At last a compilation of general knowledge crosswords from your favouriteSunday newspaper! With over 100 puzzles with questions on a myriad ofsubjects, there is plenty here to flex your memory muscles and keep youentertained for hours. From classical music to the latest films, Mail on Sunday PrizeCrossword Volume 1 is perfect for quiz fans and puzzle lovers alike.

A journalist and word aficionado salutes the 100-year history and pleasures of crossword puzzles Since its debut in The New York World on December 21, 1913, the crossword puzzle has enjoyed a rich and surprisingly lively existence. Alan Connor, a comic writer known for his exploration of all things crossword in The Guardian, covers every twist and turn: from the 1920s, when crosswords were considered a menace to productive society; to World War II, when they were used to recruit code breakers; to their starring role in a 2008 episode of The Simpsons. He also profiles the colorful characters who make up the interesting and bizarre subculture of crossword constructors and competitive solvers, including Will Shortz, the iconic New York Times puzzle editor who created a crafty crossword that appeared to predict the outcome of a presidential election, and the legions of competitive puzzle solvers who descend on a Connecticut hotel each year in an attempt to be crowned the American puzzle-solving champion. At a time when the printed word is in decline, Connor marvels at the crossword’s seamless transition onto Kindles and iPads, keeping the puzzle one of America’s favorite pastimes. He also explores the way the human brain processes crosswords versus computers that are largely stumped by clues that require wordplay or a simple grasp of humor. A fascinating examination of our most beloved linguistic amusement—and filled with tantalizing crosswords and clues embedded in the text—The Crossword Century is sure to attract the attention of the readers who made Word Freak and Just My Type bestsellers.

Are you baffled by cryptic crosswords? Do you want to increase your word power and exercise your brain, but can't always make any sense of the clues? This book is packed with all the know-how, hints and tricks you will ever need to help you find the right answers every time. From clever to cunning to downright devious, all the different types of clue are here, with tips on how to recognise them, interpret them and, of course, solve them! Not only is doing crossword puzzles a great recessionary hobby because it costs very little to pursue, but solving a daily puzzle is good for your health: it has been shown to help reduce the risk of dementia and Alzheimer's, or at least delay its onset. With around one hundred and fifty clues analysed and explained in full, you will soon be on your way to the satisfaction of completing your first crossword grid; impressing your family, friends and fellow commuters; and maybe even winning a prize!

Finally, a crossword dictionary with all the words solvers need--and none of the ones they don't! When it comes to puzzle dictionaries, it's the "quality" of what's inside that counts. To make the dictionary even easier to use, the most popular answers stand out in easy-to-see red, while charts highlight frequently sought-after information such as Oscar winners and Popes' names. Crossword fans will keep this right next to their favorite puzzles!

The New York Times bestselling author of The Year of Living Biblically goes on a rollicking journey to understand the enduring power of puzzles: why we love them, what they do to our brains, and how they can improve our world. “Even though I’ve never attempted the New York Times crossword puzzle or solved the Rubik’s Cube, I couldn’t put down The Puzzler.”—Gretchen Rubin, author of The Happiness Project and Better Than Before Look for the author’s new podcast, The Puzzler, based on this book! What makes puzzles—jigsaws, mazes, riddles, sudokus—so satisfying? Be it the formation of new cerebral pathways, their close link to insight and humor, or their community-building properties, they’re among the fundamental elements that make us human. Convinced that puzzles have made him a better person, A.J. Jacobs—four-time New York Times bestselling author, master of immersion journalism, and nightly crossworder—set out to determine their myriad benefits. And maybe, in the process, solve the puzzle of our very existence. Well, almost. In The Puzzler, Jacobs meets the most zealous devotees, enters (sometimes with his family in tow) any puzzle competition that will have him, unpacks the history of the most popular puzzles, and aims to solve the most impossible head-scratchers, from a mutant Rubik’s Cube, to the hardest corn maze in America, to the most sadistic jigsaw. Chock-full of unforgettable adventures and original examples from around the world—including new work by Greg Pliska, one of America’s top puzzle-makers, and a hidden, super-challenging but solvable puzzle—The Puzzler will open readers’ eyes to the power of flexible thinking and concentration. Whether you’re puzzle obsessed or puzzle hesitant, you’ll walk away with real problem-solving strategies and pathways toward becoming a better thinker and decision maker—for these are certainly puzzling times.

This handbook is the result of the authors experience in solving crosswords (almost exclusively from the New York Times) for a period of over 10 years and is designed to help puzzle solvers of all abilities. It covers such strategic subjects as themes in puzzles and what a clue is attempting to elicit, as well as such tactical subjects as what, precisely, is to be written in the squares in a puzzle. Thus, the scope of the handbook ranges from the general to the detailed. Some of the subjects covered are foreign languages (French is the most popular, by far), mythology, the Old Testament, literature (including poetry and drama), classical music, sports (baseball is the crossword favorite), entertainment (comics, movies, television, and pop music), art and architecture, geography ( Ireland wins out here), science and math, travel and transportation, computers and the internet, as well as a list of those special words that are favorites of puzzle constructors (and hardly used by anyone else). Crosswords are fun, and this handbook helps you to enjoy them. To quote from the acknowledgments, The author and his readers are in the debt of all those puzzle makers and their editors, who give us such pleasure every day. Our lives are greatly enriched by them, and they help show us what a wonderful legacy we have in the English language.

The only Sunday crosswords with a" Far Side" sense of humor. Of the top 15 crossword books in the country overall, including The New York Times, five of them are by Merl Reagle. Appearing in newspapers with a total circulation of more than 10 million readers, Merl Reagle's Sunday Crosswords is quickly becoming the most popular Sunday puzzle in America. Called" the best Sunday crossword creator in America" by Games magazine, Merl Reagle has been making crossword puzzles since age six. He had his first crossword for The San Francisco Examiner in 1985. "For freshness, humor and quality of construction, crossword just don't get any better than this." -Will Shortz, Crossword Puzzle Editor, The New York Times "Smart, funny, and challenging! I wish he made more of them for me!" -Erica Rothstein, former Editor-in-Chief, Dell Crossword Magazines