Customer Reviews

How to Conquer the New York Times Crossword Puzzle: Tips, Tricks and Techniques to Master America's Favorite Puzzle

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Many people are simply not interested or motivated to solve a crossword puzzle. Ever. This book is clearly not for them. On the other hand, there are people who live and breathe crossword puzzles, doing multiple puzzles every day, competing in crossword tournaments, discussing puzzles daily, or even constructing puzzles. This book is not so much for them, either. This book targets the masses in between, the occasional solver, the one who is trying to get more consistent, the one who wants to be able to tackle puzzles of higher difficulty than those found in "TV Guide" or airline magazines.

So, does it succeed? That depends on your expectations. The title, "How to Conquer The New York Times Crossword Puzzle (Tips, Tricks and Techniques to Master America's Favorite Puzzle)", makes it sound easy -- read this book and KAZAAM, you'll be good at puzzles. The truth is, solving a crossword puzzle requires a combination of general knowledge (vocabulary, literature, pop culture, art, sciences, geography, etc.), crossword conventions (i.e. an abbreviation in the clue implies an abbreviation in the answer), and puzzling logic (recognizing letter patterns, interpreting tricky clues, discovering unconventional tricks, etc.). This book is a great introduction to the latter two, especially for those that are just starting out. The general knowledge part is still up to you.

The book break roughly into sections -- easy, medium, Thursday, hard, and Sunday puzzles. Thursday puzzles are medium but often gimmicky, and Sunday puzzles are medium/hard but considerably larger than weekday puzzles. Each section starts with a couple pages of basic strategy relating to that difficulty level. It's not rocket science, but it sets a nice context for the puzzles that follow. Then follows a "Step-by-Step" solving of a puzzle appropriate for that section. While this may sound like the highlight of the book, I found it to be one of the weaker features. While it's mildly interesting to eavesdrop the brain of a master solver and to see some of the logic applied, the vast majority turns out not to be particularly instructional, as many crossword clues fall into the "you know it or you don't" category. Clearly, Ms. Reynaldo knows it, but that doesn't really help the novice solver. For example, the hard puzzle starts with the 1-Across clue "Sonnet ender". The step-by-step guide starts out "...amazingly for a Saturday puzzle, I think I know the answer: SESTET." Okay, fine, but how does that help those who don't know these things? Even in the easy puzzle, we find things like, "33-Down [Cartoon possum] is POGO, and 34-Down [Greek love god] is EROS." Again, fine if you know these things. But what if you don't? This broad knowledge, as much as puzzle savvy, is what separates the "masters" from the rest.

After each step-by-step solve, there are 10-15 previously-run puzzles for that category. They represent a nice cross-section of the usual suspects that contribute puzzles to the New York Times. (Regular solvers of the New York Times puzzle will often recognize the names and styles of frequent constructors and will thus have a subtle headstart on the type of puzzle to expect.) A nice touch is that each puzzle has a "hints" paragraph at the back of the book, so a solver who is stuck may well get a push in the right direction without resorting to looking at the answers (which, of course, are also there).

Interspersed throughout are short chapters that may truly be the gems of the book. Two in particular are "100 Must-Know Words" and "Top 10 Ways Constructors Try to Trick You". The 100 words are truly crossword staples. These include the short, vowelly words like OLIO and ELIA that appear over and over in puzzles. Learning them up-front would certainly jump start any novice solver. The constructor "tricks" include common ways that clues are written to be deliberately misleading. These are the clues that make you slap your head and/or chuckle when you finally figure them out, and they tend to separate the New York Times and other quality puzzles from the also-rans. The short chapter "Word Banks" introduces another 300 words, names, and abbreviations that show up fairly often in puzzles, grouped in categories. Unfortunately, it is not as well done as the "100 Must-Know Words", in that only about half have any definition at all. The inclusion of two or three common clues for each, as is done in the "100 Must-Know Words" would have made this section much more valuable. As it is, it feels somewhat unfinished. In addition there a several mini-lessons entitled "Think Outside the Boxes". These address issues like recognizing letter patterns and how to recognize when you've made a mistake. Good stuff for the novice, though a Table of Contents would have been nice.

Finally, the book includes two chapters that sound great but are really just throw-ins: "How to Construct a Crossword Puzzle" and "How to Become a Better Solver". I am reminded of the Monty Python skit of the TV show "How To Do It": "How to play the flute. (picking up a flute) Well here we are. You blow there and you move your fingers up and down here." Right. Okay, so, how to be a better solver. Do more puzzles. Read and learn things. Remember them. Got it? Good.

The chapter "How to Construct a Crossword Puzzle" is really a misnomer. This is not something that can be covered in two-and-a-half pages, and this book will not teach you to do it (though it does point to several good references). A better title would be "How Constructors Construct a Crossword Puzzle". The vast majority of people have no idea how puzzles are actually made. This is a nice, high-level overview that gives some insight into the process and perhaps offers solvers a mild appreciation of what is involved.

In summary, despite a couple of weak spots there is a lot to like about this book. It is a great starting point for anyone who wants to start doing New York Times-style crosswords, or for those who have difficulty with all but the early-in-the-week puzzles. Buy it as a gift for someone you love (maybe throw in the DVD "Wordplay" as well) and introduce them into the wonderful world of crosswords. Maybe they'll even get hooked.

And that's a good thing. :)

As an avid crossword fan of modest ability, I found this to be a most helpful tutorial. It delivers just what the title promises -- all sorts of tips and strategies for solving the NYT crossword (or any crossword for that matter).

I found the list of words any crossword fan must know as well the lists of common crossword answers to be particularly helpful. But perhaps the best praise I can provide is that after reading Amy Reynaldo's book, my solving skills have noticeably improved -- from a confident Tues. solver at best to someone who can now tackle a Thur. puzzle with a relatively high degree of confidence (Fri. and Sat. remain a significant challenge, but I'm working on it).

Also, if you're looking to get a taste of this book, you might want to check out Ms. Reynaldo's blog, Diary of a Crossword Fiend (http://crosswordfiend.blogspot.com/), which provides great daily insight into the NYT and other crosswords.

I received this book as a Christmas gift. And it has changed my world. I was born and grew up in Xi'An, China. Moved to the US when I was 30 years old. So American crosswords were almost impossible for me to crack, until I read Amy Reynaldo's book.

Her chapters on "100 Must-Know Words" & "Word Banks" have saved me hours and hours of google time. Without her succinct explanations on "Crossword Glossary", "Understanding Themes" & the "Constructor's Tricks", I would have been forever lost in the darkness of this puzzling crossword world.

I was so excited about Amy's book that I started my own LA Times Crossword Corner (formerly Star Tribune Crossword Corner) before I even finished her chapter on "Step-by-Step Thursday Puzzle".

I've also emailed Amy (Orange) many times as I constantly encounter all sorts of crazy clues when I am blogging. She has never disappointed me. She always provides me with the concise information I need, always in a very efficient manner. And she is so patient in explaining the WHY and HOW to me (a total stranger to her).

If you want to start doing NY Times, or LA Times, or any crossword, you should consider buying this book. It's full of gems, and so easy to carry around for reference (little over 200 pages).

If you are an experienced "NY Times" Crossword solver, you'll find very little of solving value in this book beyond some useful lists of common words and perhaps some solving hints you may have forgotten. What you will find is a model of a kind and empathetic teacher helping less experienced solvers. Hint: emulate Amy when others ask for your help solving a crossword puzzle.

If you generally finish "The New York Times" puzzles but don't keep track of time or accuracy -- pretty much my level after 30 years solving under four different editors -- you'll like the lists of words and devour the hints. You'll probably skip doing the puzzles in the book unless you solve your puzzles with pen or pencil.

If you are a beginner, or stuck on at any particular level, Ms. Reynaldo's book will teach you to improve your solving and increase your solving pleasure. The lists and hints are first class with no clinkers apparent to me. Actually doing the puzzles, and consulting her hints and especially her overall comments in the end page, cannot but help you improve your solving. This is the best educational approach I've seen in any puzzle book.

I skipped doing the puzzles in her book. I prefer doing puzzles on the computer, and I've often consulted Ms Reynaldo's website on other puzzles. She posts similar commentaries every day on her blog at DIARY OF A CROSSWORD FIEND. Her analysis covers puzzles from the "NY Times" and several other papers as well.

So, I've bought a copy of her book to thank Ms Reynaldo for maintaining her blog, and I've sent her book out into Book Crossing's Wilds. Perhaps the Finder will be introduced to crosswords and become enchanted with this minor art form -- just as I became enchanted so many happy years ago.

Robert C. Ross 2008

For a few dollars, you get over 63 NYT puzzles, hints for solving them, step-by-step walkthroughs for a few (extremely helpful for beginners), plus a list of the 100 frequent words in the puzzles with their common clues (such as "OLEO: Bread spread; butter substitute; toast topper"). If you're not yet capable of solving Thursday's puzzle on your own, this book will help you get there faster.

If you're looking for something even more basic, try The Complete Idiot's Guide to Crossword Puzzles and Word Games.

I loved this book, and I'm also a fan of Reynaldo's blog and the NYT Xword puzzle. I like knowing how a real crossword maven's mind works as she solves puzzle and the kind of inside background info that this book provides. As others have mentioned, the many NY Times puzzles included with the book are a huge bonus. I've given this book as a gift to friends who have never quite understood my fascination with Will Shortz's puzzles and I think at least a few of them are now converts.

I enjoyed the puzzles in the book, and I believe I really have benefited from the tips. My crossword game is definitely a step or two above what it was prior to going through it. However, I can't say I've the "conquered" of the New York Times Crossword puzzles yet. So, you probably shouldn't buy completely into the promise of the title.

One other thing to keep in mind - this is not a book you just read, or a group of puzzles you just complete. Its really more of a workbook and it takes some commitment to really absorb the lessons. A few times, I caught myself just enjoying the puzzle and not really focusing on learning the tricks, tips, and traps.

I picked this up because I'm a fan of Reynaldo's blog, and because I've been stuck at a Thursday level of solving for longer than I liked. I can't say that any of the solving tips really helped all that much -- I've been solving long enough to have already learned them -- but what did help was just grinding my way through eleven Friday/Saturday level puzzles in a row. I just now finished last Friday's NYT puzzle in one sitting, which I don't think I'd ever done before, and I attribute that to the experience of working through all the puzzles in this book. I would imagine, though, that the word lists and other hints and tips would be helpful to a less experienced solver.

Although the Hints and Tips section was not of much use to me while solving the puzzles (though I might still be stuck on 55A in puzzle 44 without them), I did enjoy that section for her commentary on the puzzles. In fact, it would have been nice if Reynaldo had provided URLs for the puzzles about which she had blogged.

As you may have picked up from the other reviews, the book is mainly composed of the author's thoughts as she walks you through solving puzzles. Each chapter starts with the unsolved puzzle, and then the text of her thoughts interspersed with the increasingly filled in grids of the puzzle as she completes it. In many ways, it's very much like the crossword blogs you can find on the Internet, where the blogger ruminates on how they solved today's puzzle. For me, though, it's a little like looking over the shoulder of someone on the subway solving a puzzle, not a particularly satisfying experience.

The book also contains 63 NYT puzzles, many of which you may have already seen if you've bought NYT crossword collections. Each has a few paragraph section containing hints, comments on the theme, and maybe a little about the constructor. Again, this is similar to what crossword bloggers publish.

Personally, I don't "get" crossword blogs. But if you do, this could be the book for you.

This little book is a must for anyone who loves to do crossword puzzles. The puzzles in this book are challenging and fun!