For anyone who struggled to understand why the nephron concentrates, then dilutes, then concentrates again the urine, this book will do much to ease your pain. Since medical school I've purchased Editions 1, 3, & 5, just so that I could keep up with my interns & residents. Here's how he does it:
#1: short book, (you know how intimidating those tomes can be)
#2: lots of diagrams
#3: end-of-chapter questions (with answers & explanations)

If you want to understand the Kidney, no matter where you are in your studies or practice, I wholeheartedly recommend this text.

Renal physiology can be very difficult to truly understand, and yet an understanding of it is essential to understanding so many aspects of physiology, pathology, and pharmacology. Studying diuretics for cardio pharm is nightmarish unless you understand the physiology of the loop of Henle. Vander takes this difficult yet important subject and makes it easy to understand. The book reads extremely quickly, and the flow-charts and diagrams are amazing. I never even opened Berne & Levy for renal phys--I read Vander's book (which is no longer than B&L's renal chapters) and cruised through renal phys. I am writing this review now, a year after I took physiology, because I am now studying for the USMLE Step 1. I have not looked at Vander's book in a year, but I still remember renal phys, and reviewing it now is the easiest part of my studying (the only easy part, in fact). That is because, thanks to Vander, I actually understand renal physiology. A great book!!

For any medical student that needs a comprehensive, but easily understood explanation of the structure and function of kidneys, I highly recommend Renal Physiology by Vander. It is very well written, and covers all the basic principles that you will need to know to understand pathologies associated with the kidneys.

In preparation for the ACT, I have studied the Cliffestestprep ACT book closely. And in the process, I have seen MISTAKES in the answers.

On page 33, "5 x 4=25".
on page 159, question #11 on practice test2, the answers are mistakenly copied from question #10...so the answers don't make any sense for question #11!

These are just two mistakes that I've seen, but judging by that, I wouldn't be suprised to find more. I wish I could return the book, but since I already marked it up, I cannot. Don't buy this book, get a more helpful ACT resource. This book has 4 practice tests, but because of the mistakes, I am relucant to go further.

Finally, the practice problems are more difficult than real ACT problems: CLiffs give you long-winded and confusing explanations for problems you don't even need to know for the actual ACT. I'm sure you can find more consice explanations in other resources. In short, this is not the best choice for getting ready for the ACT.

UPDATE: I recently checked out Princeton Review's CRACKING THE ACT 2002; I highly recommend it for great strategies, tips, and practice material. I also recommend GETTING INTO THE ACT, which is the only review book sponsored by the ACT itself. This is the ONLY book with REAL full-length ACT tests from a few years back;thus, you get familiar with the format of the test and its degree of difficulty. These two books should be all you need to prepare...going through these books..I realized just how useless CliffsTestPrep ACT was.

Do not buy this book if you are looking for a guide to prepare for the ACT...this is because the book only has about 15 pages of review per test. So, if you need a review book, I suggest that you go to the Princeton Review book, which does a pretty good job.

However, if you have used up all the practice tests in the book that you are currently using, then I strongly reccommend this book. The book offers four practice tests (even though the cover says it offers two tests.) Each answer is fully explained, which makes the tests a lot better than the other books.

So, if you need review, don't add this book to your cart. If you need more tests, this book is a very good source.

I am a guidance counselor and have used this book to help students prepare for the ACT. I like how the book lets you take practice tests, a little at a time, if you choose. Then helps you analyze your mistakes: were they lack of knowledge or careless mistakes? Then you can analzye your careless mistakes and learn to avoid them. After having a workshop with seniors using this book, one of the girls raised her reading score from 18 to 29. As with all books, you have to READ it, STUDY it, and APPLY it, if you want results.

Logical errors run rampant throughout this book. Definitely stay away from it.

If you have just one week to study, and plan to spend less than $30. This book with ETS Official Guide is what I recommend you to get. Cliff Notes gives a brief review, give you one diagnostic test. If you have $100 budget and months to study for the test, this book would like be as helpful as other books. However, If you only have one week and just want to have a brief prep, this is a must have.

It's worthy every cent you invest on it. Despite the fact that it's not as fashionable as some others like Kaplan, Princeton, etc. Cliffs does a very serious job, covering all GMAT subjects and providing many good questions with explanations.

This book is shallow, judgemental, poorly researched and an insult to any the intelligence of any thinking person. There are some marvelous biographies about Edgar Allan Poe (The one by pulitzer prive winning biographer, Kenneth Silverman, is the best.) To call this a STUDY guide is absurd. It's a slanted, bias, narrow minded piece of propoganda.

Harold Bloom has assembled a slim volume of literary criticism on Edgar Allan Poe. Bloom's introductory essay on Poe and his critics is interesting and informative but takes a harsh slant against Poe's literary merit. Not surprisingly, a number of the essays side with Bloom.

The great majority of the essays were written by esteemed Poe scholars, poets and novelists. D.H. Lawrence's essay contains a number of factual inaccuracies and is gratuitously offensive. Allen Tate's essay "The Angelic Imagination" is very good, as is Richard Wilbur's "House of Poe."

What surprised me most is the pausity of references to Poe's metaphysics, mysticism and hidden meaning. Harold Bloom has written at least 3 books on gnosticism and gnosis in American religion and literature. In at least one of those books, he called Poe a "representative American gnostic." Ironically, Bloom more or less pretends in this book that Poe's works have no meaning or message whatsoever and that Poe wrote only for effect. There are a number of essays which focus on Poe's metaphysics. Take a look at those collected in Eric W. Carlson's book, Critical Essays on Edgar Allan Poe.

a pretty good book. it's definently a good read for those interested in poe.