Readbooksnotnames - I've heard that they rarely ask detailed questions about those countries, I'm still kinda jittery though, since I've only skimmed a few books and I don't really feel up to a lengthy conversation about e.g. The Irish Parliament, the history of Ireland or of Canada etc. "I feel at a disadvantage..." - Yep, me too, believe me! I've never even taken a mock CAE (and I sort of clam up and always do badly in oral exams). I'd love to pass CPE in... two years, maybe, but who cares, after all? It's our abilities that count :). How about the set books? Do we need to dwell on all the details, the niceties? Or is the gist of the story important, the themes etc., and some nice things to know about the author? I've been firing questions at myself for the past few days and I'm starting to feel like a baby in the woods. I hope your morale is higher. :D