RC book: LSAT Trainer vs. Manhattan RC

Comments

• 2 Likes

  brna0714 Alum Inactive ⭐

  April 2015 1489 karma

  I have read The LSAT Trainer and am now working my way through Manhattan RC. I think they both offer valuable insight and are each useful in their own right. I didn't find them to be all that similar. Manhattan has helped me to determine the structure more quickly and accurately. The only thing to be cautious of with Manhattan RC is that, although most of the excerpts are from older tests, they do use excerpts from LSATs all the up to 62 or so. The newer examples weren't too numerous to maneuver around, I just flagged the excerpts that came from a test that I hadn't taken and plan to return to them later on. I hope that helps. Please let me know if there are any other questions that I can help answer.
• 1 Like

  kclubs323 Alum Member Inactive ⭐

  April 2015 275 karma

  @MMSyLSAT I've used both the LSAT Trainer and the Manhattan RC book and I still think that the Memory Method that 7Sage teaches is the best way. If you can really stick to the Memory Method down to the T, I'm fairly confident that your RC will improve. By training our minds to quickly and effectively grasp what we're reading bit by bit, we'll be able to go into the questions without having to go back to the passage so often. For me personally, I've found that through the Memory Method, I've been able to anticipate some answers (especially for main point/main idea questions, author's attitude, author/critics would most likely agree, this is most strongly supported, etc). There really are no tricks to RC, we simply have to train our minds to read in the way the LSAT requires us to read, similarly to how the LSAT requires us to think for the Logical Reasoning and Analytical Reasoning (Logic Games) sections. No matter what you decide, I hope your RC improves and good luck!
• 1 Like

  MMSyLSAT Alum Member

  April 2015 44 karma

  Thanks to both of you.
• 3 Likes

  emli1000 Alum Member Inactive ⭐

  April 2015 3462 karma

  I've been using the trainer and I think there is great info on there. I have also been drilling 4 RC passages a day from the Cambridge packets and I'm seeing improvement.
• Nilesh S Alum Inactive ⭐

  April 2015 3438 karma

  I've used the Manhattan RC guide... that system trains you to read in a particular way.. which is conducive for test takers... structure of passage, I was getting 15 - 17 in the RC portion of the test before Manhattan... then I never got less than a 20 (on the actual test coz I missed a complete 7 section passage) with a max of 27 and my score hanging around 24 - 26 usually.
• MMSyLSAT Alum Member

  April 2015 44 karma

  Thank you all.
• Nilesh S Alum Inactive ⭐

  April 2015 3438 karma

  No problem... try using both and see how it goes... I don't believe they are incompatible... might even be complementary... in that they help you develop your own system... I think @amanda_kw is doing this/has done this right now so she would be a great source source of first hand perspective on this.
• nicole.hopkins Inactive Sage Inactive ⭐

  April 2015 7965 karma

  I just got my copy of Manhattan RC and I am super psyched to learn a particular system/structure, but that's because I respond well to that kind of thing. For some people, it might add complication. LSAT Trainer has a helpful breakdown of question types and strategies—e.g., when do you need to confirm with a particular section of text, etc.
• 2 Likes

  amanda_kw Alum Member

  April 2015 383 karma

  I went through the Manhattan RC guide this past weekend and it's fairly short. I've already gone through 7Sage and the Trainer. But the Manhattan guide, I think, is most helpful to figure out the process of how to eliminate wrong answer choices and develop a system of notation for structure if you don't already have one. If you have mastered these, then it may not be worth your time - but otherwise definitely work through it.
• nicole.hopkins Inactive Sage Inactive ⭐

  April 2015 7965 karma

  @amanda_kw ok now I gotta go hard with Manhattan RC to catch up ...