I see B+ books all the time and they come from some of the best portfolio schools around. (It's rarely the school's fault.) Since B+ is the average, a B+ book should get you a job in an average agency. But since average agencies don’t want to be average, sometimes a B+ book isn’t enough to get you a job there either.
One of the key differences between a B+ book and an A book is in its craft. Don’t confuse that with slickness. With polish or a beautifully photoshopped layout. It’s hard for me to explain what craft is. So I’ll let Jim Aitchison do it:
“Craft really means judgment. Craft can mean subtraction as well as addition. Craft means being appropriate. Craft means knowing when an extra detail can be added, when an extra layer of technique cannot. Craft is the watchdog of clarity.”
How would you define craft?