Why Did I Buy This Book? Page 4
answers on page 339
1. Name the three islands.
2. Which country had mountains?
3. Can you name the four coastal countries?
4. Which country has rivers as north and south boders?
5. Is Napz or Flakovia the westernmost country?
6. Which two countries had trees?
7. If you started in Upper Migraine and went west, which country would you come to first?
8. Which island is off the coast of Bumknee?
9. If you were in southern Napz and took a roadtrip south, where would you end up?
10. The clouds are over which country?
Chapter Four:
WORD SURGERY
When you get to be a certain age, words go flying out of your brain faster than a chicken from a coop. Here’s some help.
Nip a letter here, tuck one in there. Give your vocabulary and word recognition a little lift! You’ll think ten years younger!
Word Transformers
With each step, change only one letter to transform one word into another. The first one is done for you. (The number of lines matches the number of steps.)
answers on pages 340-342
1. TIE to LEG TIE
PIE
PIG
PEG
LEG
2. HEAD to FOOT HEAD
FOOT
3. GIFT to LOVE GIFT
LOVE
4. WET to DRY WET
DRY
5. OLD to NEW OLD
NEW
6. BOOM to HEAR BOOM
HEAR
7. HARD to EASY HARD
EASY
8. NORTH to SOUTH NORTH
SOUTH
9. ARM to LEG ARM
LEG
10. SLEEP to DREAM SLEEP
DREAM
11. TOP to GUN TOP
GUN
12. HOT to LIP HOT
LIP
13. HIP to JOG HIP
JOG
14. ARE to OUT ARE
OUT
15. CAT to DOG CAT
DOG
16. HOT to NUN HOT
NUN
17. STARE to TEARS STARE
TEARS
18. FIRE to FOUL FIRE
FOUL
19. PAWN to KING PAWN
KING
20. BLURT to SHARE BLURT
SHARE
21. SEED to GROW SEED
GROW
22. GREEN to GRASS GREEN
GRASS
23. TREE to FALL TREE
FALL
24. COOK to FOOD COOK
FOOD
25. WARM to COLD WARM
COLD
Shrinky-Thinks
In each of the following sentences, there are two clues. Find the word represented by the first clue and then subtract one letter to get the word corresponding to the second clue.
answers on page 343
Example:
Take the espresso drink Bob lingered over and get his failure to arrive to work on time.
(answer: LATTE/LATE)
1. Take the forty-third President and give him one way to get out of town.
2. Take this golfer and get a higher level.
3. Ken pronounced this evening meal first-rate.
4. You could have knocked Alice over with one of these when this relative arrived unannounced.
5. Take what firmly tied the astronaut to the capsule and get what he ventured into in space.
6. Take what happened to Judy when she accidentally stepped on a bee and get how she hit her high C.
7. Take this monarch and make him a part of your family tree.
8. Take Sondra’s physical attractiveness and get how she alienated friends by gossiping about their minor shortcomings.
9. Take this European capital city and get a pile of regulation golf scores on several holes.
10. Take what the country priest did on his bike and get how the church bell prompted him to do so.
11. Take your muscular tasting organ and get a freshwater fish that may or may not appeal to it.
12. Take the source of intellectual power and get this dietary fiber that keeps your body healthy.
13. Take the audience’s quivering delight and get the purity of the soprano’s vibrato that brought them to a standing ovation.
14. A cheese dealer’s credo: Take this strong odor and get the secret of market success.
15. Take this common bakery product and get a welcome intellect-stimulating pastime.
16. Take this American holiday and get how it signifies the nation’s advance.
17. Take the gift Ed gave to the lady next door and get her husband’s negative reaction.
18. Take this jet operator and get how the terrorist used him as part of this scheme.
19. Take Jason’s involvement in a highway accident and see what it cost his insurance company.
20. Take the charm Sarah wore suspended from a chain around her neck and get what she became while teaching a course in Native American culture.
21. Take this popular dried fruit and get a character of an ancient alphabet.
22. Take this figure of speech in which two unlike things are explicitly compared and get this facial sign of appreciative pleasure.
23. Take this small tree branch and get this fine head of hair.
24. Take an old heroic tale and get what can happen to a listener if it goes on for too long.
25. Take this small rodent and get a Disney inspiration.
Lop the Top
Drop the first letter off to make a new word. Here’s an example to get you started.
answers on page 344
Take the first letter off this part of a car and get the bottom of your shoe.
(wheel/heel)
1. Take the first letter off this illegal action and get a bridesmaid’s gown color.
2. Take the first letter off this thing people do to sheep and listen up.
3. Take the first letter off this trumpet action and get a bass sound.
4. Take the first letter off this sound a gown makes and get something folks do when they see shooting stars.
5. Take the first letter off the fairer sex and get a warning sign.
6. Take the first letter off this winter essential and get what we’re all looking for.
7. Take the first letter off this reproductive part of an angiosperm and don’t get higher.
8. Take the first letter off this sandwich staple and do this to a book.
9. Take the first letter off this protein food and tuck right in.
10. Take the first letter off this metric mass unit and get the symbol of Aries.
11. Take the first letter off this fatty dairy product and hollow something out.
12. Take the first letter off this impulse and get “that guy.”
13. Take the first letter off this smudge and get Noah’s big project.
14. Take the first letter off this home to horses and get some real height.
15. Take the first letter off this scoop and get a real hole in the wall.
16. Take the first letter off this means of astonishment and get a labyrinth.
17. Take the first letter off your footwear and get digging in the garden.
18. Take the first letter off this grain and get a high temperature.
19. Take the first letter off this place to run in circles and get a place to hang your hat.
20. Take the first letter off this final resting place and get a wild dance party.
21. Take the first letter off this flower and start weaving on this.
22. Take the first letter off slow-witted and get a country bumpkin.
23. Take the first letter off this long bath and get the mighty acorn’s dream.
24. Take the first letter off this ceiling holder and get everything.
25. Take the first letter off this thing to rise above and get a drop of golden sun.
Memory Box #4
Quick! What’s your favor
ite book? And who were the main characters in Wuthering Heights? Why did I buy this book? Missing some memory pages? Who isn’t? Brush up your book-smarts with this visual memory puzzle.
Take a close look at the images on this page. Give yourself a minute. Then, turn the page and see how many questions you can answer.
answers on page 345
1. How many books are there?
2. What’s the title of the thickest book?
3. Who wrote Let It Pour?
4. What did Leah Tard write?
5. Who wrote I Was Floored!?
6. What did Artie Fishal write?
7. Who wrote Inflammation?
8. Name the author of Dull Pain.
9. Who penned Sick!?
10. What did Nora Lenderbee write?
Chapter Five:
THAT’S A DIFFERENT WAY TO LOOK AT IT
Puns can make you groan. They can also spark the old noodle. This section is crammed with them—both visual and verbal. Scrambled anagrams and literal images make for some fun cortex carousing as they force you to think out of the box to solve the puzzles.
Anagrams
An anagram is a word or phrase that can be rearranged to make another word or phrase. In each of the following exercises, use all the letters to figure out the famous person each phrase is hiding. See the example below.
answers on pages 345-347
RAW ROPE BIN
(BRAINPOWERR)
ATHLETES
1. IM MADAM HULA
2. REHAB TUB
3. GOT SO WIRED
4. MAJOR NICHE LAD
5. JOINS MOPS
POLITICAL FIGURES
1. CHILLY LOIN RANT
2. HE BUGS GORE
3. CHECKED YIN
4. MY METRIC JAR
5. CAPE IS NYLON
ACTORS
1. COOL EGO ENERGY
2. ME GIN SLOB
3. OLD WEST ACTION
4. MY HUED PRIDE
5. ANGRY ME
SINGERS
1. I BAWD VIDEO
2. PELVISES RELY
3. AND MOAN
4. CALM NOSE HIJACK
5. CRAM KEG JIG
AUTHORS
1. WINE ENRAGES MYTH
2. WARM AT INK
3. SHH MINOR JAG
4. OR MANLIER MAN
5. FLOW TOME
COMEDIANS
1. MADDER NAVEL TIT
2. MAIN BOIL SWIRL
3. HEP BOOB
4. NAIVEST TERM
5. BLURRY MAIL
HISTORICAL FIGURES
1. O REBEL TREE
2. RANCOR HID NIX
3. LA NEON OP
4. OH CHERUBIC SLUM PORTS
5. LOOSE VOTE LEARNER
COMPOSER-SONGWRITERS
1. A RUMPLY ACCENT
2. ACORN AND OPAL
3. HER SWING *
4. BLAND BOY
5. PERT COOLER
*Last name only
ARTISTS
1. BASIC ALSO POP
2. KNOWN CREAM ROLL
3. OLD VINO RADIANCE
4. THY DREW ANEW
5. EASEL COLOUR TUTU *
*Last name only
FOREIGN LEADERS
1. A COLD STRIFE
2. THE EQUINE BLAZE
3. HANDED US AMISS
4. ILL OF HATRED
5. SOBERLY I SNIT
Rebuses
Many 18th-century Americans amused themselves by writing rebus letters—where pictures represented words. Decode these modern-day rebus puzzlers and feel the clever spirit of colonies crackling in your contemporary cranium.
answers on page 347
1. REBUS #1
2. REBUS #2
3. REBUS #3
4. REBUS #4
5. REBUS #5
6. REBUS #6
7. REBUS #7
8. REBUS #8
9. REBUS #9
10. REBUS #10
11. REBUS #11
12. REBUS #12
13. REBUS #13
14. REBUS #14
15. REBUS #15
16. REBUS #16
17. REBUS #17
18. REBUS #18
19. REBUS #19
20. REBUS #20
Word Pictures
If a picture is worth a thousand words, how about a few words that do double duty as visual puzzles? The first one is done for you.
answers on page 348
1. STAND I
I understand
2. VA DERS
3. GIVE, GIVE, GIVE, GIVE
GET, GET, GET, GET
4. FAREDCE
5. TRAIL RAILT
IALTR
AILRT
6. 2. BLAME 3. BLAME
7. LLA
8. DOCTOR DOCTOR
9. NAFISH NAFISH
10. ANOTHER ONE THING
11. HISTORY HISTORY HISTORY
12. MILL1ON
13. BUT THOUGHT THOUGHT
14. D
R
A
H
15. HEAD HEELS
16. JOBINJOB
17.
18. TRY STAND 2
19. THE PAAWALKRK
20. . __________
21. ARREST YOU’RE
22. RIGHT ME
23. TAKE TAKE
24. TIME TIME
25. BIRD
Picture This
These drawings are whimsical drawings of literal things. It’s a real right-brain/left-brain exercise. Can you figure out what words or phrases they represent?
answers on page 349
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
Memory Box #5
Spaced out? In a vacuum? Feeling loony? You’re not alone. And you don’t have to float out there on your own. Launch into this visual memory puzzle and bring your memory back down to earth!
Take a close look at the images on this page. Give yourself a minute. Then, turn the page and see how many questions you can answer.
answers on page 349
1. How many stars were there?
2. Were there more striped planets or spotted planets?
3. How many planets had rings?
4. Was the rocket headed for a striped planet?
5. How many astronauts were there?
6. Were there more astronauts facing left or right?
7. How many jets did the rocket have?
8. Was the biggest planet striped or spotted?
9. Was the smallest planet striped?
10. How many spots did the lower left planet have?
Chapter Six:
WHAT DO YOU KNOW?
It’s not just what you know but how you make connections among the things you know. In this section the challenge is to discover the connections first and then either match them up, as in Mix Up Match, or find out what doesn’t belong, as in Find the Misfit.
MIX UP MATCH
Can you figure out why these two columns are connected and how they match up?
answers on pages 350-363
1. Grey’s Anatomy
Queens
WKRP
Cincinnati
Cheers
Milwaukee
Friends
New York
All in the Family
Boston
Laverne & Shirley
Seattle
2. porcine
Felix
equine
Mr. Ed
canine
Pluto
feline
Porky
3. King
Bigalow
Queen