Challenging Acrostic Puzzles

Book excerpt: They look like crosswords, but don't be fooled. Acrostics, those two-tiered word games, provide double the fun. First figure out the answers to semantic clues as in a crossword. But, the challenge of these forty puzzles doesn't stop there. Use your answers to transform the empty grid into a literary passage. Definitions, answers, and quotes draw on your knowledge of classic masters like Tolstoy, Hemingway, and Poe and assess your pop culture prowess with references to Julia Roberts, Rawhide, and NHL Stanley Cup winners. Dust the cobwebs from your brain and find out how much you really know about music, history, geography, and even mythology. Break free from the standard word puzzle and tackle the twofold challenge of acrostics for an enlightening change of pace.