The New York Times Tough Crossword Puzzles Volume 13: 100 of the Most Challenging Puzzles from the Pages of The New York Times

The New York Times Tough Crossword Puzzles Volume 13: 100 of the Most Challenging Puzzles from the Pages of The New York Times
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Manufacturer: St. Martin's Griffin
Average Customer Rating: Average rating of 3.5/5Average rating of 3.5/5Average rating of 3.5/5Average rating of 3.5/5Average rating of 3.5/5

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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 793
EAN: 9780312342401
ISBN: 0312342403
Label: St. Martin's Griffin
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Griffin
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 128
Publication Date: 2005-08-01
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Release Date: 2005-07-28
Studio: St. Martin's Griffin
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Editorial Reviews:
Are you up to the challenge?

Dazzling Difficult Crosswords from The New York Times

· 100 tough, tricky crosswords from Friday and Saturday editions of The New York Times
· Appearing for the first time in book form
· Edited by Will Shortz
Spotlight customer reviews:
Customer Rating: Average rating of 4/5Average rating of 4/5Average rating of 4/5Average rating of 4/5Average rating of 4/5
Summary: Tough puzzles indeed, but unfortunately, without themes.
Comment: A selection of Crossword puzzles from the Friday/Saturday N.Y. Times Newspaper.

These are, as the title adequately suggests, hard crossword puzzles. They are puzzles that will give you a thorough cerebral workout; they require lots of thought and the occasional use of a crossword puzzle book for obscure names, references etc. However, they were do-able with some determination and perseverance.

However the main questions is...were they fun? In a word...NO! Well, at least not as much as I'd hoped. Why? Let me explain.

The puzzles in this book are set up on your basic 15x15 grid, but, unfortunately, without any particular theme connected to them. In fact, it was this volume of puzzles made me realize that my definition of a really entertaining crossword puzzle MUST have a 'theme' associated with it; that is, a set of somewhat related definitions that usually have answers involving some deceptive phrases or some tricky word-plays. These type of puzzles (with a theme) are only found in the weekend edition of the N.Y. Times puzzle.

Conclusion:
These are, tough crossword puzzles, as the title correctly stated.
However, I love my crossword puzzles with a devious theme and there are none in this volume. But, I have no one to blame but myself as I should have read the title of this soft-covered book more carefully. Next time I'll I look a little closer at the title and the material within.

Ray Nicholson

Customer Rating: Average rating of 5/5Average rating of 5/5Average rating of 5/5Average rating of 5/5Average rating of 5/5
Summary: Great Brain teasers
Comment: When you complete one of these crosswords (without using a dictionary or cheating!) you really feel like you have accomplished something. I love it when I complete a puzzle that I didn't even start filling in until about clue #20! You can't go wrong with Will Shortz.
Customer Rating: Average rating of 1/5Average rating of 1/5Average rating of 1/5Average rating of 1/5Average rating of 1/5
Summary: I'm sure this is fun, but I just don't get crosswords
Comment: If you like crossword puzzles, you might love this.
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