Helpful for some sections, 26 Aug 2008
The book will help you mainly for the abstract reasoning and decision analysis. However the verbal reasoning section is terrible. A lot of the answers are wrong and provide invalid explanations.
Helpful? Some parts
Worth the money? No
Better alternatives? Buy the succeeding the UKCAT book.


OK-ish, 17 Aug 2008
I found the first section helpful, applying for Graduate Entry by myself means I haven't been told some of the things that I'm sure those applying straight from college will have about personal statements etc.

The questions were however too few and disproportionately difficult; though I guess being overprepared is better than under. There were also 3 errors (that I picked up on; there may in fact be more) but they were quie obvious ones so don't really impede on your learning.

Worth the £10 I paid just to feel a bit more prepared but not great.

Disappointing, 30 Jul 2008
Like most people, I bought this book for the practice questions in order to supplement those already available on the UKCAT website, as well as some useful tips on tackling the questions, managing time etc.

However, I was dissapointed to see that the majority of the book was taken up with material irrelevant to the UKCAT (e.g. all the stuff about med school application in general, and the BMAT). I also found the practice questions VERY hard, which is odd as the test itself was comparitively easy and I scored well over 700 on each section.

If you're sitting the UKCAT and can borrow a copy of the book, then go for it, you might get something out of it, but not worth buying.

Good book but lacks practice questions, 01 Jul 2008
Although I found this book helpful I felt that it could have contained alot more practice questions. Half of the book talks about why you want to be a doctor and how to write your personal statement when really what I wanted was more practice questions which were in another book I bought.

Worth the £15, 12 Jun 2008
It did piss me off that I had to pay £65 to take a test when I already had the grades to get into medical school, but that's how it is these days. And seeing as I forked out £65 for the test, why should I fork out another £15 for a book to help me pass? BECAUSE THIS £15 WILL HELP YOU FULFILL YOUR AMBITION OF GETTING INTO MEDICAL SCHOOL! It's that simple. This book helped me get round the crazy abstract reasoning section by explaining what the exam questions were actually asking of me. If it wasn't for this book I would not have scored a 700 average and certainly would not have my place secured on the graduate entry 4 year course at Newcastle. BUY THIS BOOK! £15 Vs. a fulfilling career - you decide!

Helpful for some sections, 26 Aug 2008
The book will help you mainly for the abstract reasoning and decision analysis. However the verbal reasoning section is terrible. A lot of the answers are wrong and provide invalid explanations.
Helpful? Some parts
Worth the money? No
Better alternatives? Buy the succeeding the UKCAT book.


OK-ish, 17 Aug 2008
I found the first section helpful, applying for Graduate Entry by myself means I haven't been told some of the things that I'm sure those applying straight from college will have about personal statements etc.

The questions were however too few and disproportionately difficult; though I guess being overprepared is better than under. There were also 3 errors (that I picked up on; there may in fact be more) but they were quie obvious ones so don't really impede on your learning.

Worth the £10 I paid just to feel a bit more prepared but not great.

Disappointing, 30 Jul 2008
Like most people, I bought this book for the practice questions in order to supplement those already available on the UKCAT website, as well as some useful tips on tackling the questions, managing time etc.

However, I was dissapointed to see that the majority of the book was taken up with material irrelevant to the UKCAT (e.g. all the stuff about med school application in general, and the BMAT). I also found the practice questions VERY hard, which is odd as the test itself was comparitively easy and I scored well over 700 on each section.

If you're sitting the UKCAT and can borrow a copy of the book, then go for it, you might get something out of it, but not worth buying.

Good book but lacks practice questions, 01 Jul 2008
Although I found this book helpful I felt that it could have contained alot more practice questions. Half of the book talks about why you want to be a doctor and how to write your personal statement when really what I wanted was more practice questions which were in another book I bought.

Worth the £15, 12 Jun 2008
It did piss me off that I had to pay £65 to take a test when I already had the grades to get into medical school, but that's how it is these days. And seeing as I forked out £65 for the test, why should I fork out another £15 for a book to help me pass? BECAUSE THIS £15 WILL HELP YOU FULFILL YOUR AMBITION OF GETTING INTO MEDICAL SCHOOL! It's that simple. This book helped me get round the crazy abstract reasoning section by explaining what the exam questions were actually asking of me. If it wasn't for this book I would not have scored a 700 average and certainly would not have my place secured on the graduate entry 4 year course at Newcastle. BUY THIS BOOK! £15 Vs. a fulfilling career - you decide!

Definetly a Great Book for Learners., 27 Aug 2008
If you're new to digital photography or you think that you don't know the basics about exposure, which is very important for good pictures, you should definitely buy this book. I learned a lot about its theory. However it doesn't only tell about the theory itself but also gives practical tips and tricks, which help you understand how some wonderful pictures are taken. There are some exercises Bryan Peterson suggests doing and I found them very useful. Even if you are not able to do everything he says at the time of reading, there are pictures which show the results. So you can take it with you and read on the bus.

It almost tells about everything but if you need a night or low light photography book it only tells about it a few pages. So if I feel I need more information about it, I would buy a different book.

I'm very glad to buy it and it'll be always a good reference for me.

If you're advanced photographer, you should already know about exposure and you should already take most of your pictures with correct exposures. So this is not a book for you.

Excellent book, 18 Aug 2008
I bought this book only based on its good reviews and I was not disappointed. It is written in simple, easy to understand language, it is illustrated with amazing pictures and it is full of good tips. Buy it !

Photography Exposed!, 25 Jul 2008
I cannot believe how much I have learnt from this fantastic book. Although I've had it for quite a while, on a spur of the moment I picked it off my bookshelf yesterday and literally couldn't put it down again until I had finished it today!

With my camera by my side as I read within moments I was out testing the suggestions for manual mode, something I had never dared try before. Over the course of the evening I captured some of my best ever portraits of my children and was honestly astounded by how easy it was.

Bryan is obviously a very talented photographer and teacher and his photos and explanations are testament to this.

If you crave information on exposure and really want to try working on manual and feeling like a real pro this is one book not to miss. I know I'll certainly be returning to it time and time again.

Wow - exposure made easy, 07 Jul 2008
I bought this book after reading the reviews...and was rewarded !

I was afraid that it would be too technical but it is indeed explained in an easy to read AND understanding way (I'm not an English native speaker).
The many photographic examples make it easy to 'see' too.
As an avid amateur I have been experimenting and it's indeed literally a small price to pay to get nicer photo's in the end.

A light has been switched on for me, 30 May 2008
I bought this book because I first saw it mentioned in a forum on one of the photography sites when I was trying to get some info on metering systems. When I checked it out on Amazon and saw all the great reviews I had to buy it.

I am very much just an amateur photographer, but I did already have a basic understanding of how shutter speed, aperture and ISO work together.

I was OK with using Aperture or Shutter priority modes, but I would never have tried manual mode because I just didn't know where to start with the `correct' aperture or shutter speed. And, daft as it may seem now, whenever I saw the term "meter for the highlights/shadows" etc. I thought I needed a light meter (which I don't have).

I've only read half of this book so far (have only had it for a couple of days) but I now realise that the camera not only does the metering, but provides the relevant information in the viewfinder which I previously just ignored.

The one thing which really "switched on the light" for me was that within the first few pages I learned that, in manual mode, the viewfinder information tells me when the combination of aperture and shutter speed is correct! I thought perhaps that Bryan has some fancy camera but, lo and behold my Nikon D40x does this too!

I can't wait to read the rest of the book, and put it all into practice.

Helpful for some sections, 26 Aug 2008
The book will help you mainly for the abstract reasoning and decision analysis. However the verbal reasoning section is terrible. A lot of the answers are wrong and provide invalid explanations.
Helpful? Some parts
Worth the money? No
Better alternatives? Buy the succeeding the UKCAT book.


OK-ish, 17 Aug 2008
I found the first section helpful, applying for Graduate Entry by myself means I haven't been told some of the things that I'm sure those applying straight from college will have about personal statements etc.

The questions were however too few and disproportionately difficult; though I guess being overprepared is better than under. There were also 3 errors (that I picked up on; there may in fact be more) but they were quie obvious ones so don't really impede on your learning.

Worth the £10 I paid just to feel a bit more prepared but not great.

Disappointing, 30 Jul 2008
Like most people, I bought this book for the practice questions in order to supplement those already available on the UKCAT website, as well as some useful tips on tackling the questions, managing time etc.

However, I was dissapointed to see that the majority of the book was taken up with material irrelevant to the UKCAT (e.g. all the stuff about med school application in general, and the BMAT). I also found the practice questions VERY hard, which is odd as the test itself was comparitively easy and I scored well over 700 on each section.

If you're sitting the UKCAT and can borrow a copy of the book, then go for it, you might get something out of it, but not worth buying.

Good book but lacks practice questions, 01 Jul 2008
Although I found this book helpful I felt that it could have contained alot more practice questions. Half of the book talks about why you want to be a doctor and how to write your personal statement when really what I wanted was more practice questions which were in another book I bought.

Worth the £15, 12 Jun 2008
It did piss me off that I had to pay £65 to take a test when I already had the grades to get into medical school, but that's how it is these days. And seeing as I forked out £65 for the test, why should I fork out another £15 for a book to help me pass? BECAUSE THIS £15 WILL HELP YOU FULFILL YOUR AMBITION OF GETTING INTO MEDICAL SCHOOL! It's that simple. This book helped me get round the crazy abstract reasoning section by explaining what the exam questions were actually asking of me. If it wasn't for this book I would not have scored a 700 average and certainly would not have my place secured on the graduate entry 4 year course at Newcastle. BUY THIS BOOK! £15 Vs. a fulfilling career - you decide!

Definetly a Great Book for Learners., 27 Aug 2008
If you're new to digital photography or you think that you don't know the basics about exposure, which is very important for good pictures, you should definitely buy this book. I learned a lot about its theory. However it doesn't only tell about the theory itself but also gives practical tips and tricks, which help you understand how some wonderful pictures are taken. There are some exercises Bryan Peterson suggests doing and I found them very useful. Even if you are not able to do everything he says at the time of reading, there are pictures which show the results. So you can take it with you and read on the bus.

It almost tells about everything but if you need a night or low light photography book it only tells about it a few pages. So if I feel I need more information about it, I would buy a different book.

I'm very glad to buy it and it'll be always a good reference for me.

If you're advanced photographer, you should already know about exposure and you should already take most of your pictures with correct exposures. So this is not a book for you.

Excellent book, 18 Aug 2008
I bought this book only based on its good reviews and I was not disappointed. It is written in simple, easy to understand language, it is illustrated with amazing pictures and it is full of good tips. Buy it !

Photography Exposed!, 25 Jul 2008
I cannot believe how much I have learnt from this fantastic book. Although I've had it for quite a while, on a spur of the moment I picked it off my bookshelf yesterday and literally couldn't put it down again until I had finished it today!

With my camera by my side as I read within moments I was out testing the suggestions for manual mode, something I had never dared try before. Over the course of the evening I captured some of my best ever portraits of my children and was honestly astounded by how easy it was.

Bryan is obviously a very talented photographer and teacher and his photos and explanations are testament to this.

If you crave information on exposure and really want to try working on manual and feeling like a real pro this is one book not to miss. I know I'll certainly be returning to it time and time again.

Wow - exposure made easy, 07 Jul 2008
I bought this book after reading the reviews...and was rewarded !

I was afraid that it would be too technical but it is indeed explained in an easy to read AND understanding way (I'm not an English native speaker).
The many photographic examples make it easy to 'see' too.
As an avid amateur I have been experimenting and it's indeed literally a small price to pay to get nicer photo's in the end.

A light has been switched on for me, 30 May 2008
I bought this book because I first saw it mentioned in a forum on one of the photography sites when I was trying to get some info on metering systems. When I checked it out on Amazon and saw all the great reviews I had to buy it.

I am very much just an amateur photographer, but I did already have a basic understanding of how shutter speed, aperture and ISO work together.

I was OK with using Aperture or Shutter priority modes, but I would never have tried manual mode because I just didn't know where to start with the `correct' aperture or shutter speed. And, daft as it may seem now, whenever I saw the term "meter for the highlights/shadows" etc. I thought I needed a light meter (which I don't have).

I've only read half of this book so far (have only had it for a couple of days) but I now realise that the camera not only does the metering, but provides the relevant information in the viewfinder which I previously just ignored.

The one thing which really "switched on the light" for me was that within the first few pages I learned that, in manual mode, the viewfinder information tells me when the combination of aperture and shutter speed is correct! I thought perhaps that Bryan has some fancy camera but, lo and behold my Nikon D40x does this too!

I can't wait to read the rest of the book, and put it all into practice.


Very useful, but..., 01 Sep 2008
I had been using this book in careers class to help me decide which universities I was going to apply to, and this book was exceedingly helpful for this task.
This book gives a league table of universities and also ranks them by each subject for example, Law or History. Another important aspect of this book is that it describes the universities making it truly invaluable to any A-Level student.
However, I only gave this book four stars because the vast majority of information is available online - in the Times website and also through the universities' websites.
Overall I would say that this book is very useful and definitely needed for any student who wants to make the right choice of university - after all it is one of the most important decisions you will make!


Excellent, 23 Jan 2007
Required reading for anyone considering or planning to go to University in the UK. A mass of well-researched, well-analysed data and information that helps one make much better informed judgement on one of the most important decisions of one's life.

Helpful for some sections, 26 Aug 2008
The book will help you mainly for the abstract reasoning and decision analysis. However the verbal reasoning section is terrible. A lot of the answers are wrong and provide invalid explanations.
Helpful? Some parts
Worth the money? No
Better alternatives? Buy the succeeding the UKCAT book.


OK-ish, 17 Aug 2008
I found the first section helpful, applying for Graduate Entry by myself means I haven't been told some of the things that I'm sure those applying straight from college will have about personal statements etc.

The questions were however too few and disproportionately difficult; though I guess being overprepared is better than under. There were also 3 errors (that I picked up on; there may in fact be more) but they were quie obvious ones so don't really impede on your learning.

Worth the £10 I paid just to feel a bit more prepared but not great.

Disappointing, 30 Jul 2008
Like most people, I bought this book for the practice questions in order to supplement those already available on the UKCAT website, as well as some useful tips on tackling the questions, managing time etc.

However, I was dissapointed to see that the majority of the book was taken up with material irrelevant to the UKCAT (e.g. all the stuff about med school application in general, and the BMAT). I also found the practice questions VERY hard, which is odd as the test itself was comparitively easy and I scored well over 700 on each section.

If you're sitting the UKCAT and can borrow a copy of the book, then go for it, you might get something out of it, but not worth buying.

Good book but lacks practice questions, 01 Jul 2008
Although I found this book helpful I felt that it could have contained alot more practice questions. Half of the book talks about why you want to be a doctor and how to write your personal statement when really what I wanted was more practice questions which were in another book I bought.

Worth the £15, 12 Jun 2008
It did piss me off that I had to pay £65 to take a test when I already had the grades to get into medical school, but that's how it is these days. And seeing as I forked out £65 for the test, why should I fork out another £15 for a book to help me pass? BECAUSE THIS £15 WILL HELP YOU FULFILL YOUR AMBITION OF GETTING INTO MEDICAL SCHOOL! It's that simple. This book helped me get round the crazy abstract reasoning section by explaining what the exam questions were actually asking of me. If it wasn't for this book I would not have scored a 700 average and certainly would not have my place secured on the graduate entry 4 year course at Newcastle. BUY THIS BOOK! £15 Vs. a fulfilling career - you decide!

Definetly a Great Book for Learners., 27 Aug 2008
If you're new to digital photography or you think that you don't know the basics about exposure, which is very important for good pictures, you should definitely buy this book. I learned a lot about its theory. However it doesn't only tell about the theory itself but also gives practical tips and tricks, which help you understand how some wonderful pictures are taken. There are some exercises Bryan Peterson suggests doing and I found them very useful. Even if you are not able to do everything he says at the time of reading, there are pictures which show the results. So you can take it with you and read on the bus.

It almost tells about everything but if you need a night or low light photography book it only tells about it a few pages. So if I feel I need more information about it, I would buy a different book.

I'm very glad to buy it and it'll be always a good reference for me.

If you're advanced photographer, you should already know about exposure and you should already take most of your pictures with correct exposures. So this is not a book for you.

Excellent book, 18 Aug 2008
I bought this book only based on its good reviews and I was not disappointed. It is written in simple, easy to understand language, it is illustrated with amazing pictures and it is full of good tips. Buy it !

Photography Exposed!, 25 Jul 2008
I cannot believe how much I have learnt from this fantastic book. Although I've had it for quite a while, on a spur of the moment I picked it off my bookshelf yesterday and literally couldn't put it down again until I had finished it today!

With my camera by my side as I read within moments I was out testing the suggestions for manual mode, something I had never dared try before. Over the course of the evening I captured some of my best ever portraits of my children and was honestly astounded by how easy it was.

Bryan is obviously a very talented photographer and teacher and his photos and explanations are testament to this.

If you crave information on exposure and really want to try working on manual and feeling like a real pro this is one book not to miss. I know I'll certainly be returning to it time and time again.

Wow - exposure made easy, 07 Jul 2008
I bought this book after reading the reviews...and was rewarded !

I was afraid that it would be too technical but it is indeed explained in an easy to read AND understanding way (I'm not an English native speaker).
The many photographic examples make it easy to 'see' too.
As an avid amateur I have been experimenting and it's indeed literally a small price to pay to get nicer photo's in the end.

A light has been switched on for me, 30 May 2008
I bought this book because I first saw it mentioned in a forum on one of the photography sites when I was trying to get some info on metering systems. When I checked it out on Amazon and saw all the great reviews I had to buy it.

I am very much just an amateur photographer, but I did already have a basic understanding of how shutter speed, aperture and ISO work together.

I was OK with using Aperture or Shutter priority modes, but I would never have tried manual mode because I just didn't know where to start with the `correct' aperture or shutter speed. And, daft as it may seem now, whenever I saw the term "meter for the highlights/shadows" etc. I thought I needed a light meter (which I don't have).

I've only read half of this book so far (have only had it for a couple of days) but I now realise that the camera not only does the metering, but provides the relevant information in the viewfinder which I previously just ignored.

The one thing which really "switched on the light" for me was that within the first few pages I learned that, in manual mode, the viewfinder information tells me when the combination of aperture and shutter speed is correct! I thought perhaps that Bryan has some fancy camera but, lo and behold my Nikon D40x does this too!

I can't wait to read the rest of the book, and put it all into practice.


Very useful, but..., 01 Sep 2008
I had been using this book in careers class to help me decide which universities I was going to apply to, and this book was exceedingly helpful for this task.
This book gives a league table of universities and also ranks them by each subject for example, Law or History. Another important aspect of this book is that it describes the universities making it truly invaluable to any A-Level student.
However, I only gave this book four stars because the vast majority of information is available online - in the Times website and also through the universities' websites.
Overall I would say that this book is very useful and definitely needed for any student who wants to make the right choice of university - after all it is one of the most important decisions you will make!


Excellent, 23 Jan 2007
Required reading for anyone considering or planning to go to University in the UK. A mass of well-researched, well-analysed data and information that helps one make much better informed judgement on one of the most important decisions of one's life.

Takes you inside a top MBA, 01 Sep 2008
Having just finished an MBA myself from London Business School, I saw this book at Heathrow on my way out of the UK and bought it with curiosity. I wanted to see whether my experience at London Business School would have been significantly different from that at a top American school; Harvard, of course, as far as MBA brands go, being number one in my opinion regardless of what competitors or any rankings say.

This book can be recommended to those interested in applying to Harvard or a comparable top MBA program to see if they have the right expectations of an MBA program; as well as to graduates of other programs to see how the experience at their schools compare against the holy grail of MBAs. It really goes inside what the MBA culture is about in general, especially at elitist schools, and at Harvard in particular. Broughton is not the only MBA who feels like this. The unreal world, the pressures, the tendency to go with the herd... despite having studied at a school across the atlantic, I continuously kept on smiling at the commonalities.

I disagree with the notion that this book disses the school, or the MBA in general. It just points out very well some of the absurdities of the program for all those who are not financial crackheads.

Honest and useful, 28 Aug 2008
This book comes across as an honest account of Delves Broughton's experience of, and reaction to, the Harvard Business School MBA course. Delves Broughton highlights well some of the strengths and weaknesses of the institution and the course, though the recent departure of the Dean (Kim Clark) will probably already have lead to changes in the mix.

I would particularly recommend the book to UK readers considering applying to a 'top-tier' US business school, not least because the author highlights some of the cultural differences that hit a British student most forcefully and can come as a bit of a surprise. Delves Broughton's experience also provides a useful reality check. Contrary to the author's apparent expectations, graduation from a business school of this type does not guarantee entree into the well-paid specialised world of hedge funds, private equity, investment banking or consulting. Many of the businesses in these industries have built into their business models recruitment from HBS and other similar schools, but they are looking for a very particular profile and the MBA badge is only one small component. If you don't fit more broadly you probably won't get the job. The author's criticisms of the cost to personal lives entailed in careers of this type are also worth thinking about hard.

For the general reader, Delves Broughton provides a useful flavour of the mindset and approach taught at these kinds of institution. Don't expect to come away with more than a vague impression though - this is not a primer of what they teach at Harvard Business School (title notwithstanding). He raises concerns that this 'business' mindset leads to problems when applied to other arenas of life, particularly if used naively or by people lacking decent ethical standards. (If HBS alumnus George W. Bush had shown any inclination to use this kind of approach in his decision-making, he would have made an easy stick with which to beat the institution). Whatever the merits of his argument, it's something that the HBS faculty (and many companies) worry about a lot, even if their attempts to discuss such ethical issues lead to stomach churning management-speak. Encouragingly, most of his fellow students seemed to take the point, though, even at this early stage in their careers.

One point of criticism of this book (and others of its kind). By publishing it Delves Broughton has arguably betrayed a tacit contract of confidentiality that exists between participants (faculty and students) in such institutions. 'Betrayals' of this kind are an everyday occurrence for daily newspaper journalists and this is perhaps why Delves Broughton seems unaware of this aspect; a couple of the professors in particular might feel justifiably aggrieved.

Great book praises, criticizes Harvard Business School, 21 Aug 2008
As a Harvard graduate (not HBS) I loved this book. Fantastic writing, lots of anecdotes, and very clear explanations of what they really teach at Havard Business School. But it's more than that. It's a trip through one man's attempt to find what he wants to do with his life. Delves Broughton was a very successful journalist, and he walked away to spend two years doing an MBA, which cost him $170,000. He finds that he isn't like most of his fellow students, who are obsessed with money. When the author goes to cover an anti-globalisation march, he sympathises with the protestors. Instead of writing an analysis of Time Warner, he choses a organic blueberry farmer. When his fellow students are off working over Spring break, he's at home in Boston working on a novel. It made me wonder: why did he go to business school? Ultimately, Delves Broughton is critical of the school, and gives good reasons for being so.
In response, the school has been mildly critical of the book, apparently arguing class-room conversations should be private. I think this probably stems from him revealing some of school's rorts, including one relating to financial aid. In all, the book is a 300-page ad for HBS and can only drive up applications.
But Delves Broughton's experience punctures one of the myths about HBS: that it creates business leaders. (STORY DISCLOSURE HERE.) He is the only member of his class not to get a job, mainly because he doesn't have any experience in finance or consulting, even though his grades were good and he clearly he could cut it in the classroom (although he is unlucky to miss out on a markeing job at Google.) It seems that no matter how many brilliant classes they have at Harvard, business recruiters want people with business experience.
It will be interesting to see if HBS admits many more journalists in the future.




Very amusing indeed, 14 Aug 2008
Very dry and witty - Delves Broughton brings alive all the madness and hype of the American MBA system. He half makes you want to enrol, and half to avoid the place for the rest of your life.

What is particularly good is that it is full of interesting business theory from the MBA course, which is very stimulating.

No doubt this book will make HBS very irritated - which is a good reason to buy it, I think!!


An inside look at the economic elite, 11 Aug 2008
Philip Broughton went into the Harvard MBA like an anthroplogist goes to live with an obscure jungle tribe - this book works on the same principle of outsider wisdom, of the newcomer able to see just how strange the social norms of these hard-to-access cultures can be. Marvel at these elite MBA-ers and their language of "creating a developmental agenda for leveraging their reflected best-self"! Puzzle at the strong emphasis on business integrity and moral judgment, when fact is everyone's really there to learn how to make a lot of money. But, however odd, the Harvard MBA programme indubitably produces global business & economic leaders who shape a substantial portion of our lives, and so it's in everyone's interests to understand how this elite are taught to think.

'What They Teach You At Harvard Business School' is not just a guide to the economic and management concepts the MBA students study. Broughton does talk about these topics, giving examples of the Harvard study system of analysing hundreds of case studies. This method seeks to teach the students how to handle the chief challenge in business: making good decisions with inadequate information. It's no substitute for the actual course, largely because none of the examples' statistics are published in this book, but as a non-economist I definitely learnt a lot regardless.

But of wider relevance is Broughton's discussion of the 'hidden curriculum' of Harvard Business School, the assumptions it inculcates in its students and the distorted beliefs they already hold about work & the economy. What do they think is the value of the money they'll be earning, when will they know that they've made enough? "When you've got your own jet." Even the pre-arrival guide says, "Don't bring that guitar... Don't bring any books from literature or history classes... Don't bring your cynicism. Do bring all the diverse rest of you." Interesting notion of diversity, right? The idea that future business leaders are being trained to dismiss history and cynical judgments is telling, and Broughton, a former journalist with the Telegraph, is never able to buy in to this culture. Instead of getting a high-flying job like his coursemates, he remains a writer - but the strength of this book is that he's not bitter about this. It's not a rant, not really an expose (no truly horrific secrets are uncovered) - just an insider's look into a world most of us won't enter.

The compelling narrative is Broughton's own decision-making about his future career: Harvard forces him to confront the values that really matter to him, makes him question deeply what it is that he really wants out of life. This is something a lot of university graduates and prospective MBAs could benefit from reading - I know I was fascinated.

Helpful for some sections, 26 Aug 2008
The book will help you mainly for the abstract reasoning and decision analysis. However the verbal reasoning section is terrible. A lot of the answers are wrong and provide invalid explanations.
Helpful? Some parts
Worth the money? No
Better alternatives? Buy the succeeding the UKCAT book.


OK-ish, 17 Aug 2008
I found the first section helpful, applying for Graduate Entry by myself means I haven't been told some of the things that I'm sure those applying straight from college will have about personal statements etc.

The questions were however too few and disproportionately difficult; though I guess being overprepared is better than under. There were also 3 errors (that I picked up on; there may in fact be more) but they were quie obvious ones so don't really impede on your learning.

Worth the £10 I paid just to feel a bit more prepared but not great.

Disappointing, 30 Jul 2008
Like most people, I bought this book for the practice questions in order to supplement those already available on the UKCAT website, as well as some useful tips on tackling the questions, managing time etc.

However, I was dissapointed to see that the majority of the book was taken up with material irrelevant to the UKCAT (e.g. all the stuff about med school application in general, and the BMAT). I also found the practice questions VERY hard, which is odd as the test itself was comparitively easy and I scored well over 700 on each section.

If you're sitting the UKCAT and can borrow a copy of the book, then go for it, you might get something out of it, but not worth buying.

Good book but lacks practice questions, 01 Jul 2008
Although I found this book helpful I felt that it could have contained alot more practice questions. Half of the book talks about why you want to be a doctor and how to write your personal statement when really what I wanted was more practice questions which were in another book I bought.

Worth the £15, 12 Jun 2008
It did piss me off that I had to pay £65 to take a test when I already had the grades to get into medical school, but that's how it is these days. And seeing as I forked out £65 for the test, why should I fork out another £15 for a book to help me pass? BECAUSE THIS £15 WILL HELP YOU FULFILL YOUR AMBITION OF GETTING INTO MEDICAL SCHOOL! It's that simple. This book helped me get round the crazy abstract reasoning section by explaining what the exam questions were actually asking of me. If it wasn't for this book I would not have scored a 700 average and certainly would not have my place secured on the graduate entry 4 year course at Newcastle. BUY THIS BOOK! £15 Vs. a fulfilling career - you decide!

Definetly a Great Book for Learners., 27 Aug 2008
If you're new to digital photography or you think that you don't know the basics about exposure, which is very important for good pictures, you should definitely buy this book. I learned a lot about its theory. However it doesn't only tell about the theory itself but also gives practical tips and tricks, which help you understand how some wonderful pictures are taken. There are some exercises Bryan Peterson suggests doing and I found them very useful. Even if you are not able to do everything he says at the time of reading, there are pictures which show the results. So you can take it with you and read on the bus.

It almost tells about everything but if you need a night or low light photography book it only tells about it a few pages. So if I feel I need more information about it, I would buy a different book.

I'm very glad to buy it and it'll be always a good reference for me.

If you're advanced photographer, you should already know about exposure and you should already take most of your pictures with correct exposures. So this is not a book for you.

Excellent book, 18 Aug 2008
I bought this book only based on its good reviews and I was not disappointed. It is written in simple, easy to understand language, it is illustrated with amazing pictures and it is full of good tips. Buy it !

Photography Exposed!, 25 Jul 2008
I cannot believe how much I have learnt from this fantastic book. Although I've had it for quite a while, on a spur of the moment I picked it off my bookshelf yesterday and literally couldn't put it down again until I had finished it today!

With my camera by my side as I read within moments I was out testing the suggestions for manual mode, something I had never dared try before. Over the course of the evening I captured some of my best ever portraits of my children and was honestly astounded by how easy it was.

Bryan is obviously a very talented photographer and teacher and his photos and explanations are testament to this.

If you crave information on exposure and really want to try working on manual and feeling like a real pro this is one book not to miss. I know I'll certainly be returning to it time and time again.

Wow - exposure made easy, 07 Jul 2008
I bought this book after reading the reviews...and was rewarded !

I was afraid that it would be too technical but it is indeed explained in an easy to read AND understanding way (I'm not an English native speaker).
The many photographic examples make it easy to 'see' too.
As an avid amateur I have been experimenting and it's indeed literally a small price to pay to get nicer photo's in the end.

A light has been switched on for me, 30 May 2008
I bought this book because I first saw it mentioned in a forum on one of the photography sites when I was trying to get some info on metering systems. When I checked it out on Amazon and saw all the great reviews I had to buy it.

I am very much just an amateur photographer, but I did already have a basic understanding of how shutter speed, aperture and ISO work together.

I was OK with using Aperture or Shutter priority modes, but I would never have tried manual mode because I just didn't know where to start with the `correct' aperture or shutter speed. And, daft as it may seem now, whenever I saw the term "meter for the highlights/shadows" etc. I thought I needed a light meter (which I don't have).

I've only read half of this book so far (have only had it for a couple of days) but I now realise that the camera not only does the metering, but provides the relevant information in the viewfinder which I previously just ignored.

The one thing which really "switched on the light" for me was that within the first few pages I learned that, in manual mode, the viewfinder information tells me when the combination of aperture and shutter speed is correct! I thought perhaps that Bryan has some fancy camera but, lo and behold my Nikon D40x does this too!

I can't wait to read the rest of the book, and put it all into practice.


Very useful, but..., 01 Sep 2008
I had been using this book in careers class to help me decide which universities I was going to apply to, and this book was exceedingly helpful for this task.
This book gives a league table of universities and also ranks them by each subject for example, Law or History. Another important aspect of this book is that it describes the universities making it truly invaluable to any A-Level student.
However, I only gave this book four stars because the vast majority of information is available online - in the Times website and also through the universities' websites.
Overall I would say that this book is very useful and definitely needed for any student who wants to make the right choice of university - after all it is one of the most important decisions you will make!


Excellent, 23 Jan 2007
Required reading for anyone considering or planning to go to University in the UK. A mass of well-researched, well-analysed data and information that helps one make much better informed judgement on one of the most important decisions of one's life.

Takes you inside a top MBA, 01 Sep 2008
Having just finished an MBA myself from London Business School, I saw this book at Heathrow on my way out of the UK and bought it with curiosity. I wanted to see whether my experience at London Business School would have been significantly different from that at a top American school; Harvard, of course, as far as MBA brands go, being number one in my opinion regardless of what competitors or any rankings say.

This book can be recommended to those interested in applying to Harvard or a comparable top MBA program to see if they have the right expectations of an MBA program; as well as to graduates of other programs to see how the experience at their schools compare against the holy grail of MBAs. It really goes inside what the MBA culture is about in general, especially at elitist schools, and at Harvard in particular. Broughton is not the only MBA who feels like this. The unreal world, the pressures, the tendency to go with the herd... despite having studied at a school across the atlantic, I continuously kept on smiling at the commonalities.

I disagree with the notion that this book disses the school, or the MBA in general. It just points out very well some of the absurdities of the program for all those who are not financial crackheads.

Honest and useful, 28 Aug 2008
This book comes across as an honest account of Delves Broughton's experience of, and reaction to, the Harvard Business School MBA course. Delves Broughton highlights well some of the strengths and weaknesses of the institution and the course, though the recent departure of the Dean (Kim Clark) will probably already have lead to changes in the mix.

I would particularly recommend the book to UK readers considering applying to a 'top-tier' US business school, not least because the author highlights some of the cultural differences that hit a British student most forcefully and can come as a bit of a surprise. Delves Broughton's experience also provides a useful reality check. Contrary to the author's apparent expectations, graduation from a business school of this type does not guarantee entree into the well-paid specialised world of hedge funds, private equity, investment banking or consulting. Many of the businesses in these industries have built into their business models recruitment from HBS and other similar schools, but they are looking for a very particular profile and the MBA badge is only one small component. If you don't fit more broadly you probably won't get the job. The author's criticisms of the cost to personal lives entailed in careers of this type are also worth thinking about hard.

For the general reader, Delves Broughton provides a useful flavour of the mindset and approach taught at these kinds of institution. Don't expect to come away with more than a vague impression though - this is not a primer of what they teach at Harvard Business School (title notwithstanding). He raises concerns that this 'business' mindset leads to problems when applied to other arenas of life, particularly if used naively or by people lacking decent ethical standards. (If HBS alumnus George W. Bush had shown any inclination to use this kind of approach in his decision-making, he would have made an easy stick with which to beat the institution). Whatever the merits of his argument, it's something that the HBS faculty (and many companies) worry about a lot, even if their attempts to discuss such ethical issues lead to stomach churning management-speak. Encouragingly, most of his fellow students seemed to take the point, though, even at this early stage in their careers.

One point of criticism of this book (and others of its kind). By publishing it Delves Broughton has arguably betrayed a tacit contract of confidentiality that exists between participants (faculty and students) in such institutions. 'Betrayals' of this kind are an everyday occurrence for daily newspaper journalists and this is perhaps why Delves Broughton seems unaware of this aspect; a couple of the professors in particular might feel justifiably aggrieved.

Great book praises, criticizes Harvard Business School, 21 Aug 2008
As a Harvard graduate (not HBS) I loved this book. Fantastic writing, lots of anecdotes, and very clear explanations of what they really teach at Havard Business School. But it's more than that. It's a trip through one man's attempt to find what he wants to do with his life. Delves Broughton was a very successful journalist, and he walked away to spend two years doing an MBA, which cost him $170,000. He finds that he isn't like most of his fellow students, who are obsessed with money. When the author goes to cover an anti-globalisation march, he sympathises with the protestors. Instead of writing an analysis of Time Warner, he choses a organic blueberry farmer. When his fellow students are off working over Spring break, he's at home in Boston working on a novel. It made me wonder: why did he go to business school? Ultimately, Delves Broughton is critical of the school, and gives good reasons for being so.
In response, the school has been mildly critical of the book, apparently arguing class-room conversations should be private. I think this probably stems from him revealing some of school's rorts, including one relating to financial aid. In all, the book is a 300-page ad for HBS and can only drive up applications.
But Delves Broughton's experience punctures one of the myths about HBS: that it creates business leaders. (STORY DISCLOSURE HERE.) He is the only member of his class not to get a job, mainly because he doesn't have any experience in finance or consulting, even though his grades were good and he clearly he could cut it in the classroom (although he is unlucky to miss out on a markeing job at Google.) It seems that no matter how many brilliant classes they have at Harvard, business recruiters want people with business experience.
It will be interesting to see if HBS admits many more journalists in the future.




Very amusing indeed, 14 Aug 2008
Very dry and witty - Delves Broughton brings alive all the madness and hype of the American MBA system. He half makes you want to enrol, and half to avoid the place for the rest of your life.

What is particularly good is that it is full of interesting business theory from the MBA course, which is very stimulating.

No doubt this book will make HBS very irritated - which is a good reason to buy it, I think!!


An inside look at the economic elite, 11 Aug 2008
Philip Broughton went into the Harvard MBA like an anthroplogist goes to live with an obscure jungle tribe - this book works on the same principle of outsider wisdom, of the newcomer able to see just how strange the social norms of these hard-to-access cultures can be. Marvel at these elite MBA-ers and their language of "creating a developmental agenda for leveraging their reflected best-self"! Puzzle at the strong emphasis on business integrity and moral judgment, when fact is everyone's really there to learn how to make a lot of money. But, however odd, the Harvard MBA programme indubitably produces global business & economic leaders who shape a substantial portion of our lives, and so it's in everyone's interests to understand how this elite are taught to think.

'What They Teach You At Harvard Business School' is not just a guide to the economic and management concepts the MBA students study. Broughton does talk about these topics, giving examples of the Harvard study system of analysing hundreds of case studies. This method seeks to teach the students how to handle the chief challenge in business: making good decisions with inadequate information. It's no substitute for the actual course, largely because none of the examples' statistics are published in this book, but as a non-economist I definitely learnt a lot regardless.

But of wider relevance is Broughton's discussion of the 'hidden curriculum' of Harvard Business School, the assumptions it inculcates in its students and the distorted beliefs they already hold about work & the economy. What do they think is the value of the money they'll be earning, when will they know that they've made enough? "When you've got your own jet." Even the pre-arrival guide says, "Don't bring that guitar... Don't bring any books from literature or history classes... Don't bring your cynicism. Do bring all the diverse rest of you." Interesting notion of diversity, right? The idea that future business leaders are being trained to dismiss history and cynical judgments is telling, and Broughton, a former journalist with the Telegraph, is never able to buy in to this culture. Instead of getting a high-flying job like his coursemates, he remains a writer - but the strength of this book is that he's not bitter about this. It's not a rant, not really an expose (no truly horrific secrets are uncovered) - just an insider's look into a world most of us won't enter.

The compelling narrative is Broughton's own decision-making about his future career: Harvard forces him to confront the values that really matter to him, makes him question deeply what it is that he really wants out of life. This is something a lot of university graduates and prospective MBAs could benefit from reading - I know I was fascinated.

Top notch, 27 Aug 2008
This book does exactly what it says on the cover, takes you through all the functions (with easy to see colour pictures)), working with light, exposure, photographing different subjects, etc. It explains your Nikon D40 and all of the features, I cannot recommend this highly enough. Between this and the Ken Rockwell website I have learnt so much about the D40.

Great, 03 Jul 2008
This book tell you all you need to know when starting out with the Nikon D40 in an easy and comprehensive way unlike the original confusingly laid out manual. Additionally this book give good photo taking techniques in a variety of situations. Nice!

for newcomers, 15 May 2008
This book is brilliant if you are new to DSLR photography and the manual that comes with the camera confuses you-like it did me! I have learnt so much and have already been practising with it. Things have made sense and I have to reread it to then put it into practice, i can see me taking this book on holiday and not the manual!

Excellent Read, 14 May 2008
This is one of several books I have bought, and it is by far the best. Not only does it explain what all the camera controls do, but also why you use them. Also included are sections on exposure, lenses, using the flash and basic composition. It then goes on to cover how to compose and shoot different types of photos, including action shots, animals, landscapes and taking photos at night. All of this is presented in a very clear readable style and is accompanied by detailed colour photos throughtout. A thorough and compelling guide to the D40/D40x which I would highly recommend.

Enjoyable and useful, 03 Apr 2008
Compared to the standard D40 user guide this book is an enjoyable and well thought out publication. Each chapter is well laid out and the whole book leads you through the actions to take and things to learn on how to get the best from this camera. I haven't read a book for a long time but I just can't put this guide down.

If you have a D40 or D40X I'd highly recommend this great value book to help you get the most out of the camera.

Helpful for some sections, 26 Aug 2008
The book will help you mainly for the abstract reasoning and decision analysis. However the verbal reasoning section is terrible. A lot of the answers are wrong and provide invalid explanations.
Helpful? Some parts
Worth the money? No
Better alternatives? Buy the succeeding the UKCAT book.


OK-ish, 17 Aug 2008
I found the first section helpful, applying for Graduate Entry by myself means I haven't been told some of the things that I'm sure those applying straight from college will have about personal statements etc.

The questions were however too few and disproportionately difficult; though I guess being overprepared is better than under. There were also 3 errors (that I picked up on; there may in fact be more) but they were quie obvious ones so don't really impede on your learning.

Worth the £10 I paid just to feel a bit more prepared but not great.

Disappointing, 30 Jul 2008
Like most people, I bought this book for the practice questions in order to supplement those already available on the UKCAT website, as well as some useful tips on tackling the questions, managing time etc.

However, I was dissapointed to see that the majority of the book was taken up with material irrelevant to the UKCAT (e.g. all the stuff about med school application in general, and the BMAT). I also found the practice questions VERY hard, which is odd as the test itself was comparitively easy and I scored well over 700 on each section.

If you're sitting the UKCAT and can borrow a copy of the book, then go for it, you might get something out of it, but not worth buying.

Good book but lacks practice questions, 01 Jul 2008
Although I found this book helpful I felt that it could have contained alot more practice questions. Half of the book talks about why you want to be a doctor and how to write your personal statement when really what I wanted was more practice questions which were in another book I bought.

Worth the £15, 12 Jun 2008
It did piss me off that I had to pay £65 to take a test when I already had the grades to get into medical school, but that's how it is these days. And seeing as I forked out £65 for the test, why should I fork out another £15 for a book to help me pass? BECAUSE THIS £15 WILL HELP YOU FULFILL YOUR AMBITION OF GETTING INTO MEDICAL SCHOOL! It's that simple. This book helped me get round the crazy abstract reasoning section by explaining what the exam questions were actually asking of me. If it wasn't for this book I would not have scored a 700 average and certainly would not have my place secured on the graduate entry 4 year course at Newcastle. BUY THIS BOOK! £15 Vs. a fulfilling career - you decide!

Definetly a Great Book for Learners., 27 Aug 2008
If you're new to digital photography or you think that you don't know the basics about exposure, which is very important for good pictures, you should definitely buy this book. I learned a lot about its theory. However it doesn't only tell about the theory itself but also gives practical tips and tricks, which help you understand how some wonderful pictures are taken. There are some exercises Bryan Peterson suggests doing and I found them very useful. Even if you are not able to do everything he says at the time of reading, there are pictures which show the results. So you can take it with you and read on the bus.

It almost tells about everything but if you need a night or low light photography book it only tells about it a few pages. So if I feel I need more information about it, I would buy a different book.

I'm very glad to buy it and it'll be always a good reference for me.

If you're advanced photographer, you should already know about exposure and you should already take most of your pictures with correct exposures. So this is not a book for you.

Excellent book, 18 Aug 2008
I bought this book only based on its good reviews and I was not disappointed. It is written in simple, easy to understand language, it is illustrated with amazing pictures and it is full of good tips. Buy it !

Photography Exposed!, 25 Jul 2008
I cannot believe how much I have learnt from this fantastic book. Although I've had it for quite a while, on a spur of the moment I picked it off my bookshelf yesterday and literally couldn't put it down again until I had finished it today!

With my camera by my side as I read within moments I was out testing the suggestions for manual mode, something I had never dared try before. Over the course of the evening I captured some of my best ever portraits of my children and was honestly astounded by how easy it was.

Bryan is obviously a very talented photographer and teacher and his photos and explanations are testament to this.

If you crave information on exposure and really want to try working on manual and feeling like a real pro this is one book not to miss. I know I'll certainly be returning to it time and time again.

Wow - exposure made easy, 07 Jul 2008
I bought this book after reading the reviews...and was rewarded !

I was afraid that it would be too technical but it is indeed explained in an easy to read AND understanding way (I'm not an English native speaker).
The many photographic examples make it easy to 'see' too.
As an avid amateur I have been experimenting and it's indeed literally a small price to pay to get nicer photo's in the end.

A light has been switched on for me, 30 May 2008
I bought this book because I first saw it mentioned in a forum on one of the photography sites when I was trying to get some info on metering systems. When I checked it out on Amazon and saw all the great reviews I had to buy it.

I am very much just an amateur photographer, but I did already have a basic understanding of how shutter speed, aperture and ISO work together.

I was OK with using Aperture or Shutter priority modes, but I would never have tried manual mode because I just didn't know where to start with the `correct' aperture or shutter speed. And, daft as it may seem now, whenever I saw the term "meter for the highlights/shadows" etc. I thought I needed a light meter (which I don't have).

I've only read half of this book so far (have only had it for a couple of days) but I now realise that the camera not only does the metering, but provides the relevant information in the viewfinder which I previously just ignored.

The one thing which really "switched on the light" for me was that within the first few pages I learned that, in manual mode, the viewfinder information tells me when the combination of aperture and shutter speed is correct! I thought perhaps that Bryan has some fancy camera but, lo and behold my Nikon D40x does this too!

I can't wait to read the rest of the book, and put it all into practice.


Very useful, but..., 01 Sep 2008
I had been using this book in careers class to help me decide which universities I was going to apply to, and this book was exceedingly helpful for this task.
This book gives a league table of universities and also ranks them by each subject for example, Law or History. Another important aspect of this book is that it describes the universities making it truly invaluable to any A-Level student.
However, I only gave this book four stars because the vast majority of information is available online - in the Times website and also through the universities' websites.
Overall I would say that this book is very useful and definitely needed for any student who wants to make the right choice of university - after all it is one of the most important decisions you will make!


Excellent, 23 Jan 2007
Required reading for anyone considering or planning to go to University in the UK. A mass of well-researched, well-analysed data and information that helps one make much better informed judgement on one of the most important decisions of one's life.

Takes you inside a top MBA, 01 Sep 2008
Having just finished an MBA myself from London Business School, I saw this book at Heathrow on my way out of the UK and bought it with curiosity. I wanted to see whether my experience at London Business School would have been significantly different from that at a top American school; Harvard, of course, as far as MBA brands go, being number one in my opinion regardless of what competitors or any rankings say.

This book can be recommended to those interested in applying to Harvard or a comparable top MBA program to see if they have the right expectations of an MBA program; as well as to graduates of other programs to see how the experience at their schools compare against the holy grail of MBAs. It really goes inside what the MBA culture is about in general, especially at elitist schools, and at Harvard in particular. Broughton is not the only MBA who feels like this. The unreal world, the pressures, the tendency to go with the herd... despite having studied at a school across the atlantic, I continuously kept on smiling at the commonalities.

I disagree with the notion that this book disses the school, or the MBA in general. It just points out very well some of the absurdities of the program for all those who are not financial crackheads.

Honest and useful, 28 Aug 2008
This book comes across as an honest account of Delves Broughton's experience of, and reaction to, the Harvard Business School MBA course. Delves Broughton highlights well some of the strengths and weaknesses of the institution and the course, though the recent departure of the Dean (Kim Clark) will probably already have lead to changes in the mix.

I would particularly recommend the book to UK readers considering applying to a 'top-tier' US business school, not least because the author highlights some of the cultural differences that hit a British student most forcefully and can come as a bit of a surprise. Delves Broughton's experience also provides a useful reality check. Contrary to the author's apparent expectations, graduation from a business school of this type does not guarantee entree into the well-paid specialised world of hedge funds, private equity, investment banking or consulting. Many of the businesses in these industries have built into their business models recruitment from HBS and other similar schools, but they are looking for a very particular profile and the MBA badge is only one small component. If you don't fit more broadly you probably won't get the job. The author's criticisms of the cost to personal lives entailed in careers of this type are also worth thinking about hard.

For the general reader, Delves Broughton provides a useful flavour of the mindset and approach taught at these kinds of institution. Don't expect to come away with more than a vague impression though - this is not a primer of what they teach at Harvard Business School (title notwithstanding). He raises concerns that this 'business' mindset leads to problems when applied to other arenas of life, particularly if used naively or by people lacking decent ethical standards. (If HBS alumnus George W. Bush had shown any inclination to use this kind of approach in his decision-making, he would have made an easy stick with which to beat the institution). Whatever the merits of his argument, it's something that the HBS faculty (and many companies) worry about a lot, even if their attempts to discuss such ethical issues lead to stomach churning management-speak. Encouragingly, most of his fellow students seemed to take the point, though, even at this early stage in their careers.

One point of criticism of this book (and others of its kind). By publishing it Delves Broughton has arguably betrayed a tacit contract of confidentiality that exists between participants (faculty and students) in such institutions. 'Betrayals' of this kind are an everyday occurrence for daily newspaper journalists and this is perhaps why Delves Broughton seems unaware of this aspect; a couple of the professors in particular might feel justifiably aggrieved.

Great book praises, criticizes Harvard Business School, 21 Aug 2008
As a Harvard graduate (not HBS) I loved this book. Fantastic writing, lots of anecdotes, and very clear explanations of what they really teach at Havard Business School. But it's more than that. It's a trip through one man's attempt to find what he wants to do with his life. Delves Broughton was a very successful journalist, and he walked away to spend two years doing an MBA, which cost him $170,000. He finds that he isn't like most of his fellow students, who are obsessed with money. When the author goes to cover an anti-globalisation march, he sympathises with the protestors. Instead of writing an analysis of Time Warner, he choses a organic blueberry farmer. When his fellow students are off working over Spring break, he's at home in Boston working on a novel. It made me wonder: why did he go to business school? Ultimately, Delves Broughton is critical of the school, and gives good reasons for being so.
In response, the school has been mildly critical of the book, apparently arguing class-room conversations should be private. I think this probably stems from him revealing some of school's rorts, including one relating to financial aid. In all, the book is a 300-page ad for HBS and can only drive up applications.
But Delves Broughton's experience punctures one of the myths about HBS: that it creates business leaders. (STORY DISCLOSURE HERE.) He is the only member of his class not to get a job, mainly because he doesn't have any experience in finance or consulting, even though his grades were good and he clearly he could cut it in the classroom (although he is unlucky to miss out on a markeing job at Google.) It seems that no matter how many brilliant classes they have at Harvard, business recruiters want people with business experience.
It will be interesting to see if HBS admits many more journalists in the future.




Very amusing indeed, 14 Aug 2008
Very dry and witty - Delves Broughton brings alive all the madness and hype of the American MBA system. He half makes you want to enrol, and half to avoid the place for the rest of your life.

What is particularly good is that it is full of interesting business theory from the MBA course, which is very stimulating.

No doubt this book will make HBS very irritated - which is a good reason to buy it, I think!!


An inside look at the economic elite, 11 Aug 2008
Philip Broughton went into the Harvard MBA like an anthroplogist goes to live with an obscure jungle tribe - this book works on the same principle of outsider wisdom, of the newcomer able to see just how strange the social norms of these hard-to-access cultures can be. Marvel at these elite MBA-ers and their language of "creating a developmental agenda for leveraging their reflected best-self"! Puzzle at the strong emphasis on business integrity and moral judgment, when fact is everyone's really there to learn how to make a lot of money. But, however odd, the Harvard MBA programme indubitably produces global business & economic leaders who shape a substantial portion of our lives, and so it's in everyone's interests to understand how this elite are taught to think.

'What They Teach You At Harvard Business School' is not just a guide to the economic and management concepts the MBA students study. Broughton does talk about these topics, giving examples of the Harvard study system of analysing hundreds of case studies. This method seeks to teach the students how to handle the chief challenge in business: making good decisions with inadequate information. It's no substitute for the actual course, largely because none of the examples' statistics are published in this book, but as a non-economist I definitely learnt a lot regardless.

But of wider relevance is Broughton's discussion of the 'hidden curriculum' of Harvard Business School, the assumptions it inculcates in its students and the distorted beliefs they already hold about work & the economy. What do they think is the value of the money they'll be earning, when will they know that they've made enough? "When you've got your own jet." Even the pre-arrival guide says, "Don't bring that guitar... Don't bring any books from literature or history classes... Don't bring your cynicism. Do bring all the diverse rest of you." Interesting notion of diversity, right? The idea that future business leaders are being trained to dismiss history and cynical judgments is telling, and Broughton, a former journalist with the Telegraph, is never able to buy in to this culture. Instead of getting a high-flying job like his coursemates, he remains a writer - but the strength of this book is that he's not bitter about this. It's not a rant, not really an expose (no truly horrific secrets are uncovered) - just an insider's look into a world most of us won't enter.

The compelling narrative is Broughton's own decision-making about his future career: Harvard forces him to confront the values that really matter to him, makes him question deeply what it is that he really wants out of life. This is something a lot of university graduates and prospective MBAs could benefit from reading - I know I was fascinated.

Top notch, 27 Aug 2008
This book does exactly what it says on the cover, takes you through all the functions (with easy to see colour pictures)), working with light, exposure, photographing different subjects, etc. It explains your Nikon D40 and all of the features, I cannot recommend this highly enough. Between this and the Ken Rockwell website I have learnt so much about the D40.

Great, 03 Jul 2008
This book tell you all you need to know when starting out with the Nikon D40 in an easy and comprehensive way unlike the original confusingly laid out manual. Additionally this book give good photo taking techniques in a variety of situations. Nice!

for newcomers, 15 May 2008
This book is brilliant if you are new to DSLR photography and the manual that comes with the camera confuses you-like it did me! I have learnt so much and have already been practising with it. Things have made sense and I have to reread it to then put it into practice, i can see me taking this book on holiday and not the manual!

Excellent Read, 14 May 2008
This is one of several books I have bought, and it is by far the best. Not only does it explain what all the camera controls do, but also why you use them. Also included are sections on exposure, lenses, using the flash and basic composition. It then goes on to cover how to compose and shoot different types of photos, including action shots, animals, landscapes and taking photos at night. All of this is presented in a very clear readable style and is accompanied by detailed colour photos throughtout. A thorough and compelling guide to the D40/D40x which I would highly recommend.

Enjoyable and useful, 03 Apr 2008
Compared to the standard D40 user guide this book is an enjoyable and well thought out publication. Each chapter is well laid out and the whole book leads you through the actions to take and things to learn on how to get the best from this camera. I haven't read a book for a long time but I just can't put this guide down.

If you have a D40 or D40X I'd highly recommend this great value book to help you get the most out of the camera.

Quality keeps on improving!, 18 Jun 2007
I have a copy of a previous edition of this 'easy learning' dictionary and a friend has the penultimate one to this latest copy. As such, I feel well-versed to comment...
This new release is excellent. My wife and I, both in our 50's, are learning the language and we find this dictionary more than just a resource for looking up the meaning of words. It is a big help to us with our verb tables, especially the tenses and gives good grammatical breakdowns on many aspects of the language.
Perhaps if there was more help with pronounciations, it could claim to be a language course in one book. But that aside, it is very, very, good value and we both love referring to it at every opportunity. Definitely five stars from us!

Helpful for some sections, 26 Aug 2008
The book will help you mainly for the abstract reasoning and decision analysis. However the verbal reasoning section is terrible. A lot of the answers are wrong and provide invalid explanations.
Helpful? Some parts
Worth the money? No
Better alternatives? Buy the succeeding the UKCAT book.


OK-ish, 17 Aug 2008
I found the first section helpful, applying for Graduate Entry by myself means I haven't been told some of the things that I'm sure those applying straight from college will have about personal statements etc.

The questions were however too few and disproportionately difficult; though I guess being overprepared is better than under. There were also 3 errors (that I picked up on; there may in fact be more) but they were quie obvious ones so don't really impede on your learning.

Worth the £10 I paid just to feel a bit more prepared but not great.

Disappointing, 30 Jul 2008
Like most people, I bought this book for the practice questions in order to supplement those already available on the UKCAT website, as well as some useful tips on tackling the questions, managing time etc.

However, I was dissapointed to see that the majority of the book was taken up with material irrelevant to the UKCAT (e.g. all the stuff about med school application in general, and the BMAT). I also found the practice questions VERY hard, which is odd as the test itself was comparitively easy and I scored well over 700 on each section.

If you're sitting the UKCAT and can borrow a copy of the book, then go for it, you might get something out of it, but not worth buying.

Good book but lacks practice questions, 01 Jul 2008
Although I found this book helpful I felt that it could have contained alot more practice questions. Half of the book talks about why you want to be a doctor and how to write your personal statement when really what I wanted was more practice questions which were in another book I bought.

Worth the £15, 12 Jun 2008
It did piss me off that I had to pay £65 to take a test when I already had the grades to get into medical school, but that's how it is these days. And seeing as I forked out £65 for the test, why should I fork out another £15 for a book to help me pass? BECAUSE THIS £15 WILL HELP YOU FULFILL YOUR AMBITION OF GETTING INTO MEDICAL SCHOOL! It's that simple. This book helped me get round the crazy abstract reasoning section by explaining what the exam questions were actually asking of me. If it wasn't for this book I would not have scored a 700 average and certainly would not have my place secured on the graduate entry 4 year course at Newcastle. BUY THIS BOOK! £15 Vs. a fulfilling career - you decide!

Definetly a Great Book for Learners., 27 Aug 2008
If you're new to digital photography or you think that you don't know the basics about exposure, which is very important for good pictures, you should definitely buy this book. I learned a lot about its theory. However it doesn't only tell about the theory itself but also gives practical tips and tricks, which help you understand how some wonderful pictures are taken. There are some exercises Bryan Peterson suggests doing and I found them very useful. Even if you are not able to do everything he says at the time of reading, there are pictures which show the results. So you can take it with you and read on the bus.

It almost tells about everything but if you need a night or low light photography book it only tells about it a few pages. So if I feel I need more information about it, I would buy a different book.

I'm very glad to buy it and it'll be always a good reference for me.

If you're advanced photographer, you should already know about exposure and you should already take most of your pictures with correct exposures. So this is not a book for you.

Excellent book, 18 Aug 2008
I bought this book only based on its good reviews and I was not disappointed. It is written in simple, easy to understand language, it is illustrated with amazing pictures and it is full of good tips. Buy it !

Photography Exposed!, 25 Jul 2008
I cannot believe how much I have learnt from this fantastic book. Although I've had it for quite a while, on a spur of the moment I picked it off my bookshelf yesterday and literally couldn't put it down again until I had finished it today!

With my camera by my side as I read within moments I was out testing the suggestions for manual mode, something I had never dared try before. Over the course of the evening I captured some of my best ever portraits of my children and was honestly astounded by how easy it was.

Bryan is obviously a very talented photographer and teacher and his photos and explanations are testament to this.

If you crave information on exposure and really want to try working on manual and feeling like a real pro this is one book not to miss. I know I'll certainly be returning to it time and time again.

Wow - exposure made easy, 07 Jul 2008
I bought this book after reading the reviews...and was rewarded !

I was afraid that it would be too technical but it is indeed explained in an easy to read AND understanding way (I'm not an English native speaker).
The many photographic examples make it easy to 'see' too.
As an avid amateur I have been experimenting and it's indeed literally a small price to pay to get nicer photo's in the end.

A light has been switched on for me, 30 May 2008
I bought this book because I first saw it mentioned in a forum on one of the photography sites when I was trying to get some info on metering systems. When I checked it out on Amazon and saw all the great reviews I had to buy it.

I am very much just an amateur photographer, but I did already have a basic understanding of how shutter speed, aperture and ISO work together.

I was OK with using Aperture or Shutter priority modes, but I would never have tried manual mode because I just didn't know where to start with the `correct' aperture or shutter speed. And, daft as it may seem now, whenever I saw the term "meter for the highlights/shadows" etc. I thought I needed a light meter (which I don't have).

I've only read half of this book so far (have only had it for a couple of days) but I now realise that the camera not only does the metering, but provides the relevant information in the viewfinder which I previously just ignored.

The one thing which really "switched on the light" for me was that within the first few pages I learned that, in manual mode, the viewfinder information tells me when the combination of aperture and shutter speed is correct! I thought perhaps that Bryan has some fancy camera but, lo and behold my Nikon D40x does this too!

I can't wait to read the rest of the book, and put it all into practice.


Very useful, but..., 01 Sep 2008
I had been using this book in careers class to help me decide which universities I was going to apply to, and this book was exceedingly helpful for this task.
This book gives a league table of universities and also ranks them by each subject for example, Law or History. Another important aspect of this book is that it describes the universities making it truly invaluable to any A-Level student.
However, I only gave this book four stars because the vast majority of information is available online - in the Times website and also through the universities' websites.
Overall I would say that this book is very useful and definitely needed for any student who wants to make the right choice of university - after all it is one of the most important decisions you will make!


Excellent, 23 Jan 2007
Required reading for anyone considering or planning to go to University in the UK. A mass of well-researched, well-analysed data and information that helps one make much better informed judgement on one of the most important decisions of one's life.

Takes you inside a top MBA, 01 Sep 2008
Having just finished an MBA myself from London Business School, I saw this book at Heathrow on my way out of the UK and bought it with curiosity. I wanted to see whether my experience at London Business School would have been significantly different from that at a top American school; Harvard, of course, as far as MBA brands go, being number one in my opinion regardless of what competitors or any rankings say.

This book can be recommended to those interested in applying to Harvard or a comparable top MBA program to see if they have the right expectations of an MBA program; as well as to graduates of other programs to see how the experience at their schools compare against the holy grail of MBAs. It really goes inside what the MBA culture is about in general, especially at elitist schools, and at Harvard in particular. Broughton is not the only MBA who feels like this. The unreal world, the pressures, the tendency to go with the herd... despite having studied at a school across the atlantic, I continuously kept on smiling at the commonalities.

I disagree with the notion that this book disses the school, or the MBA in general. It just points out very well some of the absurdities of the program for all those who are not financial crackheads.

Honest and useful, 28 Aug 2008
This book comes across as an honest account of Delves Broughton's experience of, and reaction to, the Harvard Business School MBA course. Delves Broughton highlights well some of the strengths and weaknesses of the institution and the course, though the recent departure of the Dean (Kim Clark) will probably already have lead to changes in the mix.

I would particularly recommend the book to UK readers considering applying to a 'top-tier' US business school, not least because the author highlights some of the cultural differences that hit a British student most forcefully and can come as a bit of a surprise. Delves Broughton's experience also provides a useful reality check. Contrary to the author's apparent expectations, graduation from a business school of this type does not guarantee entree into the well-paid specialised world of hedge funds, private equity, investment banking or consulting. Many of the businesses in these industries have built into their business models recruitment from HBS and other similar schools, but they are looking for a very particular profile and the MBA badge is only one small component. If you don't fit more broadly you probably won't get the job. The author's criticisms of the cost to personal lives entailed in careers of this type are also worth thinking about hard.

For the general reader, Delves Broughton provides a useful flavour of the mindset and approach taught at these kinds of institution. Don't expect to come away with more than a vague impression though - this is not a primer of what they teach at Harvard Business School (title notwithstanding). He raises concerns that this 'business' mindset leads to problems when applied to other arenas of life, particularly if used naively or by people lacking decent ethical standards. (If HBS alumnus George W. Bush had shown any inclination to use this kind of approach in his decision-making, he would have made an easy stick with which to beat the institution). Whatever the merits of his argument, it's something that the HBS faculty (and many companies) worry about a lot, even if their attempts to discuss such ethical issues lead to stomach churning management-speak. Encouragingly, most of his fellow students seemed to take the point, though, even at this early stage in their careers.

One point of criticism of this book (and others of its kind). By publishing it Delves Broughton has arguably betrayed a tacit contract of confidentiality that exists between participants (faculty and students) in such institutions. 'Betrayals' of this kind are an everyday occurrence for daily newspaper journalists and this is perhaps why Delves Broughton seems unaware of this aspect; a couple of the professors in particular might feel justifiably aggrieved.

Great book praises, criticizes Harvard Business School, 21 Aug 2008
As a Harvard graduate (not HBS) I loved this book. Fantastic writing, lots of anecdotes, and very clear explanations of what they really teach at Havard Business School. But it's more than that. It's a trip through one man's attempt to find what he wants to do with his life. Delves Broughton was a very successful journalist, and he walked away to spend two years doing an MBA, which cost him $170,000. He finds that he isn't like most of his fellow students, who are obsessed with money. When the author goes to cover an anti-globalisation march, he sympathises with the protestors. Instead of writing an analysis of Time Warner, he choses a organic blueberry farmer. When his fellow students are off working over Spring break, he's at home in Boston working on a novel. It made me wonder: why did he go to business school? Ultimately, Delves Broughton is critical of the school, and gives good reasons for being so.
In response, the school has been mildly critical of the book, apparently arguing class-room conversations should be private. I think this probably stems from him revealing some of school's rorts, including one relating to financial aid. In all, the book is a 300-page ad for HBS and can only drive up applications.
But Delves Broughton's experience punctures one of the myths about HBS: that it creates business leaders. (STORY DISCLOSURE HERE.) He is the only member of his class not to get a job, mainly because he doesn't have any experience in finance or consulting, even though his grades were good and he clearly he could cut it in the classroom (although he is unlucky to miss out on a markeing job at Google.) It seems that no matter how many brilliant classes they have at Harvard, business recruiters want people with business experience.
It will be interesting to see if HBS admits many more journalists in the future.




Very amusing indeed, 14 Aug 2008
Very dry and witty - Delves Broughton brings alive all the madness and hype of the American MBA system. He half makes you want to enrol, and half to avoid the place for the rest of your life.

What is particularly good is that it is full of interesting business theory from the MBA course, which is very stimulating.

No doubt this book will make HBS very irritated - which is a good reason to buy it, I think!!


An inside look at the economic elite, 11 Aug 2008
Philip Broughton went into the Harvard MBA like an anthroplogist goes to live with an obscure jungle tribe - this book works on the same principle of outsider wisdom, of the newcomer able to see just how strange the social norms of these hard-to-access cultures can be. Marvel at these elite MBA-ers and their language of "creating a developmental agenda for leveraging their reflected best-self"! Puzzle at the strong emphasis on business integrity and moral judgment, when fact is everyone's really there to learn how to make a lot of money. But, however odd, the Harvard MBA programme indubitably produces global business & economic leaders who shape a substantial portion of our lives, and so it's in everyone's interests to understand how this elite are taught to think.

'What They Teach You At Harvard Business School' is not just a guide to the economic and management concepts the MBA students study. Broughton does talk about these topics, giving examples of the Harvard study system of analysing hundreds of case studies. This method seeks to teach the students how to handle the chief challenge in business: making good decisions with inadequate information. It's no substitute for the actual course, largely because none of the examples' statistics are published in this book, but as a non-economist I definitely learnt a lot regardless.

But of wider relevance is Broughton's discussion of the 'hidden curriculum' of Harvard Business School, the assumptions it inculcates in its students and the distorted beliefs they already hold about work & the economy. What do they think is the value of the money they'll be earning, when will they know that they've made enough? "When you've got your own jet." Even the pre-arrival guide says, "Don't bring that guitar... Don't bring any books from literature or history classes... Don't bring your cynicism. Do bring all the diverse rest of you." Interesting notion of diversity, right? The idea that future business leaders are being trained to dismiss history and cynical judgments is telling, and Broughton, a former journalist with the Telegraph, is never able to buy in to this culture. Instead of getting a high-flying job like his coursemates, he remains a writer - but the strength of this book is that he's not bitter about this. It's not a rant, not really an expose (no truly horrific secrets are uncovered) - just an insider's look into a world most of us won't enter.

The compelling narrative is Broughton's own decision-making about his future career: Harvard forces him to confront the values that really matter to him, makes him question deeply what it is that he really wants out of life. This is something a lot of university graduates and prospective MBAs could benefit from reading - I know I was fascinated.

Top notch, 27 Aug 2008
This book does exactly what it says on the cover, takes you through all the functions (with easy to see colour pictures)), working with light, exposure, photographing different subjects, etc. It explains your Nikon D40 and all of the features, I cannot recommend this highly enough. Between this and the Ken Rockwell website I have learnt so much about the D40.

Great, 03 Jul 2008
This book tell you all you need to know when starting out with the Nikon D40 in an easy and comprehensive way unlike the original c