I think it all depends on your skill/knowledge level. If, in reading through the books it all seems "old hat" because you've already learned the material and it's all coming back to you then great. Read it through and re-read the spots where you feel rusty. If, on the other hand, "it's all Greek to you", then read and study carefully, maybe hitting the internet or other sources for additional information if needed. In either case, I'd suggest looking for some of the online practice ham tests. They'll be a good indicator of where you stand and how you'll fare on the actual test.
I agree on the two different camps, either you already know it all and you don't need to study much at all except to learn the question pool, that's understandable but pretty rare.
I spoke to an airline pilot recently who had to take the test for Tech for their job. I don't know what the precedence on that is but they passed the exam, very little study.
They are an airline pilot for heavens sakes, they did practice exams, at least 50 of them.
If you're a soccer mom, and you need explanation on exactly what a radio is and that there are different frequencies and modes. That's a different story. You've got to start from square One. Those are the ones that get 50% of the questions right but learn from that and pass with 100% next time LOL..
A good analogy would be chess. I was playing when I was 11 or 12 years old pretty skillfully. I was a member of a prestigious competitive club when I was 15 through 25. Try learning chess, sight unseen, when you're 40. Just saying.
