Customer Reviews

Word Searches For Dummies

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4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

I'm new to word puzzles, and because of this book I'm now a convert. In free moments I'm finding it a pleasure to work my way gradually through this book, yellow highlighter in hand. The Introduction got me going. I liked its clear instructions and found them both intriguing and reassuring. (I would probably not have picked the book up were it not for its title: "Word Searches for Dummies.") I'm enjoying putting my gray cells to work in a most agreeable and interesting way. The book is excellently and thoughtfully put together. Chapter 12 (Helpful Hints to Keep You Going) has given me many a nod and a chuckle, and it has made it possible for me not--not yet, anyway--to resort to Chapter 13 (The Answers You Seek). I think the book will appeal especially not only to oldsters but also, with its themed format, to youngsters.

I was given this book by a friend and have become a fan of Word Searches because of it. I thought over Amazon customers might be interested in my thoughts on the book.

I am a writer and editor so words are my stock in trade so I especially liked the themed puzzles where I was was quite often introduced to new words within the context of a theme. Yes, I admit, I'm a pedant, but I have a dictionary and I'm not afraid to use it, so be warned ;-).

The book is structured as an introduction for a novice, as one would expect from the Dummies title range. It introduces the reader to progressively more interesting and difficult puzzle types with lots of Easy, Medium and Hard puzzles in each of the types. The earlier puzzles I found too easy for me, so I skipped ahead. The book was obviously written with this in mind as I found myself at no disadvantage in doing so. Towards the end the author goes into some more theoretical discussions on the making of and general hints on solving these types of puzzles. I especially liked the chapters on word frequency and how these can be used in word searches, anagrams and even for finding Scrabble words (another favourite past time of mine).

I did notice a few errors in the book though - hardly surprising for such a complex book - and it was nice to see that the author had an errata page on her website. She was also quite friendly to me when I contacted her with my contributions.

All in all, I found this book to be not only interesting, but highly entertaining, and I think it would appeal to Word Searchers of all levels of competency.

Enjoy.

Phill Berrie.

My daughter ordered this book in the kindle version, thinking she would be able to do the word puzzles on her kindle, however, the kindle version is just a copy of the hard copy version of this book. You can't actually do any of the word searches, as it won't let you select letters or words in the puzzles. So basically you have to look at the word list and then try to guess where the words are, which is fine. However, there is no way to mark the words once they are found so you never feel like you've done the puzzle! My daughter was very disappointed that she paid $10 for a book that doesn't work on her kindle. She was used to sudoku puzzles on her kindle which actually let you complete the puzzle. So, Kindle users, give this a pass!! I'm sure this is a great word search book, but don't buy it for the kindle! Hard copy only!

There's something for everyone in this collection. As the author writes in the introduction under "Foolish Assumptions":

"Word search puzzles have such a wide appeal and are so accessible to everyone that all I'm assuming is that you can read English -- you don't even need to have a wide general knowledge or know how to spell well to do most of the puzzles in this book."

That came as a relief, because I picked up this book in order to re-charge the ol' brain cells. With my vision and my focus entirely too much on either the computer monitor or non-fiction books as of late, my eyes as well as my mental muscles needed some balancing exercises. The author hits just the right tone (friendly, fun, and interesting) and provides plenty of hints (one for every puzzle in the book, it says). So, if you're stumped, you don't need to jump right to the answers. I enjoyed the variety of puzzle types as well as range of skill/cognition required.

I love words so when I saw this book and started reading the first part I just had to have it. It is well written and a fun book to learn or freshen up, if you have done these before. You will definitely learn more.

I have not done word search puzzles for quite a few years but the Author make learning a real treat. She has a great sense of humor. I have purchased Word books for dummies for other technical apps but this one is a winner. I highly recommend this book for anyone who love Scrabble, Bookworm or any word game.

It's important to exercise those little gray cells, and MS Sutherland's book is a personal trainer to get you going and improve your technique. The variety of puzzles keeps you interested and menatally limber, and the increasing difficulty levels build your strength and endurance. And, incidentally, the book is GREAT fun! The best part, though, is the instructions on how to build your own word-search puzzles. What a great, personalized present for a friend or relative! It's priceless, and almost free. Just what us silver citizens need in today's economy.

This is a really well set out book. Lots and lots of great information and fun puzzles. A girl I work with loves word searches and she's turned me onto the idea that they are a nice way to fill in some time. It's been nice to rediscover how fun a word search can be.

Denise Sutherland must love words and it shows in the way she's put this book together. It's word searches for everyone. It's amazing how quickly you start to see words in the jumbled mass of letters so it probably helps general reading ability, as well as being a fun pastime. Other reviews have said lots about the structure and themes being helpful and interesting. The things that stood out for me is that she shares the secrets of creating searches so you can make your own as gifts, what a great idea!

I've loved word search puzzles all my life and done them daily for years. Little did I know the limited realm I was exploring. Sutherland's variations and the many tips have all revealed that word search puzzles can be so much more interesting than the ones I've done. Her word searches based on articles and stories are quite engaging, with information I truly found interesting and informative. I particularly like in the medium and hard puzzles the ways that she makes them more challenging, and as I've done them, more than once the word "diabolical" comes to mind. I'm inspired to try to make some for my English class students, and to teach them some of the tips I've learned from Sutherland. Even wordies like myself have a lot to learn!