Why only 3 stars? Because this book falls short in the critical areas of proofreading, question selection, and printing. There are a number of questions in which either part of the answer set - or even part of the question - are missing, either due to poor proofreading or slapdash setup at the printing stage. As a result, on any given test it is likely that you will encounter one - or more - unanswerable questions. This makes scoring of the test problematical at best.

Further, I take issue with the inclusion of geographical questions on IQ tests. One of the great debates in testing IQ is separating 'essential' knowledge from 'peripheral' knowledge. For example, if the test is written in English, then you must be able to read English in order to complete the exam. That is essential knowledge. On the other end of the scale is what I term 'Trivia'; unlikely, generally useless scraps of knowledge that only ever really have application in a trivia contest. If you happen to know the 3rd largest city in Texas, for example, then you can answer such a question immediately; if you do not, then no amount of raw intelligence will help you. While there aren't a lot of 'trivia' questions in this book, there are a few; and I believe there should be none.

I was also surprised to find crossword puzzles (and various other types of complex word puzzles) on the IQ tests. While a good argument might be made for their inclusion, I am not aware of any 'official' IQ tests that use such puzzles. This is because IQ tests seek to measure 'raw intelligence' - whatever that is - and as such must avoid questions with which the test taker might have a developed skill at solving. Ideally, each question would be a fresh new challenge to every test taker. While this is unlikely, it is very likely that a large number of test takers will have encountered complex word puzzles before; and that is a strong reason for NOT including them on 'official' IQ tests. This, in turn, means that there is not likely to be a great correlation between scores achieved on tests in this book, and scores achieved on standard IQ tests. In fairness, the author makes no such explicit claim, although the title of the book might lead you to believe that you're getting a collection of standardised IQ tests. That is not the case.

I was also disappointed in question selection; a disappointingly large number of questions have multiple reasonable answers, but only one 'correct' response. For example: in the following set, which one does not belong? A: CAT B: DOG C: BIRD D: RABBIT E: ELK The 'correct' answer is E - ELK - on the basis that the first 4 are household pets. But many people choose C: BIRD as it is the only animal listed that can fly; and I chose D: RABBIT as the only animal listed that used a letter twice. I should note that this exact question does NOT appear in this book; I stole it from a MENSA warmup exam, which goes to prove that even the large lads stumble. However, this book does contain numerous examples of this type of situation. Much more attention to question selection would have helped remedy this situation.

To sum up: Some of the questions are unanswerable due to reproduction issues eliminating part of the question. Some questions relate to 'Trivia', not questions that test your mental flexibility and strength. There are a larger quantity of complex word questions then are found on standard IQ tests. And there are some questions to which multiple reasonable responses can be made.

The bottom line? Don't imagine for one instant that your score on these tests correlates to that of a standardized IQ test; it doesn't. And don't think that you're buying a set of standardized IQ tests; you're not. But if you want a random collection of questions that will help you to stretch and build your mental muscles, and you're prepared to accept with good humour the 10% - 15% of questions that cannot be properly responded to, then this book is not a bad buy. It could be much better; but it's not a total loss. As an intellectual exercise tool - as opposed to a measurement tool - it's not bad at all.

"This is a cool book!!"
Please buy this book. This is a very fun and good to know how smart you are. I tested myself and I turned out to be 154 as my IQ. I didn't even know I was that smart. Please get this book it is COOL!!!!!

"Excellent"
Ditto on the previous reviewer's sentiments.. how the first reviewer ever wound up reviewing this book I'll never know or want to. Remember, IQ scores are not a measure of your current functioning, but rather your potential to achieve in certain areas. Knowing your weaknesses (for example, spelling, where the first reviewer falls short)will enable you to develop strategies for overcoming. Knowing your strengths will also allow you to develop and pursue realistic goals in the areas that you can succeed.

"Just relax."
The previous reviewer didn't actually read the book; she was just feeling upset about IQ tests in general. So I thought I should offset the negative review.