Reddit reviews AP U.S. History Crash Course (REA: The Test Prep AP Teachers Recommend)
We found 8 Reddit comments about AP U.S. History Crash Course (REA: The Test Prep AP Teachers Recommend). Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.
This book got me a 5: https://www.amazon.com/U-S-History-Crash-Course-REA/dp/0738608130 . It's short yet contains all the material you will need for the test.
I pulled a five using only this
http://www.amazon.com/U-S-History-Crash-Course-REA/dp/0738608130
Its fast, bullet points, fucking works. You could read it in an afternoon. Don't be soft. Remember the boring "diversity" topics like womens rights, labor unions, slavery, etc because the test people get their liberal dicks hard over them.
Also don't be afraid to skip anything post Ronald Reagan. Shit wont be on the essay
The AP tests are actually really easy. I just read these crash courses a few days before hand and got 4s. Read the reviews.
http://www.amazon.com/U-S-History-Crash-Course-REA/dp/0738608130/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1346487496&sr=8-1&keywords=ap+us+history+crash+course
THIS
I shit you not, I never really payed attention, read the book, or took notes, but pretty much got a 4 on the exam by reading this 200 page bullet point book alone on the 3rd to last day.
Not to say that you should completely ignore other sources, but the book does a good job of compiling a lot of information that comes up on the exam often.
Try REA Crash Course. I'm in a similar situation to you (teacher never taught) and reading this book is helping me consistently score a 5 on practice tests. It's fairly short and you should be able to read it by Wednesday.
For the AP exam, I found that getting and reading these review books really helped:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/0738608130 (AP U.S. History Crash Course)
http://www.amazon.com/United-States-History-Preparing-Examination/dp/1567656609 (United States History: Preparing for the Advanced Placement Examination)
The Crash Course book is useful for quick information and the other book is useful for detailed information. I used both to study for the tests also. I read both of these books a couple weeks before the AP exam and got a 5. You will see how wonderful they are once you read them.
I found taking/studying released and mock exams help review for the AP exam. Also, if your school uses American Pageant, I would take "Ace Practice Test" if you want a review.
Wikinotes and coursenotes are useful chapter reviews. I found that the difference between the two is that coursenotes is a broad overview and wikinotes goes into detail.
Studying with and quizzing your classmates will help a lot because you teach (and re-learn) while your friends teach you. Its a win-win situation!
That's all I have to say. Good luck with your AP class and exam!
AMSCO and this book
For a basic book on general US history, I would recommend pretty much any AP United States History review book. I prefer the REA crash course book (http://www.amazon.com/U-S-History-Crash-Course-REA/dp/0738608130). It covers general history facts that you would learn in an APUSH course or US history 101. The only drawback is that these books tend to skip over a lot of things because of the general focus. It's great for this though, and I always refer to this book.