest, but they usually have tons of extra/useless-for-the-exam information.</p>
<p>Someone keeps asking about cliffs for econ (is that any good), i only have rpincton so i dkont know.</p>
<p>how successful is PR for Calculus BC compared to Arco? Is Arco and Peterson the same thing? I only need one so I need to choose between those two.</p>
<p>For bio “5 steps to a 5” literally rocks. Its thin and you can skim the book repeatedly. I would also recommend flashcards as well. Its better than cliffnotes for sure but then again cliffnotes did have some good sections.</p>
<p>chemistry - cant go wrong with…**** i forgot the name haha…pp arcoe</p>
<p>sorry, i meant arco</p>
<p>Here’s what I used (and the scores I got with each):</p>
<p>SOPHOMORE YEAR
US History: Kaplan (after discarding PR because it was crap). [4]
JUNIOR YEAR
Biology: Cliffnotes [5]
Calculus BC: Bought Barron’s, but didn’t use it much. [4, with AB subscore of 5]
Computer Science AB: Barron’s [5]
US Government & Politics: REA & a bit of Barron’s from my teacher. [5]</p>
<p>And what I bought for this year:</p>
<p>Statistics (self-study): Barron’s
Psychology (self-study): Barron’s
Chemistry: Barron’s (was torn on this… hope I didn’t make a mistake)
English Literature: absolutely freaking nothing (do I NEED one?)
European History (self-study): Viault’s “Modern European History”, but I have access to a PR, Barron’s, and REA book as well.</p>
<p>I think i’ll buy Peterson book for Calculus BC but amazon said it’s out of stock. Does anyone know where else can i find this book?</p>
<p>If you’re determined to have Peterson’s, try Barnes & Noble, Borders, etc. I wouldn’t recommend it, though. Barron’s is much better.</p>
<p>I’ve been doing Music Theory for piano since I was five years old, and I’d like to take the test. However, I want a good prep book so I can review the material. Any suggestions?</p>
<p>Thanks,
Sheep</p>