<p>I'm taking the ACT in September and was hoping I could receive the best help possible.</p>
<p>The first time I took the test I received a 30, without any prep.</p>
<p>My math was a 35, and my other scores were 27~30.</p>
<p>What is the best ACT prep book for the english/reading section, not including the Princeton Review?</p>
<p>I was thinking of getting the official red book and just lowering down the amount of time I have per section than the actual time I get during the test, which should prepare me for the real test. If I could score above 31's with 2~6 minutes less per section then I should be fine on the real exam. </p>
<p>ACT threads never get responses, I’ve posted a few myself with no luck. I’ll try to answer this question myself; because your math is already exceptional, I advise getting PR’s “Cracking the ACT” which primarily focuses on English and Reading. In reality, taking practice tests and reviewing your incorrect answer choices is the best way to improve in any section.</p>
<p>Best book for the money is Barron’s 36. If you need some more practice, the McGraw Hill 10 ACT books for about $20. The regular Barron’s is also quite excellent, but the Barron’s 36 got me from around 30-31 to a 35.</p>
<p>It focuses on everything. I got Baron’s 36 after I took the test for the first time, and even though I did really well, the book has still been helpful. I have yet to retake the ACT, but I think it has prepared me well. The reading section has some pretty comprehensive practice passages, and the Science section has really useful strategies. </p>
<p>One tip I haven’t seen mentioned in the book yet is this: Don’t read the introductory passages in the Science section. They are confusing and unnecessary. Just focus on the graphs and only look at the passages if you think the question is asking about the information contained in them (which happens rarely)</p>
<p>All in all, I think if you use the red book in conjunction with Barron’s 36, you would be very well prepared to take the test again.</p>
<p>tl;dr: Barron’s 36 is good. Use it in conjunction with the red book</p>
<p>Thanks for the insight. I’m ordering the red book and Barrons online right now. Hopefully I could turn my 30 into a 33+ :).</p>
<p>Would it be wise to take the practice tests with less time than I actually have on the real ACT? If I’m able to score 32+ with less time per section then I should be even more prepared for the ACT, correct?</p>
<p>It probably wouldn’t hurt. Barron’s outlines pretty explicitly how much time you should spend per section though and always leaves a cushion of about 3 mins</p>
<p>I got the Barron’s ACT 36 book but I am not finding anything in it really helpful. Only the English section was really helpful. How did you use the book to help your score? I just took the act and got a 30 as well and now I am trying to improve my score as well.</p>