GRE and TOEFL books

[cobraka]

Hello to you all,

I'm not sure if I'm posting on the correct place. If so, please excuse me and move my post accordingly.

I'm thinking of giving TOEFL and GRE exams this year and I was wondering what good books can someone buy

for self study? Amazon.com has many reviews on each book, but maybe opinions

from this forum would be more useful and more of a value.

If you know of any books that I should avoid buying please let me know.

I would also be glad if you explain why you think a book is good or bad.

Thank you very much

[qbtacoma]

For the GRE, Princeton Review is the only way to go. I found Kaplan's advice less than helpful ("attack the reading" is not specific!) while PR broke it down for you. However, I did buy Kaplan for the extra practice tests. One of the best ways to study is to simply take the test a lot, especially particular sections that you have trouble on.

[tls]

Seven years ago when I first took the GRE, I studied the Princeton Review and Kaplan books for about three months. When I took the test last year for the second time, I bought the latest Kaplan book and the Kaplan GRE verbal flashcards. I think either book is fine as long as you learn a strategy for the test and become familiar with question types. And I thought the flashcards were very helpful; I studied on the bus or train, or whenever I had 10 or 20 free minutes.

The free test prep materials on the GRE website are helpful as well: http://www.ets.org/gre/general/prepare

The GRE Powerprep software has additional questions and it helps you get accustomed to what the test screen will look like. The website also contains the pool of all possible analytical writing topics, so you can use those when you prep for the AW section.

good luck!

[cobraka]

Thank you both for your answers