Let me preface this by saying that I own a tutoring company in the Bay Area called Unleashed Learning. We've just developed our own guide for the SSAT/ISEE based in part on what's missing in others. The quality of Kaplan's guide hovers around Princeton Review's. It's easy to read and covers most of the essential strategies. Yet like so many other guides, it fails to expand on highly important topics. For instance, there's a mention of categories for clue words in sentence completions (ie. contrast, cause/effect). But it doesn't go on to say what those common clue words are! And actually, I have to tip my hat a little to Princeton Review for putting in 3 separate practice tests for the ISEE, one for lower, middle, and upper. The Kaplan guide just combines upper and middle level tests...a little too sloppy for such a big company. If you want the best of the name brands, go for Arco :)

There are two major divisions of the SSAT exam. These are the
English language and Mathematics compilation and induction.
A strength of the work is that it teaches how to approach
problem sets methodically while utilizing limited time wisely.
There are 45 questions on the English section and 75 minutes for
completion or 1.67 minutes/question. The Mathematics section has
50 questions to be completed in 75 minutes or 1.5 minutes per
question. There is plenty of time; however, there is no time
to waste. Candidates should not dwell on any single question.

The English section tests the following:

- Synonyms i.e. peddle is to sell or synopsis is to summary
- Logical analysis of words
- Writing essays in standard English

[ Standard English means adherence to punctuation, spelling,
sentence structure, structural coherence and the absence of
slang or street language. ]

- Reading paragraphs and answering questions by summarizing the
material, researching in the paragraph, inference and answer
prediction based upon a general knowledge of the exam format

- Simple algebra covering the first semester of a high school
course in Regents Algebra or its equivalent

The test is straight forward; however, candidates must exercise
care in reading/interpreting the questions. Accuracy is
paramount because the score is determined from the number of
correct responses. The optimal strategy on reading comprehension is to read the questions first. Then delve into the paragraph
and underline key words and phrases. Lastly, attempt to answer
the questions. Invariably, every group of questions tests the
ability of the candidate to identify the purpose or general
theme of the paragraph. This may be in the first few sentences
or it may be gleaned from reading the totality of the presentation. In any event, practice will be helpful in this area and the Kaplan text provides plenty of exposure to the test
format.

The Kaplan work is topical and easy to understand or interpret.
The price is reasonable and affordable.