I really enjoyed Prof. McGuire's Econ 130 class. I found the material very interesting, and it one of the better econ classes I've taken. The tests are a bit challenging and require that you keep up with lecture topics and go over them enough to understand them. I wouldn't say that the course was dictated by the book. I didn't read every single chapter assigned, but I did have to go to the book for more information on a lot of topics. This is mainly because the professor just covered SO much material. A lot of people complained that there were too many chapters to read, but again, I didn't find it necessary to read all of every single chapter. There were only a few homework sets, and they are important for the tests. I would have to say though that her course would be best taught over a semester rather than a quarter because there was just a lot of material. However, she makes the material interesting and easier to learn, so I highly recommend her class, but don't expect a really easy A without keeping up and knowing the stuff!