The Princeton Review Word Smart : Building a More Educated Vocabulary

A good buy for those trying to improve/increase their vocab. The two people speaking are pretty funny, and the skits are really corny. Overall, I would say if possible, buy a used version of this CD, because most people (if they are anything like myself) will probably only listen to the actual CD once (just to import onto their computers), then they can burn a copy of it later. Don't waste your money paying for the full set at full price. I wish I had thought of this earlier!

I've used verbal advantage and imo, word smart is way better and not as dry.

I bought this product with hopes of a more enjoyable way to expand my vocabulary. I tried to like this product (especially since it's a good chunk of money) and I gave it a fair amount of my time. In the end, I found it to be ineffective for these reasons:
- The script is boring. It tries to be witty, but really comes of as cheesy/corny
- I found myself constantly rewinding. The material just doesn't sink in. The stories and dialogue aren't memorable. Perhaps this is so because of the pace. I'd rather have fewer words and actually learn those words, than sweep through many words and have to backtrack. I'd say on average the amount of time spent listening to the material was TRIPLED because of rewinding.
- The voices are a bit stuffy and robotic to me

In the end I stopped listening to Word Smart. It was just too laborious.

I'm studying for the GRE's and taking the Princeton Review class in conjunction to listening to the CD. These disks contain several words that are also in the Hit Parade lists that we get from class. Hearing the words, meanings, and sentences using the words really help to learn them. They group the words based in similarity in meanings to help you learn. First, they give you the words, meanings, and use them in sentences. Then they follow by a story using the words. Then they say the words, with a pause so you can think about the definition, and then give you the definition and use the word in a sentence. I've definitely been using the new vocabulary more and more in my everyday speech. I wish Princeton Review would do something like this for ALL of the words from the Hit Parade and Beyond the Hit Parade lists. The only other really effective way I've found to really learn the words is to do a google search of each word, and just see how they're used in context.

I am quite interested in this product, but WITHOUT a list made available on line of the words covered, I am not going to buy this. I dont want to buy this and find out I know most of them! So PUBLISHERS BEHOLD: if you want to really sell this product you've gotta let us know WHAT FEATURES (e.g. words)IT HAS. This is sales 101. Best, Jimmy.