GRE Study Material: Reviews of the Best GRE Prep books

"Which is the best GRE book to prepare from?,” “Which GRE prep book is more suited towards those who have lost touch with Math like me?,” “Which is the most effective GRE book for increasing my overall score?” and “Which is the most comprehensive GRE study guide to buy?” are some of the most commonly asked questions by students searching for the most suitable GRE study guide. They reflect the different needs faced by various students who have varied expectations from the guide they buy.

Choose the GRE prep book that suits you best: Know its Pluses & Minuses

We understand that you want the best GRE study guides on your shelf before you embark on preparing your hardest. What is well-suited for one student as a study aid may not be such a good choice for another. You need to go through the list of GRE prep books below and read through the positives and negatives of each book before you make a decision to buy the most suited book or books. Having attempted the GRE myself, I am aware of the positive difference good GRE preparation materials along with hard work make towards the outcome.

The Major GRE Prep Book Publishers:

Over the years, the students who have attempted the GRE have relied on three to four major publishers who are very widely referred to even today. These books are the Princeton Review's “Cracking the GRE ” series, the Barron's GRE 2011 book and the Kaplan GRE prep book.

A word of advice before you read the reviews.

Make Sure that the GRE Prep Book you choose strengthens your Weak Spots:

My personal recommendation before choosing GRE prep books is that you need to be aware of how strong you are inherently in a particular section. If you are a very logical person or did well in high school math, then GRE Math would be easier for you. And if you are a regular reader of classic novels and can easily glean the intent and tone of complex, verbose passages then the verbal section wouldn't be much of a bother for you. Only you know your strengths. You should accordingly choose the gre prep book that strengthens your weak areas better. In many cases you might have to invest in two or more books to get the best exposure to sample questions and explanatory material.

Review of Princeton Review's Cracking the GRE 
Review of Kaplan's New GRE 2011-2012 Premier with CD-ROM