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The Best GRE Books of 2013

By on February 7, 2013 in Book Reviews

Well 2013 is here and it’s time to assess your best book options for GRE study materials. While admittedly not all of these books are from this year (some are far from it), the list offers the best books on the market to keep you from sorting through the nimiety of bad GRE books. :-)

 

1. Free GRE eBooks

1 Magoosh eBook

Okay, they are not really books since unless you print them, you can’t physically hold them and flip through the pages (though an iPad can add a high degree of verisimilitude to the experience). Tangible or not, the eBooks are free and they provide a wealth of helpful strategies. They’re a great way to start your GRE journey, before deciding on which book to purchase. Here they are: Magoosh GRE eBooks

 

2. ETS Official Guide to the GRE Revised General Test, 2nd edition

This is the holy grail of prep. If you can only buy one book, this is it. The tone of the voice may not be as friendly as almost any other book on the market. But if you can bear the dry content, you are getting by far the best practice since ETS writes the questions for the test.

Throw in two GRE computer-based tests, which are in a CD that accompanies the book, and the best GRE book on the market gets even better. Here’s the full review: ETS Official Guide to the GRE Revised General Test 2nd Edition Book Review

 

3. Barron’s Six Practice Tests

This book is not perfect. But in terms of sheer content, it is better than the Barron’s general GRE guide. Check out the review here.

 

4. Practicing to Take the GRE, 10th edition

Sure, this is a version of the old GRE, and the old, old GRE at that (the tests were taken from 1991, a year some of you had yet to enter the world). Yes, the math is much easier. Still, these are questions created by the writers of test, so the traps are classical GRE. I wouldn’t use this as a foundation for my GRE test prep, but check out the review to see if it’s a good fit for your studies: Practicing to Take the GRE, 10th Edition Book Review

The Reading Comprehension passages are still tough and make for good practice. And while they’ve cut the Antonym and Analogy sections, the antonym questions still make for good practice (the analogies contain many ridiculous words, such as names of tools and sewing implements).

 

5. The Manhattan GRE Series (MGRE) – Books One through Eight

3 Manhattan GRE Series

Ths series contains eight (mostly excellent) books written by those with years of tutoring experience. This fact really shines through in the authorial voice this series uses. You feel as though there is a highly intelligent, but fun, laid back tutor walking you through the material.

The six free online tests you get by simply buying any one of the eight books makes MGRE a no-brainer if you want expert guidance and great practice. I’ve got a full review here: Manhattan GRE Series

 

(Somewhat) Honorable mention:

The Princeton Review, Cracking the New GRE

This book is generally substandard, and if after reading my review (see below), you are surprised I’m pairing it with this top five list, then I owe a quick explanation: the inclusion of the The Princeton Review book speaks to the generally low quality of GRE prep books out there. Nonetheless, I still somewhat like this book for its helpful big-picture strategies. These strategies are mostly absent from the Official Guide (though I share similar strategies in the eBook and on the blog).

That said, two major caveats: Do not use this book if you are looking for a high score. The strategies are very generic; they apply to most standardized tests, and they won’t help you understand the nuances or advanced concepts in the GRE. Secondly, do not do the questions, unless you are scoring way below 50% and are just starting off on the GRE. From this book glean some helpful strategies that you can use on actual test questions. Otherwise, this book is not of much use.

Since this book remains almost exactly the same from year to year, here’s the review of last year’s version: Princeton Review: Cracking the New GRE 2012 Book Review

 

So what books are you buying in preparation for the GRE? Let us know below.

 

About the Author

Chris Lele has been helping students excel on the GRE, GMAT, and SAT for the last 10 years. He is the Lead Content Developer and Tutor for Magoosh. His favorite food is wasabi-flavored almonds. Follow him on Google+!

41 Responses to The Best GRE Books of 2013

  1. eunice May 20, 2013 at 11:09 am #

    Hi Chris,

    When you mention MGRE guides, is that the Manhattan prep you are talking about? Or does the M stand for Magoosh?

    I only have $ to purchase one book, unfortunately, and am debating between the Barron and the PR. I have taken the old GRE before and scored poorly on quant, at ~50 percentile. However, I’m thinking that if Barron’s is denser in content, it would prepare me better for the actual day whereas if I purchase the PR I might need supplementary material. I know it’s hard for you to make a call, but I’m wondering if you have any thoughts based on the above…

    Tangentially, if I did the Magoosh online courses, would that alone be sufficient to give me a good score on the GREs?

    Thank you again so much, Chris!

    Reply
    • Chris Lele May 20, 2013 at 1:39 pm #

      Hi Eunice,

      Those are all good questions!

      I think I’d choose Barron’s over PR just because you get more questions, questions that are similar in difficulty to those you’ll see test day.

      The Magoosh courses definitely would be sufficient. Our lesson videos (they describe all the math fundamentals you need to know for the GRE) are more comprehensive than either Barron’s or TPR. We have about 500 math questions, which is definitely more than Princeton Review. Probably more than Barron’s book, but I’d have to count.

      Finally, in regards to your first question, the ‘M’ in MGRE stands for Manhattan.

      Good luck, and let me know what you decide to do :) !

      Reply
  2. eunice May 13, 2013 at 9:08 pm #

    Hi Chris,

    Thanks for this blog! Just a quick question — in the article above, you say that the PR general review deserves a somewhat honorable mention bc it is better than many of the other material out there, but when I read your book reviews, it seems you give the Barron’s a generally better score yet you don’t mention it in this list — could I know which book would you recommend I invest in if I only had enough money for one?

    Thanks!

    Reply
    • eunice May 13, 2013 at 9:09 pm #

      And in addition, do you know whether there is much difference between the Barron’s 19th edition (which you reviewed) and the newer 20th edition?

      Thanks!

      Reply
      • Chris Lele May 14, 2013 at 10:20 am #

        Hi Eunice,

        I only have the 19th edition, but typically–which I guess means almost always–the follow-up guides are the exact same as the previous years. Back during the old GRE, the PR and Barron’s 1999 GRE guides were no different from 2007 ones. That doesn’t mean Barron’s is completely stagnant on the content front. They have released Verbal and Math workbooks (the verbal should be avoid), and the Barron’s 6 practice tests (which are ok).

        Hope that helps!

        Reply
    • Chris Lele May 14, 2013 at 10:16 am #

      Great question! I think I should have been more specific when I said that PR general review gets an honorable mention. From the standpoint of good high-level strategies and content that is sort of like “training wheels” for the GRE, PR is great. So if you are a student who has traditionally struggled with standardized tests and are starting around the 140-level, then TPR is a good book. For that matter the Barron’s is too, but I think the Barron’s is less focused on general strategies and more focused on content (which is slightly more difficult than TPR). But since Barron’s content is better, I originally have it a higher score.

      If you had to choose one, I think it depends on your level. Either way, I would recommend at some juncture picking up one of the MGRE guides based on the area where you need the most help. That will give you access to their 6 online tests, which are some of the best practice you can get for test day.

      Hope that helps!

      Reply
      • eunice May 14, 2013 at 8:22 pm #

        Hi Chris,

        Thanks so much for your response! when you say MGRE guides, is that the Manhattan prep you are talking about? Or does the M stand for MAGOOSH!?

        I only have $ to purchase one book, unfortunately, and am debating between the Barron and the PR. I have taken the old GRE before and scored poorly on quant, at ~50 percentile. However, I’m thinking that if Barron’s is denser in content, it would prepare me better for the actual day whereas if I purchase the PR I might need supplementary material. I know it’s hard for you to make a call, but I’m wondering if you have any thoughts based on the above…

        Tangentially, if I did the Magoosh online courses, would that alone be sufficient to give me a good score on the GREs?

        Thank you again so much, Chris!

        Reply
  3. farsa May 13, 2013 at 1:25 am #

    Thank you very much for your comprehensive reviews of books, I read all of them. however, I’m a little bit confused now and don’t know what the best book is for excelling in Verbal section of GRE, I also need a book with a good ” Text completions/sentence equivalence” section. Or let me put my words in a more clear structures, I would be grateful if you could specify the best book separately for each section of GRE, i.e. Vocabulary, Reading Comprehension, Text Completions/Sentence Equivalence, Writing, Math. Thanks in advance

    Reply
    • Chris Lele May 13, 2013 at 2:04 pm #

      Hi Farsa,

      There just isn’t any perfect book out there for the Verbal section. The best is to mix and match. I’d recommend:

      1. MGRE: Verbal (computer-based practice test only)
      2. 6-Practice tests Barron’s: TC/SE
      3. Reading Comp.: Official GMAT guide/LSAT guides
      4. Barron’s 1100 Words – vocabulary
      5. MGRE Reading Comp. – Strategies (passages are ok–but not great)
      6. Math: MGRE (esp. online tests)
      7. MGRE 5 lbs. book (math mostly)
      8. The Official Guide to the GRE
      9. Practicing to take the GRE (old ETS book): Reading passages and Sentence
      Completions

      Also, check out our 3-month study guide, which recommends only the best resources:

      http://magoosh.com/gmat/2012/3-month-gmat-study-schedule-for-beginners/

      Good luck!

      Reply
  4. Marisa April 30, 2013 at 5:18 pm #

    Hi Chris!

    So I’m taking the GRE in two months and I’m kind of freaking out. I’m not a particularly strong standardized test taker but I need really high scores. I feel as though I struggle most with math but I’m not the best at the verbal components either. From these reviews I think I will splurge and get the Manhattan books and use the Magoosh materials as well. Do you think that should be enough to prepare?

    Thanks!

    Reply
    • Chris Lele May 1, 2013 at 11:37 am #

      Hi Marisa!

      I think Magoosh and Manhattan should be more than enough, as long as you throw in the Official Guide to the GRE by ETS (this last one contains official questions so you want to make sure to practice with it).

      With these three resources, you will get plenty of outstanding practice questions, test tips, and guidance. The Magoosh blog is also a great (and free :) ) resource to help you navigate the next two months. And whenever you’re “freaking out” don’t hesitate to reach out, and we’ll help you through whichever thorny patch you are dealing with :) .

      Reply
  5. Roh April 1, 2013 at 1:13 am #

    Hi Chris ,

    I did try the Magoosh trial and i like the content.I want to appear for GRE in a months’s time.I can devote most of my time to studies (free for 3 weeks) .I am reasonably good at quant , my vocab is average.
    How should I approach the preparation.Shall I give any practice test to get a benchmark ? or shall i give tests only after the basic prep ? I tried few Q from various websites , my accuracy for Q is 65 – 75 % and V is 50 – 60 %.I truly believe in finding 1-2 good resources and sticking to it than going through a lot of books.Any suggestions for any books or material is welcome.

    Br
    Roh

    Reply
    • Chris Lele April 2, 2013 at 10:33 am #

      Hi Roh,

      I understand the desire to simplify things – you don’t want to become inundated with different study material. The combination of Magoosh and the Official Guide to the GRE by ETS is a powerful coupling.

      I think benchmarking is a great way to start. Take one of the PowerPrep II tests that is on the CD that comes with the Official Guide. Then take a test every 6-7 days, making sure you review your mistakes afterwards.

      For a general prep outline, I’d go through the Magoosh lesson videos doing the quizzes at the end, so you can make sure you’ve learned and processed what you’ve seen on the videos. After about three days, you should identify your weaknesses and tailor your sessions with question types you struggle with (this is really easy to do using the Magoosh dashboard).

      Not that you have to follow this, but to get an idea of what a specific study plan looks like this could be of help:

      http://magoosh.com/gre/2012/1-month-gre-study-schedule/

      Also a great place to start for vocabulary is our ebook:

      http://magoosh.com/gre/2012/gre-vocabulary-ebook/

      Hopefully this will help you get started. Let me know if you have any questions along the way :) .

      Reply
  6. sakethram March 24, 2013 at 10:38 pm #

    Hi Chris,

    For the vocabulary part i am following below

    —>Magoosh vocab e-book
    —>Barron’s 1100 words
    —> 20 words a day from the newyork times articles(Topics: Music,arts,books,science)
    —>Word Power made easy
    —>ETS for practicing

    Kindly recommend books which help me to face good TC,SC and RC questions

    for the starters and medium level questions. As i need to work it from scratch could you please let me know for which book to start after your vocab e-book and word power made easy.And also for the medium-difficult practice questions!!

    For quant all i believe in my instincts and working on ETS guide anything else that you can recommend for that. I know it is rather less time to cover all the portion and books but any book that i must race through as mandate/imp before i give my exam

    Any suggestions will be added value for me!! Thanks for your continuous support!

    Reply
    • Chris Lele March 25, 2013 at 4:53 pm #

      Hi Sakethram,

      I like your ambitious plan :) . Those are great vocabulary resources.

      To start off with easy/medium questions, PR’s General Guide and Barron’s General Guide are pretty. You’ll get lots of practice and the vocabulary/questions won’t be too difficult.

      I’d definitely stay away from Manhattan GRE TC/SE. Even the easy ones have far too many difficult words. On the Quant side though, you can’t really beat the practice of Manhattan GRE’s online tests. And don’t forget Magoosh – you can select for ‘easy/medium’ questions for verbal and quant

      Hope that helps, and good luck :) !

      Reply
      • sakethram March 26, 2013 at 9:44 pm #

        Thanks again Chris!!

        Reply
  7. Jordan March 18, 2013 at 3:08 pm #

    Chris, I have Bob Miller’s Math for the New GRE. Definitely should of read some review on it before I made the purchase. I was great at math in highschool in college but, it’s been quite a while. I’m looking to make exceptionally high on the quantitative section and I’m asking which books would you suggest in order to attain a great score? It seems that MGRE, ETS, and Magoosh are what you are pointing towards? And is there an order in which book you would start with? Thanks for the help bro.

    Reply
    • Chris Lele March 20, 2013 at 9:14 am #

      Hi Jordan,

      I think either Magoosh or MGRE is a great place to start. Both walk you through the beginning stages. Kind of like having a cool, patient tutor by your side. The ETS book, while great practice, is like that teacher who just writes on the board without really turning around to look if anybody is paying attention. But once you’ve built up your skills via Magoosh/MGRE, the ETS book is great.

      Hope that helps!

      Reply
  8. Matt Z. March 1, 2013 at 11:21 am #

    Ewwwww, It turns out when I was in the process of studying a year ago I purchased Princeton Reviews book and used it exclusively… I did better than average but I didn’t do as well as hoped… Perhaps; I should have invested my time in some more pregame appraisal as you suggested.

    I will say the diagramming in the DVD is absolutely terrible for the Math Section… Trying to explain to myself that an expected “authority” on the GRE had done something dismally wrong and then decided to put it on a DVD for mass publishing gave me a massive tension headache.

    Reply
    • Chris Lele March 1, 2013 at 11:43 am #

      Hi Matt,

      Thanks for sharing your experience with the DVD portion of PR. I actually haven’t seen this component but it does sound disastrous.

      Let me know how the materials recon goes this time around. BTW have you checked out our book reviews page yet?

      Reply
  9. lina February 23, 2013 at 11:51 pm #

    Hello,

    I have about 45 days to the GRE, I have completed the MGRE Math books barring the Quant comparison book. I have also completed the Magoosh ebook(English words) and Math questions pertaining to the MGRE books.

    I haven’t yet started with English and am wondering how to go about it in a smart and successful way. I was thinking of completing the 1000 questions from the MGRE vocab and going through the Magoosh RC, SC videos instead of reading MGRE…do you think that, that would be a smart idea? thanks for your help!

    Reply
  10. harshitha February 23, 2013 at 9:48 am #

    hey Chris…..
    hi i am Harshitha… i have decided to take up GRE… so as a starter which book do i have to start up with????? and also i ve decided to take it 3 months later…. there’s a short span of time….. please do help me with this…..:):):)

    Reply
  11. Pranitha Vangala February 11, 2013 at 2:53 pm #

    Hi

    I’m so confused inregards to reading from newyork times or a similar source. I have hard time picking articles that have gre level words in it. Is there a better way to do it?

    Reply
  12. Charlize Rai February 9, 2013 at 9:41 pm #

    I’ve been perusing your book recommendations, and I am curious as to what your opinion is regarding my study choices. I have done very little review, but I feel less confident in the verbal section (as I excelled in high school math, and university stats).

    For my vocab building:
    - Manhattan GRE flashcards
    - Flashcards written out from Magoosh vocab prep
    - Reading the New York Times a half hour daily and learning about the words that I do not understand in their pieces

    For my verbal practice:
    - ETS

    For my mathematics:
    - MGRE
    - NOVA as supplementary practice

    Analytical Writing
    - Practice writing every couple of days
    - Work on going through arguments/issues quickly and spending 10 minutes to draw up a quick outline

    I tend to find that I learn best by actually doing questions and such, but I am having difficulty discerning which texts have the best practice tests. My understanding from Magoosh is that ETS is obviously best (but limited number of tests), ETS 10th edition provides some good test-writing experience. Are there any other practice tests that are comparable to the GRE, and worth while writing for their practice?

    As you can see, I am also at a bit of a loss for the best materials to use to enhance my abilities on the verbal component of the exam (aside from sheer vocabulary increase). What would be ideal are a lot of practice questions that I could focus on ‘mastering’ that are similar to what would be found on the GRE in terms of difficulty, and vocabulary used.

    My exam date is booked for 6 weeks from now! EEk!

    Reply
    • Chris February 11, 2013 at 10:53 am #

      Hi Charlize,

      That’s a great question – since good verbal practice material is hard to find. Really speaking MGRE and Barron’s 6 on-line tests offer some of what you’ll see test day. I think MGRE 6 on-line tests are the safest bet. Otherwise, the verbal content is pretty mixed (I’d recommend reading the review I wrote on the new MGRE 5 lbs. book – the review should be up today or early tmrw.).

      That said, give the Magoosh product a try. In terms of the vocabulary you will see, the sentence structure of the SE/TC, and the difficulty of the questions for the reading passage, our verbal segment offers the most for “mastery.” I say this not our of sheer bias but because this is the gist of what many Magoosh users who scored in the upper 160′s on verbal reported in their testimonials. We also offer the mock test option, so you can take practice tests for both math and verbal.

      As for math, make sure to throw in the ETS stuff too. With the 2nd edition and the online test, ETS offers a total of 4 practice tests (which will be helpful :) ).

      I hope that answered your question, and let me know if there is anything else you need to know :) . Good luck on your test! (as is, your study plan above looks solid. You should do well!).

      Reply
      • Pranitha Vangala February 11, 2013 at 1:46 pm #

        Hi

        I’m so confused inregards to reading from newyork times or a similar source. I have hard time picking articles that have gre level words in it. Is there a better way to do it?

        Reply
  13. Ruth February 8, 2013 at 12:23 am #

    Hi,

    Just wanted to alert you to a grammatical error in the Princeton Review description above:

    “I still somewhat like this book for it’s helpful big-picture strategies. ”

    Thanks

    Reply
    • Chris February 11, 2013 at 10:54 am #

      Thanks! That pesky ‘it’s’ vs. ‘its’ :) .

      Reply
  14. Ravish Karve February 7, 2013 at 7:21 pm #

    Hey, I am using the Princeton Review Online course.
    I have so far found it and the practice tests pretty useful.
    Can you tell me what you think of this and what additional material I should be using? (“P.S: I am also using the Official Guide”)

    Reply
    • Chris February 11, 2013 at 10:58 am #

      Hi Ravish,

      I haven’t seen the PR online questions recently, but from my experience they are generally helpful, esp. as a starter. I would not, however, only rely on these questions. Keep using the official guide, consider trying the MGRE 6 online practice tests, and def. give Magoosh a try. All three of these resources offer the tough-level questions you will likely see test day.

      Good luck!

      Reply
  15. Srini February 7, 2013 at 4:06 pm #

    Would you also suggest using the Kaplan New GRE Verbal Workbook to study for the new GRE?

    Reply
    • Chris February 7, 2013 at 5:28 pm #

      Hi Srini,

      In short – stay away from Kaplan’s Verbal book. It is one of the last books I’d recommend, and it will probably only hurt your score. You can read my review for Kaplan’s general book here:

      http://magoosh.com/gre/2011/kaplan-new-gre-premier-2011-2012-book-review/

      Good luck!

      Reply
      • Anurag February 7, 2013 at 8:33 pm #

        Would you elaborate why Kaplan Verbal Workout will HURT my score. I mean general Book and Verbal workout must have some differences?

        Reply
        • Anurag February 9, 2013 at 6:56 am #

          Even I am using the Verbal Workbook. As Chris pointed out , TC part is a complete waste of time.RC is good though.

          Reply
          • Chris February 11, 2013 at 11:06 am #

            Yes, the RC is definitely better. I wouldn’t say it would hurt your score. It’s really the TC and the SE in which you are likely to hurt your score. The why? Well, it lulls you into a fall sense of complacency (the real questions aren’t that easy), words aren’t always used correctly, there are often debatable answer choices, and the sentence structure/writing style is nothing like what you’ll see on the actual test.

            Reply
      • Srini N February 9, 2013 at 4:12 pm #

        So what would you recommend as good New GRE Verbal Workbooks?

        Reply
        • Chris February 11, 2013 at 11:42 am #

          Hi Srini,

          It’s a good question. The problem is most of the “New” books are no different from last year’s editions. Though that’s probably moot, since many of those last year’s edition weren’t very good. The truth is there is a dearth of strong verbal material. What you see above is it, in terms of GRE verbal workbooks.

          MGRE has released it’s 5lbs. book – review coming out later. That said, this huge book is a mixed bag, in terms of verbal content. For books, stick to ETS as much as possible :) .

          Reply


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