The Official SAT Subject Tests in U.S. History and World History

Since this is the only book that has real SAT subject tests, you must get this book if you want to take the SAT subject tests. The other book simply do not have questions like the real thing.

This is the only book with real tests. My only gripe is that each subject only gets one test. It would be nice to have more real practice.

What this book does not do is help you cram for the SAT II World History/U.S. History test. It doesn't feed you information; it doesn't reward you for sleeping through U.S. History or World History in school. If you want a book that does, go for Barron's or Princeton (which, by the way, has an immense review section on world history filled with details- some useful, some useless). This book is designed for assessment. If you are a student who has studied well in history class, this book is for you. Taking this book's two tests (it has two for each subject) will help you accurately measure where you will fall during the real thing. It may also help you identify areas that your history class didn't cover well. The book provides paragraph explanations justifying every answer. On the first test (world history) that I took in this review book, I received an 800. My "raw" score barely made the cutoff, which is to say if I missed 1-2 more problems, I would have received a 790 or 780. There is a margin; you can miss almost 14 questions out of 95 and still get a perfect score. On the second test that I took, I received another 800. My "raw" score improved a little. It was now that I doubted if this book accurately portrayed the real test; my scores in Barron's (a testing brand infamous for ridiculously difficult tests in its review books) were around 770. Considering the wide margins on raw scores to scaled scores, it was a significant difference. Thank god, when it came down to the real deal, I scored 800 (again, on world history). I want to dispel any myths about a rumored College Board conspiracy. The organization does not water down tests in its review books to help lower the scoring curve. It may not want everyone receiving 800's, but it certainly wouldn't go so far as to dupe students. First of all, it would be unethical and against the non-profit organization's principles. Second of all, this book very accurately determined what score I would receive on the real test on two separate occasions. In the end, you should invest in this book to help you predict your score. But don't expect a brilliant review section- there is none, actually- just use this as a way to practice and assess your knowledge. Ignore my comments at the very beginning of this review; other books such as Barron's and Princeton Review succinctly summarize the knowledge that you need on test day. This book should definitely go hand in hand with a third-party book; I found Barron's especially helpful. Just don't count on any third-party review books to give you a true, accurate assessment of how you will do on the real test.

The book features ACTUAL subject tests that were previously published- 2 in US history, 2 in world history. I found them to be tremendously beneficial, beause some review books aren't hard enough and some (most notably the Barron's) are unrealistically hard. I strongly reccomend it.