<p><b><i>The Perfect Score Project </i>is an indispensable guide to acing the SAT &ndash; as well as the affecting story of a single mom's quest to light a fire under her teenage son.</b><br> <br>It all began as an attempt by Debbie Stier to help her high-school age son, Ethan, who would shortly be studying for the SAT.  Aware that Ethan was a typical teenager (i.e., completely uninterested in any test) and that a mind-boggling menu of test-prep options existed, she decided &ndash; on his behalf -- to sample as many as she could to create the perfect SAT test-prep recipe.<br> <br>Debbie's quest turned out to be an exercise in both hilarity and heartbreak as she took the SAT seven times in one year and in-between &ldquo;went to school&rdquo; on standardized testing.  Here, she reveals why the SAT has become so important, the cottage industries it has spawned, what really <i>works</i> in preparing for the test and what is a waste of time.<br> <br>Both a toolbox of fresh tips and an amusing snapshot of parental love and wisdom colliding with teenage apathy, <i>The Perfect Score Project </i>rivets. In the book Debbie does it all: wrestles with Kaplan and Princeton Review, enrolls in Kumon, navigates khanacademy.org, meets regularly with a premier grammar coach, takes a battery of intelligence tests, and even cadges free lessons from the world's most prestigious (and expensive) test prep company.<br> <br>Along the way she answers the questions that plague every test-prep rookie, including: &ldquo;When do I start?&rdquo;...&rdquo;Do the brand-name test prep services really deliver?&rdquo;...&rdquo;Which should I go with: a tutor, an SAT class, or self study?&rdquo;...&rdquo;Does test location really matter?&rdquo; &hellip;<i> </i>&ldquo;How do I find the <i>right</i> tutor?&rdquo;&hellip;<i> &ldquo;</i>How <i>do </i>SAT scores affect merit aid?&rdquo;... and &ldquo;What's the <i>one </i>thing I need to know?&rdquo;<br><i> </i><br><i>The Perfect Score Project's</i> combination of charm, authority, and unexpected poignancy makes it one of the most compulsively readable guides to SAT test prep ever &ndash; <i>and </i>a book that will make you think hard about what really matters.</p>