– Customer review on 18/06/2009

I'm really enjoying this book! The author has included very thorough instructions, and there's an excellent range of puzzles, from simple word searches through to ones with hidden messages, hidden pictures, quizzes, anagrams, and tons more.

There's a really interesting range of themes, and there's even instructions on how to write your own word search puzzle from scratch, which looks pretty cool.

You won't be disappointed!

– Customer review on 25/07/2009

I thought that all word search books were created equal and I couldn’t have been more wrong. I bought the book Word Searches for Dummies because I am fond of word search puzzles. What I got was the surprise of my life.

Denise Sutherland has opened a whole new world of word search puzzles for me. In my experience the words were found up, down, diagonally and occasionally backwards. This perception comes from years of the puzzle section of local newspapers and news stand publications.

When I first opened this book I was greeted by these same types of puzzles. However, as I continued to flip through the pages I was greeted by increasingly difficult and unique puzzles covering a wide variety of topics. Words are no longer found in a straight line as the wind themselves through the letter chart and leftover letters now create white spaces which form simple pictures.

If that weren’t enough to tickle your brain, Ms Sutherland has done some wonderful things with the word lists. Word searchers must answer simple (or not so simple) questions about North American culture and history, unscramble letters or translate the word list into English to find the words hidden in the letter chart.

The author has also included a gift for word search enthusiast. The book contains a chapter on how to create your own word search puzzles, something I am eager to try now that I've seen how varied this type of puzzle can be.

– Customer review on 07/07/2009

This is a thoroughly enjoyable, user-friendly book.

Written and laid out in a personable manner, the book gives a fascinating insight into the world of the word search. The early pages delve into the intricacies, benefits and history of word searches before looking at clever strategies for solving the puzzles. Other interesting aspects of word play are also discussed.

The middle part of the book is filled with word searches of a surprising number of different varieties, some of which I hadn’t seen before. The puzzles, which are graded by difficulty level, are followed by their own section of hints and naturally, the answers.

Further solving tips and benefits follow, and the book concludes with an expert and fun step-by-step guide to creating your own word searches.

I highly recommend Word Searches for Dummies. You’ll have a great time and when you’re finished, you’ll realise you've become an expert word searcher.

– Customer review on 29/06/2009

Well, well, who would have thought there was so much to word searches, let alone that someone could make a book about them interesting. Ms Sutherland has not only done that but gone a long way beyond. Somewhere between the covers of her book I have been transformed from a rusted-on cryptic crossword snob (The Times and The Guardian only, if you please) into a dewy-eyed neophyte in the delightful and diverse world of word searches. Ms Sutherland has produced an enticing compendium of puzzles of many different designs, themes and degrees of difficulty, together with a wealth of information on the history, trivia and science of word puzzles.

The book opens with a nice sized and nicely paced chunk of information about word searches and other word puzzles, what they are, what they are about and techniques for solving them. Interspersed through this are interesting little morsels about word searches that keep the text engaging.

After that comes a smorgasbord of puzzles of all different kinds, enough to satisfy every solver and occupy any given mood.

All the answers are there at the back of the book of course, but with a little mental elbow grease and Ms Sutherland's excellent tutorial, this is one section you shouldn't need to read very often.

And finally, there is a last tasty dessert with yet more interesting factoids, tips and trivia and even instructions for creating your own puzzles.

I found the textual sections well crafted, logically presented and written in that clever style that draws you on and makes you want to discover what comes next, what is over the page and what is revealed in the next chapter. The puzzles themselves are likewise well crafted, entertaining and varied.

Be warned though. For the dedicated puzzler (which description will surely cover most people, once they read this book) Word Searches for Dummies threatens to be worse time eater than a pair of new kittens.