Up Your Score: ACT, 2014-2015 Edition: The Underground Guide

Yes, kids, there is an alternative to the big, bad SAT―it’s called the ACT. And yes, there’s now an alternative to the big, bad, boring ACT study books: Up Your Score: ACT, the prep and survival guide with attitude.

Like Up Your Score: SAT, Up Your Score: ACT is the underground guide for the 1.65 million kids who take the ACT every year (more than take the SAT). It’s written by Chris Arp, age 26, a Princeton graduate, along with his colleagues at Manhattan’s prestigious Veritas Test Prep company and three high school seniors who each scored an ACT-perfect 36. They take the guerrilla guide Up Your Score approach of combining a thorough knowledge of how the test works and the subjects it covers with for-student, by-student tips and strategies; lively pop culture references and jokes; and a fresh knowledge of what it’s like to actually take the test.

Ace the reading section by developing the Five Habits of Lean Forward Reading, including Treat reading like a conversation and Pay attention to direction words. Master the math section through techniques like “plugging in,” an amazing trick that simplifies all algebra word problems. The ACT is heavy on grammar, so the book delves into commas, semicolons, pronouns, transitions, and more. It covers the science the way the test does―showing how to use science reasoning. Plus―how to make GameFace Quintuple Sugar Blast Bars for that needed burst of energy.

Ava Chen is a graduate of MIT and is currently studying the behavior of jumping spiders at Harvard's Wyss Institute.

Jon Fish graduated in three years from the University of Kentucky with a degree in history and political science. He plans to attend law school.

Zack Swafford is getting a masters in artificial intelligence at Stanford.