Tooth and Nail: A Novel Approach to the New SAT - Softcover

Elster, Charles Harrington

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0156013827 ISBN 13: 9780156013826

Publisher: Collins Reference, 2004

Synopsis

An SAT and ACT vocabulary-building program in the lively form of a mystery novel. Now students who take these entrance exams can learn more than 1,300 vocabulary words, improve reading comprehension, and enjoy a good story all at the same time. Includes exercises, glossary with page references.

About this title

Review

Abate, abhor, abject, abridge, abstemious ... still awake? Good, because now there's a better way to learn all those words than plowing through those never-ending vocabulary lists devised by torture experts. Tooth and Nail: A Novel Approach to the New SAT is just what it says it is: a guide to the big, bad SAT words in the form of a mystery novel. Follow Caitlin and Phil's exploits as they wend their way through their first year of college and find intrigue behind the curtain of academia. As you do, you'll find a few words in boldface, each of which is defined and compared with other words in a glossary in the back of the book. Seeing the word in its context and immediately finding a definition is a much more satisfying way to learn than just to read word after unconnected word--you might as well read the dictionary! A preface explains in greater detail how best to use the book, and there are helpful SAT-style exercises in antonyms, analogies, and comprehension, so this makes a great all-around verbal package for the serious test-taker. If you must take the test, you might as well have a little fun doing it, and by the time you've finished Tooth and Nail, you'll be glad it doesn't end as a list: "...wizened, wreak, writhe, zeal, zealous." --Rob Lightner

From the Back Cover

"Looking for a way to augment your vocabulary? Well, here is a novel approach: A mystery story, at once whimsical and elucidating, filled with hundreds of SAT examiners' favorite test words." -Los Angeles Times
Congratulations. You have just done something very smart--something commendable and meritorious, as the people who write the SAT would probably put it. The book you're holding in your hands offers you a fun, effective way to prepare for the SAT.
As you read this mystery, you will encounter more than 1,300 words commonly found on the SAT, each one highlighted in boldface. The best part is, you'll remember the words better because you've learned each one in context, or in relation to the other words around it. And one thing the SAT will always test is your ability to comprehend what you read, and your knowledge of words in context.
Did you ever imagine you could study for the SAT by reading a mystery novel? If that sounds like a better way to go, look inside.

Charles Harrington Elster is the author of various popular books about language and vocabulary, including Test of Time: A Novel Approach to the SAT and ACT. He co-hosts a weekly public radio show on language in San Diego, where he lives with his wife and daughters.

Joseph Elliot has taught English at the grade school, high school, and college levels, and developed curricula for one of the country's leading test-preparation programs. He lives in New York City with his wife and sons.

About this edition

• Publisher: Collins Reference
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 0156013827
• ISBN 13: 9780156013826
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 368