The New York Times Ultimate Crossword Omnibus: 1,001 Puzzles from The New York Times (Paperback)

by The New York Times (Author), Will Shortz (Editor), The New York Times (Author) "If I may be frank, this book contains more crossword puzzles than any sane person would ever consider trying at once..." (more)
Key Phrases: cowardly lion, arcade name, list ender, Rich Norris, Manny Nosowsky, Fred Piscop (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
There's never been a crossword puzzle book like this one. Simply put, it offers more puzzles, more value, and more enjoyment than any other book on the market. It's got: -An unbelievable 1,001 crossword puzzles-more than have ever appeared before in a single volume -An eye-catching cover design that stands out from the pack -The New York Times puzzles: the standard by which all others are measured -Hundreds of hours of puzzling fun for even the most accom-plished solver -All difficulty levels-from easy Monday puzzles through the Friday and Saturday end-of-the-week enigmas. 'Will Shortz, crossword editor of The New York Times, is [the crossword book world's] John Grisham.' -Martin Arnold, The New York Times

About the Author
Will Shortz has been the crossword puzzle editor of The New York Times since 1993. Mr. Shortz founded both the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament, where he serves as director, and the World Puzzle Championship, where he is the captain of the U.S. team. He is the current Puzzlemaster for "Weekend Edition Sunday"on National Public Radio.

Product Details

• Paperback: 560 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin (May 16, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312316224
• ISBN-13: 978-0312316228
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.3 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #11,331 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

55 of 55 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It is what it is and it is great., January 5, 2005

By	Joe Schmoe reviewer - See all my reviews

I was buying the NY Times everyday just so I could do the puzzle at lunchtime at the office. In the area I lived, it was $1 a day! Do the math. This collection saved me a bundle.

As a habitual crossword puzzler, I switched from habitually buying the paper each morning to habitually zeroxing the next puzzle in this book. I found it much easier to copy the puzzles than to hold this rather bulky tome. And copying allowed me to enlarge them to a full letter size page if I so desired (though it was not necessary -- the puzzles are their normal dimensions and fit two-to-a-page in this collection).

Working off a copy also discouraged me from turning the page and starting a different puzzle when I got stuck on the really tough Friday and Saturday puzzles.

If you're a habitual puzzler, this book is a god send.

Bottom line(s): The price is obviously fantastic. The collection is obviously HUGE! The puzzles are just like the daily paper -- from Monday-easy to Saturday-nearly-impossible. I never ran into a puzzle I remembered doing in the paper.

No cons, but some advice... It's not the kind of book you'll want to carry around since it is, of course, large. And if you're not a habitual puzzler, it might end up on a shelf unused since it is a daunting number of puzzles.

Also, in case you're a novice puzzler, the NY Times puzzles can get pretty hard. If you're used to clues like, "Wheel OF Fortune's Sajak" for p-a-t, you're in for a challenge. Instead, you'll be getting "foie gras" for p-a-t-e. (Frequent foreign language clues, people you've never heard of, obscure island names, etc.)

The good news is that your vocabulary will expand and you'll learn a lot more than you would from the TV guide puzzle. I know I've learned a lot from the NY Times puzzles. Thank you, Will Shortz.

And, in case you haven't figured it out, the "Search inside this book" link above will get you the first 12 puzzles! If you like them, there are 989 more to go!

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Many hours of entertainment in an inexpensive volume, September 19, 2005

By	Ramesh Gopal (Albuquerque, NM United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

If you have tried and liked the crossword puzzles in the New York Times, but do not subscribe to the newspaper, this book is for you. It is certainly more cost effective than subscribing just for the puzzles. There is also a crossword only online subscription option, incidentally, but this book probably packs more bang for the buck. If you have not previously solved New York Times puzzles, it's worth trying a few before you buy the book.

A few things to be aware of: The daily puzzles in the paper increase in difficulty from Monday to Friday. As far as I can tell, the ones in the book are not arranged in any particular order. Also this is a compilation of puzzles that appeared over the past decade. In so far as a few questions deal with ongoing events, they are now harder than back when the events were in the news. Non-New Yorkers may be stumped by allusions to local personalities.

On the whole the book should provide many hours of entertainment.

38 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars For the frugal and crossword obsessed...., September 2, 2003

By	L. King "lucyferking" (North Smithfield, RI United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

One of my defining personality traits is cheapness. When looking for a crossword book, I wanted the most crosswords for my money, which this definitely is. If you did 3 a day it would still take you most of a year to finish the book. I expect to own the book for 3 or 4 years at the rate I'm going. I would have given it five stars, because of the great array of puzzles included, but it may be too much of a good thing...Maybe I don't really need 1001 crosswords...