Perhaps too fast-moving for beginners but an astute, well-paced review for anyone looking to conquer the logistical and...
Thatte’s first study guide provides not just a systematic approach to solving math problems on the Graduate Record Examinations and Graduate Management Admission Test, but also the strategies to help readers do so as quickly and easily as possible.
Thatte’s greatest accomplishment here may be breaking down word problems—often a bane for math test takers—and clearly explaining the intuitive, comprehension-heavy process that goes into solving them. But before he teaches readers how to translate words into mathematical equations and vice versa, Thatte lays a solid groundwork of mathematical concepts. Starting from scratch and working his way up to geometry, he provides a fast, thorough review of the types of math found on the GRE and GMAT. His experience in prepping students for competitive exams shines through with spare, to-the-point explanations and collected tips and tricks for streamlining calculations, spotting trends, and tackling problems to reach the answers efficiently and accurately. He even breezes painlessly through an explanation of absolute value equations, a topic that often flummoxes algebra learners. Thatte creates a handful of practice problems to help reinforce each new concept and problem-solving strategy. “The more you practice, the faster you will get. On the GRE/GMAT speed is as important as accuracy,” he writes, warning that test takers have two minutes or less to solve each problem. The number of practice problems and space given for computations might be a bit skimpy, particularly for readers new to the mathematical concepts, but for a streamlined, skill- and strategy-intensive review, it’s still workable. The inconsistently formatted fractions can look a bit odd, but that’s only briefly distracting and barely reduces the quality and ease of Thatte’s teaching style.
Perhaps too fast-moving for beginners but an astute, well-paced review for anyone looking to conquer the logistical and mathematical challenges of the GRE and GMAT.Pub Date: June 24, 2010
ISBN: 978-1453633984
Page Count: 326
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: Dec. 11, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2014
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
A superb book about doing his job by a master of his craft.
The renowned writer offers advice on information-gathering and nonfiction composition.
The book consists of eight instructive and charming essays about creating narratives, all of them originally composed for the New Yorker, where McPhee (Silk Parachute, 2010, etc.) has been a contributor since the mid-1960s. Reading them consecutively in one volume constitutes a master class in writing, as the author clearly demonstrates why he has taught so successfully part-time for decades at Princeton University. In one of the essays, McPhee focuses on the personalities and skills of editors and publishers for whom he has worked, and his descriptions of those men and women are insightful and delightful. The main personality throughout the collection, though, is McPhee himself. He is frequently self-deprecating, occasionally openly proud of his accomplishments, and never boring. In his magazine articles and the books resulting from them, McPhee rarely injects himself except superficially. Within these essays, he offers a departure by revealing quite a bit about his journalism, his teaching life, and daughters, two of whom write professionally. Throughout the collection, there emerge passages of sly, subtle humor, a quality often absent in McPhee’s lengthy magazine pieces. Since some subjects are so weighty—especially those dealing with geology—the writing can seem dry. There is no dry prose here, however. Almost every sentence sparkles, with wordplay evident throughout. Another bonus is the detailed explanation of how McPhee decided to tackle certain topics and then how he chose to structure the resulting pieces. Readers already familiar with the author’s masterpieces—e.g., Levels of the Game, Encounters with the Archdruid, Looking for a Ship, Uncommon Carriers, Oranges, and Coming into the Country—will feel especially fulfilled by McPhee’s discussions of the specifics from his many books.
A superb book about doing his job by a master of his craft.Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-374-14274-2
Page Count: 208
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: May 8, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2017
The memoir of George Dawson, who learned to read when he was 98, places his life in the context of the entire 20th century in this inspiring, yet ultimately blighted, biography. Dawson begins his story with an emotional bang: his account of witnessing the lynching of a young African-American man falsely accused of rape. America’s racial caste system and his illiteracy emerge as the two biggest obstacles in Dawson’s life, but a full view of the man overcoming the obstacles remains oddly hidden. Travels to Ohio, Canada, and Mexico reveal little beyond Dawson’s restlessness, since nothing much happens to him during these wanderings. Similarly, the diverse activities he finds himself engaging in—bootlegging in St. Louis, breaking horses, attending cockfights—never really advance the reader’s understanding of the man. He calls himself a “ladies’ man” and hints at a score of exciting stories, but then describes only his decorous marriage. Despite the personal nature of this memoir, Dawson remains a strangely aloof figure, never quite inviting the reader to enter his world. In contrast to Dawson’s diffidence, however, Glaubman’s overbearing presence, as he repeatedly parades himself out to converse with Dawson, stifles any momentum the memoir might develop. Almost every chapter begins with Glaubman presenting Dawson with a newspaper clipping or historical fact and asking him to comment on it, despite the fact that Dawson often does not remember or never knew about the event in question. Exasperated readers may wonder whether Dawson’s life and his accomplishments, his passion for learning despite daunting obstacles, is the tale at hand, or whether the real issue is his recollections of Archduke Ferdinand. Dawson’s achievements are impressive and potentially exalting, but the gee-whiz nature of the tale degrades it to the status of yet another bowl of chicken soup for the soul, with a narrative frame as clunky as an old bone.
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 2000
ISBN: 0-375-50396-X
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 1999
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