Sasbadi, RM36.90, ISBN 978-983-77-3464-7
Education, 2023

MUET stands for the Malaysian University English Test.

Local universities — including private ones — use the results to gauge a candidate’s proficiency in that language, and typically, one needs to achieve at least Band 3 (that will be the passing grade; anything below Band 3 is a fail) or a minimum of 123 out of 360 points.

That means, one just needs to get about 1/3 of the score to get through into a local university, and it’s not hard unless the candidate is really unable to speak and write in English well. Those candidates, however, would already have problems with the SPM English paper, so they should know ahead of time that they need help to do well in this paper. Buying a MUET book alone won’t help them much!

The MUET paper is just a bit more difficult than the SPM English paper, and candidates that do well in the latter shouldn’t have any issue unless they show up in the exam hall with a massive hangover.

However, candidates that have problems with speaking in public or speaking smoothly due to issues such as stuttering will likely encounter some hiccups in the speaking part of the paper, just like they would in the SPM English paper, but fortunately, most examiners are understanding if the candidates stutter or have speech impediments. I have a very obvious stuttering problem that can come on at the worst moments — such as during my oral exams — so I can personally testify to this!

As for this book, I am going to be reviewing MUET books differently in that Masterclass MUET will be the only one I will be talking about. I won’t be touching those from other publishers because, just like with Mathematics subjects, these books tend to be all the same in terms of presentation and style. Reviewing each one will be repetitive.

Masterclass MUET, however, is noticeably different from those other books.

Authors

This is one reason why I’m reviewing this book: I know of two of the authors — note that I don’t know them personally —which are Professors Cynthia Yolanda Doss and Malachi Edwin Vethamani. Both are very experienced academics, speakers, authors, and even poet in Professor Malachi’s case, so in a way, that makes the pedigree of the authors of this book quite impressive indeed.

The other two, Emily Neoh Gaik Kin and Vasanthi T Arasoo, are speakers and authors according to this book. Sasbadi rarely shies away from showing off its authors’ credibility and titles!

What… Why Are We Talking about a 2023 Edition of This Book?

This is because the latest edition, at the time of writing, skimps on things by having the first chapter shuttled off online and accessible only via a QR code.

Why pay for a new edition that has less content for the same price, and what’s left of the content is more or less the same as the 2023 edition?

Also, the unintentionally suggestive cover complements the kitsch design of the inside pages in an adorable manner.

Design

Back to this book, the design is another reason why I like this book.

It is colorful, it has cute images to break up the monotony and “serious” tone of the book, and instead of conventional tables everywhere for lists of items, it presents information in varied forms such as flow charts, mind maps, and more.

As a result, this book has a cheery, fun vibe that makes revising with it and doing practice exercises in it so much more interesting than it otherwise would be!

The only downside is that the content on each page tends to be super close to the edge of the page, but that’s just a small thing as far as I’m concerned. It kind of adds to the kitschy feel of the design, actually!

Content

First off, this book does not contain grammar lessons. It also will not teach you how to write if you have problems with essays.

The authors focus instead on introducing candidates to the structure and format of the MUET exam and how to do well within the format. They expect, reasonably, that candidates will already have some degree of proficiency in English.

This is reflected in the first chapter, Take Ownership of Your Learning, which is online-only in subsequent editions. This is a fun chapter that introduces why MUET and the English language are such a big deal, show how the brain works, and how to use this knowledge to optimize one’s learning. The authors don’t expect to teach the candidate everything in this book, but they are sharing useful tips on how these candidates can do some learning on their own.

It’s a shame that this chapter is currently online only, because its inclusion makes this book different and even unique from other MUET books out there. I like that it doesn’t try to do too much and is focused on MUET mostly, because this means one gets plenty of practice exercises without having to buy other supplementary MUET books.

Candidates that do need help in English grammar and writing skills are better off investing their time and money in books on these topics. If speaking and writing are an issue, getting a tutor may be more helpful.

So, What’s in This Book?

Firstly, I test the audio components, especially for the listening parts, and they are clear and audible, so that’s good.

Secondly, each chapter on different components of the MUET begins with a detailed explanation on what is scored, and how to get good scores. This may be TMI and a source of anxiety for some candidates that are already worried about the paper, but I think the information here can actually shape how the candidate should approach that section. Knowledge is empowerment, after all, and it is always better to enter the exam hall knowing what to expect instead of just walking in blind!

There are also hints and tips on how to tackle the MUET section, presented in colorful layouts with cute illustrations. No boring numbered lists or tables here!

Finally, there are many practice questions at the end of the section, and unlike the actual MUET paper at times, I don’t find ambiguous questions with several possible correct questions here. As a bonus, some of the questions are tricky enough to catch the careless candidate by surprise!

Conclusion

• This is the most fun, colorful, and attractive MUET book in the market in terms of presentation and style.
• The authors adopt a formal tone but not too formal until one feels like reading a school textbook. This helps to make this book less of a slough to go through!
• Plenty of practice exercises to do, with clear audio components for listening and speaking parts of the book.
• This book is focused on doing well in MUET, not improving one’s English, so candidates wishing for help in improving their language may want to consider instead getting a tutor or investing in books or audiobooks on grammar, speaking, and writing.