The PowerScore GMAT Critical Reasoning Bible: Book Review
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Dana is a finance student and a moderator for Beat The GMAT. Click here to learn how to get started in the Beat The GMAT community. |
The following book review was written by Dana Jinaru. Dana is currently a finance student in Europe and also serves as a moderator for Beat The GMAT. On May 13, 2009 she scored a 770 on the GMAT.
Here is Dana’s analysis of PowerScore’s GMAT Critical Reasoning Bible.
Overview
The PowerScore GMAT Critical Reasoning Bible (or the CR bible, as you’ll see it commonly referenced in online forums) is published by the renowned LSAT-prep gurus, PowerScore. The LSAT and the GMAT have two question types that are somewhat similar: Reading Comprehension and Critical Reasoning (known as ‘Logical Reasoning’ in the LSAT). This book comes in as an abridged form of the company’s massively successful Logical Reasoning Bible. This CR bible has a solid reputation as a comprehensive guide to one of the most puzzling question types on the GMAT.
The CR bible covers the topic of GMAT Critical Reasoning with incredible depth and detail. Questions are neatly organized according to “families” in order for the reader to understand the various logical connections between question types. The book deals with ten types of Critical Reasoning questions, all remarkably well analyzed, in ten separate chapters (by the way, PowerScore offers a free chapter to BTG members). The CR bible even addresses many rarely-tested CR question types; although I would love to see a separate chapter for boldface critical reasoning questions in a future edition (boldface critical reasoning questions are considered among the toughest question tested on the GMAT). One could argue that this book will also help in case you’re having trouble with Reading Comprehension. I personally found the ‘Main Point’ chapter particularly enlightening and relevant to reading comprehension.
Pros
- Detailed analysis of Critical Reasoning question types means that you will have a quick reference guide at hand should you ever feel the need to review for one topic or the other
- Practice questions, although few, are the closest I’ve ever seen to actual GMAT questions (in terms of style). Explanations are also top notch, with great analysis of why a wrong answer is wrong. In my opinion, understanding why an answer is wrong helps you avoid common traps and is almost as useful as understanding why the correct choice is right
- After reading the CR bible, you will be able to see why the GMAT is so popular with business school admissions. The process of “creating” a Critical Reasoning question is carefully explained, a fact which made me realize the amount of talent and effort that goes into making just one GMAT question. The author of the book clearly shows due respect to the GMAT test and its creators, which inspired me
- If pressed for time, the book offers a quick strategy for studying the most important question types
Cons
- At around 50 practice questions, the CR bible needs to be supplemented with other resources, such as the Official Guide or the Official Guide for Verbal Review
- Unlike most prep books, this book does not come with a CD or online access to CATs (computer-adaptive practice tests)
- The book only features two boldface questions (this question type is described in the ‘Method of Reasoning’ chapter)
Bottom Line
The PowerScore Critical Reasoning Bible is definitely worth the money if you feel you’re having trouble with Critical Reasoning and Reading Comprehension. Its strategies and tips, if carefully studied and applied, will surely translate in an increase in your score. I attribute much of my 11-point verbal raw score increase (from 36 to 47) to this book.
If you’re interested in purchasing PowerScore’s GMAT Critical Reasoning Bible, click here
Read more book reviews in the Beat The GMAT Book Recommendations section.
Jason on November 12th, 2009 at 4:19 pm
Great review on a great book! I scored 38 in the verbal section of my first GMAT and then identified CR as one of my weaknesses. I purchased this book, and it helped immensely! In my second GMAT, I scored 44 - many thanks to this book.
DanaJ on November 12th, 2009 at 11:16 pm
Wow! Congratulations! That's a huge increase in score. All the best and good luck with your applications!
Alex on November 13th, 2009 at 10:39 pm
Hi Dana,
As always, thank you for the useful review! I do have one question I would like to seek your opinion regarding general CR approach. The PowerScore CR Bible recommends reading the prompt before the question whereas just about all the other GMAT prep books (Princeton Review, Kaplan, Manhattan Review, OG, and MGMAT)recommend reading the question first then the prompt. From your experience, which approach do you recommend and why?
Thanks in advance!
Alex
Alex on November 13th, 2009 at 10:45 pm
Hi Dana,
Thank you for the wonderful review! Based on your experience, did you find the PowerScore's approach of prompt first then question helpful when tackling CR questions? How does it compare to the more conventional approach of question first then prompt?
Thanks!
Alex
DanaJ on November 14th, 2009 at 3:25 am
Well, even before I used the CR Bible I read the stimulus before reading the question and the reasons presented by the book definitely convinced me that I'm on the right path (at least for me - some might say the other way around works for them). The main reason for my strategy is the fact that reading without being influenced by the question helps you better evaluate the prompt without the stress to immediately identify your answer. I really like this because I can sort of try to anticipate a possible answer in my head, which makes it all the more interesting
Alex on November 17th, 2009 at 1:03 pm
Thank you for sharing your thoughts, Dana!
amaven on February 15th, 2010 at 8:13 pm
Hi Dana, I stay in India and the Powerscore CR guide isnt available in retail locations. Ordering online will either take 15-20 days or is too expensive for a quick international delivery. Would you know about a paid online download that I can get access to? I'm looking for the book urgently.
rgds
DanaJ on February 15th, 2010 at 10:14 pm
I have no idea, honestly. The best thing to do would be to take a look over the PowerScore site, they should have all the information regarding this.
amaven on February 25th, 2010 at 11:40 pm
Hi Dana,
I scored 38 on my verbal section on my first attempt on the gmat five years back. I am looking to give it again in a few months, and hoping to improve my score. CR is a clear area for improvement for me, and I have been spending the last couple of weeks studying from the Powerscore guide. Just a couple qs wrt to your experience in improving your CR skills (and thus verbal score):-
1. Do you manage to pre-phrase the answer to most qs?
2. How much time would you say you needed to spend to improve your CR skills?
3. By doing all the practice drills on the powerscore, I've collected a lot of data on my accuracy levels on different q types. Do you reckon excessive practice on particular q types can improve a generic skill like CR (one's analytical ability)? are there a finite number of concepts / logic patterns that can be mastered to do well on the CR section?
4. Where did you access advanced CR problems for practice?
rgds
DanaJ on February 26th, 2010 at 6:26 am
1. Yes, I did. I was probably right something like 75% of the cases... It's something you acquire by practicing, I believe. You end up recognizing patterns that are tested over and over again. This holds true for the real exam as well, not only the official practice material. On test day, I had several questions that had basically the same structure as some I'd seen in the OGs.
2. Hmm... I did not study constantly, but I'd say you need something like a good week or so to go through the CR Bible, because it contains virtually tons of useful info that you just don't want to simply go over.
3. As I've said, there are certain patterns. If they're finite or not, I can't say for sure. The CR Bible questions are a bit harder than what you should expect on the real thing, so don't get worried if you don't have 100% hit rate or something like that. However, I do believe that practice ("excessive" is actually a pretty subjective measure, so I can't comment) does boost your accuracy quite a bit, since you:
a. identify patterns
b. get used to prephrasing
c. get a better grip of structures of arguments
4. LSAT sets are good practice. However, they're much harder than the real GMAT. I remember that while my GMAT CR hit rate was 100%, my LSAT LR hit rate was something like 80%. You can download two free LSAT sets here:
http://www.beatthegmat.com/suggested-lsat-material-cr-rc-t44191.html
amaven on February 26th, 2010 at 10:48 am
Thanks Dana for the quick and precise reply.
PRC on March 13th, 2010 at 12:38 pm
Hi Dana,
Any pointers on good RC material(700+ scores)?
DanaJ on March 13th, 2010 at 12:44 pm
How weird that you should ask that right now! I've only just finished reviewing the PowerScore Verbal Bible (which includes an RC section) and the MGMAT RC guide! I think the former was ever so slightly above the latter...
For advanced practice, try some LSAT sets. You can find two free ones here:
http://www.beatthegmat.com/suggested-lsat-material-cr-rc-t44191.html