Hi Kyra,
While the LSAT Bibles undergo rather extensive upgrades from time to time (and they are updated every year in numeroussmall ways), the Workbooks do not require those same updates (because they are practice books, not strategy books like the Bibles, and the value of doing a certain LR section, for example, doesn't change form year to year). So, the 2016 Workbooks and the 2017 Workbooks are fundamentally the same.
The natural question might be to ask why we release yearly versions then. I talked about this in specific relation to the LSAT Bibles in this article:
The 2016 LSAT Bibles: Do You Need the Newest Editions? Part I, and as it applies to the Workbooks there are two main reasons:
- 1. There have been times in the past when we made extensive changes to the Workbooks, and thus if we didn't release them with identifiers, it would be very easy for students to mistakenly pick up a very old versions (and regrettably, it was those types of cases that lead to us releasing the books with years on them in the first place!).
2. Each year I make small updates to the Workbooks, whether that be to expand an explanation or to improve a drill or even fix the occasional typo. These improvements typically come about from the questions and conversations I have with students in places such as this Forum, and thus they often address the most pressing and relevant types of issues. The years allow us to know that students are getting the most up-to date books.
Short answer is that the 2016 Workbooks will be fine (and as far as the 2016 vs 2017 Bibles themselves, the 2016 LRB and LGB are fine but I'd recommend getting an updated 2017 RCB—more to come on this soon when I release a comprehensive discussion on the changes made).
Please let me know if that helps. Thanks!
