Better book it to the library! There's no place like tome! ("Renew you would post this one.")
@Mike My eyes get Dewey when I think about the card catalog. Library of Congress? Sounds like a conspiracy theory. I thought Sharon ISBN was a guitar player.
@Al in Pittsburgh Library of Congress: as long as it’s not a smutty bookstore.
This theme charmed me. The conceit is elegant and carries with it a lot of fun, because every theme answer is a guessing game, trying to figure out the title from the first word of the clue – with as few crosses as possible. With some themes, once you figure out the gimmick, boom it’s over. But when each theme clue/answer turns out to be a fresh riddle to crack, as today’s are, the fun doesn’t quit. And yet the clue-to-title engine driving the entire endeavor is so simple – again, to me, charming. Along the way, it was lovely to revisit Jim CROCE and Gilda RADNER, two loves who’ve been hibernating in my subconscious for far too long. I took a moment to hear his voice and see her face, and my day is richer for it. Having LEMON in the grid with THE GIVING TREE elicited the song “Lemon Tree”, and wouldn’t you know it, Peter, Paul, and Mary stopped by for an impromptu rendition. Riddles and treasured memories, a brain feast. I relaxed and took in the sights as my brain gamboled and guessed, and had a splendid time in the box. Thank you so much, Aimee, for making this!
I was starting down the path of other books - (E.g. “Schoolbook?” DEAD POETS SOCIETY, etc) but none were as fun as Aimee’s. But I did find something else to amuse me: the symmetrical placement of CASSEROLE and FOOD WASTE. I can’t be the only person for whom the aging leftovers are just a storage spot enroute to the compost pile?
@Cat Lady Margaret The peels, the trimmings, the stems, the wilted leaves--those are foodstuffs, yes, but SO much FOOD WASTE is NOT compost material (meat, bones, fat, oil) and there is SO much more--clippings, weeds (laid out and dried in the sun), leaves, sawdust, manure (but not pet wastes), old potting soil, eggshells (even though they don't add much)... I don't compost now but I get a twinge when I'm prepping...
Heck yeah, what a fun puzzle, especially for book geeks. Phone book? Viewbook? Primary Reader? Bluebook? CALL OF THE WILD THE MAGIC MOUNTAIN THE DESCENT OF MAN KAMA SUTRA
@john ezra I especially like "blue book"!
The clues were so cleverly masked that without the crosses, the theme answers would have been a complete mystery to me even though I knew all of the books. A delightful puzzle to work and I finished it without look-ups, but I had a wretched typo and did some searching on two suspect fills to see if they could be the problem (they weren't). Finally focused my eyes and found it. In case anyone want's to know, it's HALLE, not HALLi! (I knew that!!) Thank you, Aimee Lucido. Despite all the hard work that went into this puzzle, I hope the constructing was as much fun for you as it was for us. See you again soon, I hope. (Re the link, except for a couple in "The 21 Best Improvised Lines in Movies," if the list were reversed it would make more sense. Anyway, it was great fun finding out that the speakers were the genius behind the lines. I think there are probably a lot more. Arnold Schwarzenegger's Terminator line "I'll be back" wasn't exactly an ad lib, but it was his idea to change a limp line into a legendary one.)
@dutchiris I too, had no cheats, except for a wicked typo! I knew how to spell Halle's name, but I had "O'Brian" instead of "O'BRIEN". All of Aimee Lucido's efforts were worth it. It was a very enjoyable puzzle.
Guestbook? ANDTHENTHEREWERENONE Songbook? BEOWULF Picture book? THEGOLDFINCH Pocketbook? OLIVERTWIST Stamp book? THESCARLETLETTER Law book? CRIMEANDPUNISHMENT Facebook? STRANGECASEOFDRJEKYLLANDMRHYDE
@Steven Remembering the the doctor's waiting room? INSEARCHOFLOSTTIME A gathering in Nevada? FEARANDLOATHINGINLASVEGAS Small breakfast serving? HAMLET Trying to find an exit at Ikea? THEODYSSEY Victim of a pool shot gone wrong? THEENGLISHPATIENT
My name for today’s crossword puzzle: “A Sense of Entitlement” Rhea-lly!
This is my first Sunday crossword I completed without having to look anything up!!! Feels good 😊
@BarbD Congrats!! That's awesome... And is a great feeling, indeed! The first of many, I'm sure!! :-)
Aimee Lucido knocked this one out of the park. The naticks were perfect. Took about 40 minutes for me to solve. But also enough rope out there to see where the theme was going. And those classics! You don’t have to be an avid reader to know those titles! Great fun! Come back!
Nice theme for an old lit major, even if MERRIAM-WEBSTER isn’t lit per se. I caught on at AGAMEOFTHRONES, and worked back upwards through the theme clues, which all had enough crosses by that time to be pretty easy to suss out. Nick Hornby’s HIGHFIDELITY is a favorite of mine, as, like Rob, I was an inveterate maker of mixtapes, mix cds, and remain an equally inveterate maker of Spotify playlists, many of which I made in an effort to get what The Rolling Stones called “girl reaction.” Also, like Rob, I always aspired to be the proprietor of a failing but very hip record store. Some dreams, alas, are fated never to come true. The movie adaption is pretty good too, featuring a charming performance by John Cusack.
HIGH FIDELITY sent me off and running. I loved hanging out in record stores. My favorite one had an owner who would insist I purchase albums he knew I would like with the option to return them if I didn't. His track record was pretty good, and he never complained when I took him up on the offer to return things when he was off the mark. He really helped me build my collection with music from all genres that I may never have heard otherwise. Now I guess you can listen to anything online, but it was nice to have a guide. Thanks for the memories, Aimee. The rest of the puzzle was fun too!
@Nancy J. Me, too! Loved the film—one of my favorite soundtracks.
As a book person I adored this puzzle. My wife and I were married in a library two years ago--The Redwood Athenaeum here in Newport. S/O's for things I really enjoyed: --The clue for FRANKENSTEIN - laugh out loud funny --WHOA, never Woah --88 Across - anything that reminds me of Gilda RADNER brings a smile to my face --Amy Lucido's reference to rot13 - it's one variant of a substitution cipher originally used by Julius Caesar for his correspondence
FEH! I’d never heard the word feh before. 😝 I always love learning something new from the puzzle.
@ESB I thought it was MEH!
Really clever puzzle and theme. I just couldn't get anywhere with it. Don't think I've ever had less filled in on any puzzle when I finally gave up. That's all on me. A couple of puzzle finds today with somewhat similar tricks. First, a Sunday from March 17, 2019 by Sophia Maymudes and Jeff Chen with the title "That's another story." A couple of theme clues and answers: "Biography of Thomas Crapper? :" AGAMEOFTHRONES "Biography of Willie Mays? :" LORDOFTHEFLIES Here's the Xword Info link: <a href="https://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=3/17/2019&g=4&d=D" target="_blank">https://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=3/17/2019&g=4&d=D</a> And... a Sunday from September 24, 2000 by Randolph Ross with the title: "One for the books." Sample clues/answer: "Redbook (1848) :" THECOMMUNISTMANIFESTO "Yearbook (1949) :" NINETEENEIGHTYFOUR "Law book (1866) :" CRIMEANDPUNISHMENT Here's the Xword Info link: <a href="https://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=9/24/2000&g=37&d=A" target="_blank">https://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=9/24/2000&g=37&d=A</a> I'm done. ..
This one was an enjoyable struggle for me, and it felt good to finish it. One gripe: I'm getting tired of "feh" and "gawp" and other clues that just seem like one-letter distortions of other words meaning the same thing. Where is an old bat like me going to encounter such nuances?? ("But no, 'feh' is more an expression of displeasure, while 'meh' is an expression of disinterest, whereas 'bah'..." Yes, yes, yes.)
This was a fun puzzle and had me smiling from 1D - back issues - oy vey! Then there was Jim Croce, a talent gone way too soon. I used to play "Time in a Bottle" for my class. The assignment was to write about what moments you would save in your bottle. Nice memories of a special time. Happy solving!
Lots of fun with the titles. Am I missing something when people don't like having to solve the clues from the crosses? Isn't it a CROSSword puzzle? Cryptic puzzles exist for the purists, I suppose. First pass through, I didn't think this was going to be so exceptional - some misdirects and some self-doubt ... but something clicked and I trusted myself, and I managed to get a personal best time for Sunday out of 4 years of puzzles.
I was breezing along and heading for a Sunday PR until I hit a roadblock, not recalling the names of 73A and 81A (though I'd heard both before at some point). Eventually figured them out from the crosses. 86A brought to mind a story. Some years ago I needed a root canal, and the endodontist has a large selection of films that the patient could watch during the procedure. Wanting some lighthearted entertainment that I knew I would enjoy, I chose "Finding NEMO". I did not recall that this film included a scene of a patient undergoing a painful root canal! When it got to that scene I groaned, as the kind endo assured me that I would not be experiencing that kind of pain in his office (and he was right). In any case, once the procedure over I got a good laugh and story to tell out of the experience.
With my history in test prep, I liked seeing ETS clued as Educational Testing Service instead of extraterrestrials.
I skipped the puzzle title (as I normally do), but it wasn’t too hard to figure out what the theme was. I failed miserably at getting any of the book titles just from the clues, but the crosses were gentle enough that I solved the puzzle quickly. Thanks for the fun, Ms Lucido!
@Eric Hougland I’m with you. I like the extra challenge of sussing out the game I’m playing, and feeling chuffed when I I’ve done it, and then read the title afterward. … .
Whew. I am feeling somewhat human! I read the accounts of others who had a bad time with the vaccine (yikes! CCNY!) so I realize it's not just me... (DHubby did a mock-whine, "My arm hurts a little!" And I even laughed. So...feeling better.) We have tickets to a play this afternoon, so that is encouraging. Oh, the puzzle. Well, Amy Lucido, you pretty much have outdone yourself here. (Congrats.) I have questions: 14A?? 27A--woefully inadequate and even misleading! And the clue for 113A: Hmmm. I also had a bad experience with 109D, because I instantly thought of Arkansas GOV. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, which happened after we moved, but was and is horrifying (who dresses her??) and now I need to go lie down again.
Woah! Whoa! Wo! I could be wrong, but Clan of the Cavebear used to be a regular topic in clues. Like Algerian seaports. Some clues make me feel like it’s 1989. Good ol’ puzzle…getting me all sentimental… Fun one! Thank you Aimee!
@CCNY Yes. AYLA is from Clan of the Cave Bear, and ARYA is from Game of Thrones. OLAN is from The Good Earth, ORAN is in Algeria, and OMAN is a sultanate, but not on the island of Borneo.
@CCNY I used to see Jean M. Auel in the archives all the time. Haven’t seen her in a while, though.
14A: "Butter (up)" = GAS But why? I don't understand the connection. I solved it through the crossingss.
@Francis DeBernardo That "G" was my last fill. And after going through the alphabet I was still flummoxed.
@Francis DeBernardo Totally agree with you; made no sense to me either.
@Francis DeBernardo No idea there, even with GAS (up.) "Butter" is sometimes a ram, or an elk, or something else that butts, but that one makes absolutely no sense at all.
Gold star for me, took a bit longer due in part to staring at the clues for the books. It sunk in eventually, very well done I think. Shout out to Gilda Radner, crossed with Fandom!
I always enjoy a good literary theme! HIGHFIDELITY was the first one I got and the only one I didn't know as a book, so I had to wait till the next themer before I understood it. Oh, how I dislike THE GIVING TREE! Such a short but disturbing tale of interpersonal dysfunction and extreme selfishness, in my opinion. It made me shudder a bit at the clue and answer at 65A instead of chuckle... But that's just my own personal bent, not a gripe. I know it's a beloved book for many. Anyhow, there were far more smiles in the puzzle than this one shudder! My favorite was spell book for MERRIAMWEBSTER! I'm also always a sucker for the clues that are "Apt name for ___." And Herb was no exception! I wasn't familiar with 14A GAS in that context but the crossings were easy enough to get it. And it made me think of "Money, it's a gas..." which is always fun and brings good memories! As does RADNER. Fun learning that those two movie lines in1A were ad libbed! I had no idea! Cheers to a new week ahead!
Quite an easy solve. I get the theme, but just didn't find it as charming as others did...I did like learning that the 1 across phrases were ad libs.
It took me way too long to catch on, with much of the grid blank, but ultimately I prevailed. This was the type of puzzle where the theme really didn’t help the ultimate solve for me until near the end, but once I caught on, the remainder of the puzzle filled in quickly. I did like some of the fresher clueing for old standby crossword fill. Clues for ETNA and ETS come to mind. Nice job Aimee.
For someone who is a self confessed bibliophile it took me an embarrassingly long time to get with the programme. All the way down to 83A in fact. Great clues, lovely theme, punny wordplay for the book titles. What’s not to love? MERRIAM WEBSTER took the longest, it not being my go to for English reference, that would be the OED. I had MaRRIAge…STER, not knowing the actor at 7D and thinking there might be a rebus to give me ‘register’. Mr Orwell set me right, but it was still the last to fall. TIL FEH over meh, plus another SNL alumnus, though I’m no wiser as to the person. I really should watch it on YouTube sometime, find out what it’s all about.
Helen, 1. Do look for some of RADNER's SNL work ("Never mind" is linked here periodically). 2. FEH is in British English too (which does not mean you should have known it). <a href="https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/feh" target="_blank">https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/feh</a>
@Helen Wright I've always taken FEH as the same as mEH but with a strong tinge of disgust.
@Helen Wright Gilda Radner is a national treasure, a gifted comedian who died too young. Give yourself the pleasure of watching some clips. You’ll be glad you did!
How I picture ERNIE Hudson's meeting with his agent: "We're putting you in a movie with Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, and Rick Moranis. They'll get all the best lines, but it's a nice paycheck, and there's probably going to be a sequel." "Ray, when someone asks you if you're a god, you say YES!"
Not one, but two squares where two names cross. 59A/60D, and 118A/101D. Not kosher.
Lou, We must read the law differently. I don't see a prohibition of crossing names, and in the two cases you cite I would hope the crossing letters would be obvious even if you knew none of the four people from the clues. This is not the LAST STOP, and it's also not Natick.
@Lou Scheffer Please cite the relevant Torah verse.
Fun, maybe a little too easy, although I didn't solve especially fast. Didn't love the theme for some reason; the construction felt slightly shaky to me, but as I look back now it's pretty tight after all. :) I'm not well read and the only book I didn't recognize was High Fidelity (though I know of a movie by the name). For a brief time I had sash instead of belt, crossing with hung instead of teed. I enjoyed Yearbook, which was a basically a long gimme. :) Anyway, a nice quick Sunday jaunt. Thanks. ____________________ Jesse Goldberg 8/28/2024 for Puzzle of the Decade
Thank you Ms. Lucido, I loved your puzzle. I knew the books and got them quickly. The crosses were fun and this was an enjoyable evening of crosswords. I finished the Saturday puzzle earlier and saved this one to savor. Lovely puzzle.
Tough but very satisfying Sunday puzzle. Each one of the books was a treat to solve and very clever. Well done Aimee, come back soon.
Fun puzzle but who can explain the GAS - BUTTER (UP) bit? I don’t get it and I can see that others are confused also.
Maggie, Scroll down three hours for an attempt at an answer. 14A
This is #1100 in my streak and I was able to do it with no lookups and got the music on the first attempt. A sharp contrast to yesterday’s 🤣 Nice theme and clues though I needed crosses to help me with the themers. Thanks!!
Film character trapped in a dentist’s office — thought this must be a rebus for Marathon Man starring Dustin Hoffman.
@Kris H I thought of Alan Arkin's patient in "The Inlaws" but of course "MRs. Somebody" wouldn't fit....
@Kris H I, too, thought of "The Inlaws," but then maybe Steve Martin from "Little Shop of Horrors."
@Kris H And I was thinking of the Steve Martin dentist scene in Little Shop of Horrors. :) ____________________ Jesse Goldberg 8/28/2024 for Puzzle of the Decade
I don't post here too often, but when a puzzle is this fun, I can't resist. Great theme and wonderful music, literature, art, film, etc. references! That said, there were a few stumpers that I still don't get (like GAS), but they didn't detract from my overall enjoyment. Like others have mentioned, I experienced *a lot* of nostalgia while solving this one. Thanks, Ms. Lucido!
@Dave agreed! A very gun puzzle and theme!
This was fantastic! So clever and fun. Well done!
18D is something about trying to get a refund on a small boat, right?
N.E. Body, And the answer is the abbreviation of "two dinghies?" Good greef!
Question for longtime solvers. On occasion, commenters mention that a clue or an answer break a rule of crossword construction. Yesterday there was SANTA being an answer and also appearing in a clue, which some noted is not permitted. Others countered that a specific word cannot appear in both the clue and its answer but there is no prohibition on a particular word appearing in both a clue and a separate answer in the same puzzle. I’ve read Margaret Farrar’s standards for crossword construction and the NYT guidelines and specs. Is there another recognized source for crossword rules that addresses the above? Or is it more something that one understands from experience? My hunch is that it’s the latter. It’s something I’ve wondered about for a while.
@Cyndie I agree with your 'hunch.' Of all the nits in all the world, that one is the least of my worries...
@Cyndie There are no “rules” for crossword puzzle construction, only conventions/guidelines/practices that most publishers follow. Even some that are widely followed are ignored by certain publishers (grid symmetry is one example). The experienced crossword puzzle constructor Patrick Berry wrote the “Crossword Constructor’s Handbook.” It’s been a few years since I have read it, but I’m pretty sure he discusses these conventions.
@Mean Old Lady Thanks, that makes sense. No criticism, just curiosity.
The EVA/LOGAN cross the last to fall - no clue on either. Clever theme nicely executed. Also had fun decoding the outtakes. Thanks.
@John Carson Yes, that cross was my downfall as well; I needed Google for the airline. Otherwise a doable puzzle.
Never heard of "GAS up," FEH, and the cross LOGAN/EVA was a Natick. The theme was "meh" as well. I also don't understand the constructor's "deleted scenes" at the end of her notes. Anyone? ⭐️⭐️⭐️
@Ron Bravenec Mr. Dave decoded the ROT13 titles and came up with these answers: GREENEGGSANDHAM FASTFOODNATION THERAINBOWFISH LADYCHATTERLEYSLOVER BELCANTO WATCHMEN BOSSYPANTS HESJUSTNOTTHATINTOYOU
Fun, brisk Sunday. 38 seconds off my PB
A request to contributors to please indicate the Across or Down Number of the clue you are referring to. It makes it easier for readers to locate the entry you are discussing. Thanks.
I wouldn't have gotten HIGH FIDELITY if it hadn't pretty much come in on its own, but after that I was off to the races. I got THE WEALTH OF NATIONS, THE GIVING TREE (never read), NINETEEN EIGHTY-FOUR, A GAME OF THRONES (never read or seen) and FRANKENSTEIN without many crosses. The only one that fooled me for a while was MERRIAM WEBSTER. I had only the ME----M WE----- and thought that the "spell" would be some kind of WEATHER. But other than that, no solving surprises -- though I was very surprised by one theme clue: Was FRANKENSTEIN assembled from scraps??? I didn't know that! Of course the fact that I never read the book or saw any of the movies means that I know zilch about FRANKENSTEIN. Even better, FRANKENSTEIN knows zilch about me. I always make these things more interesting for myself by trying to guess the themers with as few crosses as possible. Otherwise the whole exercise would be pretty PRO FORMA. This way it's sort of diverting.
@Nancy Dr. Frankenstein’s monster was a stitched up pile of cadaver parts dug up from graves and then brought to shambling life by the energy from a bolt of lightning. I haven’t read the book either but it is considered to be a classic. I really should read it.
The NT of TNT did, indeed, take my puzzle out with a bang as they were my last letters entered. Great bit of prognostication by the constructor. Fun, flowy Sunday.
I enjoyed this as some clues were a snap while others a challenge. Interesting clue at 14 across, to Gas in Britain is to rat on another. Well done Aimee. Thank you.
Fun puzzle to solve. Though, I'm at a loss to figure 115 D .... tnt. How does it tie with the puzzle? I know I am missing something.
@Nancy A I don't believe 15D ties in with the theme of the puzzle. Instead it's the final clue, hence it takes the puzzle out with a bang, TNT.
@Nancy A It's the last entry of the puzzle and TNT makes things go bang! That's how I figure it, anyhow, perhaps someone has a more precise answer.