A pun my word!
Anyone who knows me or has read any of my ZATU offerings knows that I am a sucker for puns and Dad jokes. Having loved Jigsaws for nearly 70 years I was delighted to try this witty offering from Big Potato games: Mayhem in the Library.
A well-produced, 1000 glossy pieces puzzle in the crowded comic character style of say a Where’s Wally or a Jan van Haasteren was a rewarding challenge enough but Big Potato have given us their delicious added twist, you’re invited to find 101 “hidden” books. And this is where the fun begins.
Hidden, how so, you may ask? Well the gifted artist has alluded to a host of famous books through cryptic clues and puns. For example there is a cat and it has a hat what book might that be I wonder?
Some are quite straightforward like the oarsmen paddling the large vessel in the centre Clue: There’s 3 of them. or the sick man under a big St. George’s flag bedspread but others can be small, said hatted cat for example, or require a bit of lateral thinking like the small horse with the letters OTE on it. I find it helps to say them out aloud. Clue: It’s not a horse but a donkey.
There’s only an average of 10 pieces per title so some little vignettes have to cover multiple titles. The table branded with a well-known jeweller's name has 4 diners but only 1 eating breakfast, while a posh girl has a single pea, another chap has a distinctly mouldy looking plate of ham and eggs and as for the Tiger he’s just come for a cuppa!
The books range from old time classics from the likes of Dickens and Dumas, sci-fi from Asimov and Bradbury, challenging works from Atwood and Plath, crime novels and thrillers plus children’s books and nursery rhymes. Don’t be deterred if you’re not a great reader as most of them are also films as well.
Talking of films if books is not your thing there are three other puzzles in the series with different hidden treasure topics:-
Night at the Movies - Films
Chaos in the Kitchen - Food and Drink
Day at the Festival - Music Artists
There’s a handy checklist linked to a grey copy of the picture to check off what you have got. This also helps to identify areas where they might be more titles than you think. If you still can’t see the Invisible Man there’s a full set of answers on the Big Potato website.
I’ll probably get all the puzzles but, for me, the literary puns work the best: the combative round green vegetables are peas for Tolstoy’s lengthy tome and the bird making fun of the Mexican liquor, this should be said aloud, gives not only Harper Lee’s Southern Gothic novel but my favourite quiz team name!
