101 Checker Puzzles $7.95
by Robert Pike

Practically everyone knows how to play checkers, but can you solve these checker puzzles?
Test your mettle in the early stages of a game, in middle-game situations, and at the end, when most of the checkers have been captured.  Set up the green and white official checkerboard that's been folded into the back cover to work out the winning solutions.

Play Winning Checkers $7.95
by Robert Pike

Want to dominate the checkerboard and astound your opponent with every move?  Then you have to know how to find alternative solutions to problems, break down complex situations, and keep control of your long-term strategy.  And here's the best way to learn just how to do that.  As you go move by move through puzzles and an entire game, you'll absorb all the tricks and techniques that turn an ordinary checkers player into a champion.
 
Start with the basic moves that put you on the winning track.
Protect your pieces, get kings and use them well, and thwart your opponent at every point.  Fight for control of the center of the board, set up multiple jumps, and avoid the "doghole."
 
You'll even discover how to play computer checkers - so you can go on the internet and pit yourself against "Chinook," the world computer checkers champion. 

303 Perplexing Chess Puzzles $12.95
by Fred Wilson

Take your chess game to the next level by learning winning tactics.
 
Solving these challenging tactical puzzles will improve your chess game, helping you to beat your opponents.  The 303 chosen positions have been developed for players at three levels: advanced beginner, intermediate, and tournament.  The level of difficulty is usually reflected by the number of moves necessary to solve them.  To make it easier for you to concentrate, only two large, clear illustrations appear on a page.  Additionally, a hint is provided above each position.  An index at the end of the book enables you to study examples of a single tactic at one time.  To win at chess, you must develop your strategic abilities and these puzzles are an excellent means to achieve that goal. 

Award-Winning Chess Problems $5.95
by Burt Hochberg

Each of these challenging problems has won top prize in one of the many chess competitions held throughout the world.  Solving them will help sharpen your playing skills and can help you become a winner, too.  As with all orthodox chess conundrums, the cones collected here stipulate that White makes the first move and must checkmate Black in a specified number of moves no matter what Black plays.  This stipulation is inviolable: mate must be accomplished in exactly the number of moves specified, no more, no less.  If you become stumped, turn to the section that offers hints.  But beware: while most of the hints provide instant help, some cryptic ones require a little extra thinking.

Outrageous Chess Problems $6.95
by Burt Hochberg

Square off against the best chess minds.

You will need to put aside assumptions and be on your guard at all times to solve these ingenious chess conundrums that are based on such variants as:

- Billiards chess, where pieces can carom off the like of the board like pool balls.
- Cylinder chess, which imagines that the board is rolled into a tube.
- Circe chess, where captured pieces come back to life to fight again.
- Double-move chess, in which each player makes two movies in a row.

There are many diagrams, detailed solutions, and even a crash course on chess for beginners.  Additionally, see if you can tackle "The World's Hardest Chess Problem."
Forget conventional chess problems and strategy.  In this collection, rules were made to be broken!

Great Book of Domino Games $6.95
by Jennifer A. Kelley

Your box of dominoes can open a whole new world of entertainment as you try your hand at some of the endless variations in rules and styles of play.  Find out which ones will become your favorites:

-Basic blocking games, including Stretch, Doubles, Domino Pool, The Fortress, Maltese Cross, Chickenfoot, and One-Arm Joe.
-Scoring games such as Muggins, Five-Up, Sniff, All Threes, Seven-Toed Pete, Merry-Go-Round, and Double-Header.
-Trump and trick games like Forty-Two and Eighty-Eight, with Nel-O, Plunge, and Sevens bidding variations.
-Solitaire domino games such as Fair Lucy, Luzon, Polka Dots, Baronet, The Big Clock, The Buccaneer, Castle Rock, The Jubilee, Squeeze, and The Sultan

Also featured: Games you play with special sets, including Double-9, Double-12, and a new Double-15 set, as well as ancient Oriental Dominoes.  Once you get acquainted with these simple basic "tiles," you'll be set for hours of steely competition or relaxing times alone.

Winning 42 - Domino Game $13.95
Revised Edition
by Dennis Roberson

Strategy & Lore of the National Game of Texas.

"Mostly, 42, as it is today, is what it always was; but what it was, less a game than a rural social pastime, was as necessary and productive as community quiltings or the shelling of black-eyed peas on the front porch by neighborhood women passing hot late-summer afternoons.  It was a homemade socialization tool in a time when people had to entertain themselves. The irony of 42's invention as a permissible substitute for wicked card playing - it most resembles bridge or the English card game of whist (and variants like pitch or euchre) - was that it could be played on rural front porches after church services, after Sunday dinner, with neither shame nor sin." - Jerry Flemmons

Puremco's Great Book of Domino Games $6.95
by Jennifer A. Kelley

Jennifer Kelley has compiled the most complete set of popular, current domino games available in one book.  These rules cover the competitive, strategic, scoring games the trump and bidding games, and the newest party and social games for larger mixed groups.  Dominoes have fun, intrigue, feel, sound, and play like a puzzle.  All ages can enjoy the great advantage of being able to play many games with only one game set.

Dominoes Plus: $14.95
The Dominoforms Handbook
by Bill Perkins

Have you ever purchased a book on games only to find that you have the same old run-of-the-mill rules that you learned as a child?  Dominoes Plus is 100+ exciting games, 90% of them of them original.

A professional writer explains to you the complete and detailed set of rules for each game.  Similar games are grouped into topical chapters, with 24 illustrations for reference (that you will remember).  An appendix provides a user-friendly cross-reference for finding a game to match ages and number of players.

The author begins with a history of dominoes, and throughout the book introduces the topic of Dominoforms, which explain typical features and structures of tile games.  They are at once both familiar in their general styles of play and concise in their treatment.

Breathe new life into those tired old checkers, card, and dice games as you combine them with dominoes in interesting new games - the second half of the book describes many such games.  Dominoes Plus is a guidebook as much as a reference.  If you don't have someone at hand eager to play, the author offers ideas on how to find a game.

Competitive Dominoes: $9.95
How to Play Like a Champion
by Miguel Lugo

28 tiles and four players - that's all you need to play dominoes!

Exercise your logic, challenger your brain and your opponents', and sharpen your skills so you'll win every time!  You can play anywhere, anytime, because the equipment is lightweight and sturdy.  From general principles to advanced skills, this fully illustrated winner's guide takes you through every aspect of the game:

-Learn what constitutes a suit, scoring procedures, and how to add your domino to the "skeleton," or developing structure.
-Special tips, including the Three Laws of Dominotics, greatly improve your chances of winning.
-Mental Exercises help strengthen your memory and powers of deduction.
-Develop the skills to analyze your hand and lead off - plus master cover, repeat, and square strategies.
-Understand suits, how your position affects your game plan, and when to jam a game.
-Advanced techniques include honing your ability to play doubles, pull a hand, build a house, and more.

Bonus: The pros' invaluable secret strategies for winning.

How to Play Better Dominoes $6.95
by Miguel Lugo

28 tiles and four players - that's all you need to play dominoes!

Exercise your logic, challenge your brain and your opponents', and sharpen your skills so you'll win every time!  You can play anywhere, anytime, because the equipment is lightweight and sturdy.  From general principles to advanced skills, this is fully illustrated winner's guide takes you through every aspect of the game:

- Learn what constitutes a suit, scoring procedures, and how to add your domino to the "skeleton," or developing structure.
- Special tips, including the Three Laws of Dominotics, greatly improve your chances of winning.
- Mental exercises help strengthen your memory and powers of deduction.
- Develop the skills to analyze your hand and lead off-plus master cover, repeat, and square strategies.
- Understand suits, how your position affects your game plan, and when to jam a game.
-  Advanced techniques include honing your ability to play doubles, pull a hand, build a house, and more.

Bonus: the pros' invaluable secret strategies for winning.

Baseball Bafflers $6.95
by Wayne Stewart

Get into action and make the call!  These baseball bafflers will have you playing armchair manager or umpire; reading about strange, unusual, and trick plays; matching up quotes with the people who said them; and more!  Step up to the plate and see how you do:  Would a situation ever call for intentionally walking a man with the bases loaded?  Is a catch still a catch if the player crashes through an outfield - leaving the field of play?  Have as much fun with bafflers like these as you would watching your favorite team win at the ballpark.

Baseball Crosswords $5.95
by David J. Kahn

Make a run at solving these all-star baseball crosswords like a natural.  You may never pitch a shutout of hit back-to-back home runs, but you will achieve championship status if you can complete these baseball-themed crosswords.  They present a dynamite double-play challenge: the clues will entertain diehard fans of the sport and stimulate puzzle enthusiasts who aren't baseball experts.  So, what's an 18-letter, two-word answer for a terrific time?  It's Baseball Crosswords, of course!

Baseball Brain Teasers $6.95
Major League Puzzlers
by Dom Forker

So you think you know baseball?  Here's your chance to find out.  You make the call:

1) Can 2 pitchers be in the same team's lineup at the same time?
2) Can there ever be four outs in a half-inning?
3) Did a runner ever steal first base?
4) Can a runner be sage though hit by a batted ball?
5) Is it a home run if a batted ball hits an outfielder on the head and bounces into the stands.
6) Can an umpire's call be reversed by another arbiter?
7) Can a player be fined for letting himself be tagged out?
8) Was there ever a ground-rule triple?

An authority on the baseball rule book, author Dom Forker has compiled dozens of puzzlers like these, most from recent actual major league games.  Even if you didn't call all the plays correctly (the answer to all the above questions are yes), you'll develop a new appreciation for the finer points of the game with the enjoyable tour through the rule book provided by these Baseball Brain Teasers.

Great Games For Great Parties $8.95
by Andrea Campbell

Start the good times rolling right away!  From breaking the ice to saying good night - and every entertaining moment in between - this complete entertaining guide covers an amazing collection of games and surefire tips to ensure that everyone joins in the fun.
 
The seasoned party advice included begins with clues to creating the right setting and mood.  Next, you'll find a host of very effective suggestions for loosening up the party and getting everyone involved.
 
But it's the games that make Great Games for Great Parties the best party book ever!  Over 100 innovative, foolproof party games with full instructions include everything from pre-party contests and icebreakers to quiet table games, outrageous and wild activities, and treasure hunts.  Special chapters offer great recommendations on planning a party, party supplies, and selecting prizes and gifts.
 
With these fail-safe entertaining tips, your next party will be talked about for years to come!

Mathemania $6.95
by Raymond Blum

Abracadabra! Amaze and dazzle your family and friends with incredible number-magic tricks.   They add up to a lot of fun for everyone and make learning math entertaining.  Go ahead and try one - they're all easy to perform because they work practically by themselves.  And you don't need any special skills or expensive magic equipment.  Read minds; carry out card sorcery, paper magic, and calculator wizardry; make psychic predictions; and dip into a mixed bag of tricks.  And if someone asks how it's done, just say, "It's magic!"
 

Simple Optical Illusion Experiments $14.95
with Everyday Materials
by Michael A. DiSpezio

Uncover the "magic" behind optical illusions!  These great visual tricks, using mostly household objects and materials, are fun to experiment with.  Try them and know why things appear different from what they actually are.

Make:
- a bird's wings flap smoothly from one drawing to another.
- colors on a disk combine to create a white or gray mix.
- the lines on a ruler look to be different lengths even though they are the same.
- two pictures drift together into one.

Solve the mysteries of these amazing optical illusion experiments now!

Simple Science Experiments with Everyday Materials $5.95
by Muriel Mandell

Want to make your own science lab?
Here are nearly 100 great experiments that show you how to; make invisible ink, turn a straw into a trombone, squeeze an egg into a small bottle, launch a rocket with a lemon, blow a super bubble and lots, lots more.  You don't need a lot of equipment- just ordinary stuff around your house.  It's a whole new world of magic and mystery!

Greatest Jokes on Earth $4.95
by Matt Rissinger & Phillip Yates

Ready for hundreds of the best side-splitting, crack-me-up, shoot-milk-out-of-your-nose jokes on earth?  Well, they're all here...conveniently separated into fifteen hilarious categories!
Here's just a taste of what's in store:
- Rude Food - What song did they play when the cookie got married?   "Here crumbs the Bride."

Udder in the Court - What goes "oink oink" and steals your money? A Pig-pocket.

Attention: This totally zany collection - packed with fabulous jokes and knock-knocks-will make you giggle 'til you wiggle!

Totally Terrific Jokes $4.95
by Matt Rissinger & Phillip Yates

What do you give a dog that loves computers?
Doggy Diskettes.

Wait until you see these laugh-producing, giggle-inducing jokes and knock-knocks-about everything from doctors (they'll have you in stitches) to school, monsters and pets.  Check these out:

Why is Elvis so cool?  Because of all his fans.

Did you hear about the track star who raced a rabbit? He won by a hare.

And the chuckles just keep coming!

The World's Best Optical Illusions $5.95
by Charles H. Paraquin

The puzzles in this book are comprised of different illusions.  They are straight lines, perfect circles and two-way tricks and other shapes and drawings that keep you from seeing what's there - or make you see something that isn't there at all!

You can test yourself on more than 100 of these tricky teasers.  Will you be fooled?  Experts say Yes! Try it! You won't believe your eyes! Answers are in the back of the book.

Mystifying Mind Reading Tricks $6.95
by Robert Mandelberg

"How did you do that?" Make anyone look at you in awe, wondering how you read his or her mind.  These spell-binding illusions are more enticing than sleight of hand.  Not only will you learn the secrets of some incredible feats, but also how to use them effectively to maximize their impact.  In practically no time at all, you'll amaze and delight any audience with your extraordinary, seemingly supernatural talents.

Match Wits with Mensa $6.95
Test your Trivia Smarts
by Peter Gordon

Are you a trivia genius?
Fair warning: these bafflers are tough!

Compare yourself to the cream of the IQ crop as you field the same questions that were sent to members of American Mensa.  The percentage of Mensa members who got each question right is given along with the answer.  Pit your trivia knowledge against theirs in: Movies and Television; Music, Arts, and Letters; Sports and Games; Travel and Geography; and History Science. IF you're up to the challenge, take two "brain buster" tests with questions that 90% of the Mensa members didn't know!

The Smarter Bet Guide to Blackjack $4.95
by Basil Nestor

Professional strategies for winning!
Includes Spanish 21 and Double Exposure

The Smarter Bet Guide to Craps $4.95
by Basil Nestor

Everything you need to play Craps like a pro!

Play According To Hoyle: $3.95
Hoyle's Rules of Games
by Albert H. Morehead and Geoffrey Mott-Smith

Tired of the Old Games?

This handy guide can teach you new ones the easy way:
Scrabble, Poker, Canasta, Contract Bridge, Four-Deal Bridge, Goren System Bidding Rules, Gin Rummy, Chess, Solitaire, Backgammon, and many others.

Bicycle Poker: Official Rules and Games $5.95
edited by George White

"Bicycle Poker Official Rules and Games" will teach you everything you need to know about the game of Poker, including:

- A review of Rules and Laws of the game
- Poker Ethics and Strategy
- More than 100 Poker Games including :
 Seven Card Stud, Lowball, Texas Hold 'Em, Omaha, and High/Low

Whether you are new to the game or have been playing for years, "Bicycle Poker Official Rules and Games" will be a valuable resource. All that's missing is a deck of "America's Favorite Playing Cards."

Great Solitaire Games $6.95
by Sheila Anne Barry

Solitaire Games are the ideal pastime.  All you need is a pack of cards and a clear space in font of you, and you can spend as much or as little time as you like playing some of the most intriguing games ever devised. 

Here they are - more than 100 of the world's best - with "instant replay" illustrations for every game that will show you how each game works, and also notes on what to expect when you play it.  Some of the card games are very simple, for quick entertainment.  Others are complex and will challenge your powers of concentration and your card skills.

Try your hand at "Grandfather's Clock," "Osmosis," "Intelligence" or "Forty Thieves," plus many other amusing ways to while the time away.  They're mesmerizing and compelling.  You won't be able to stop!

150 Ways to Play Solitaire $5.95
by Alphonse Moyse, Jr.

Complete with layouts for playing.

Hard-To-Solve Brainteasers $6.95
by Jaime & Lea Poniachik

Train your mind!
 
To solve these tantalizing teasers, you'll need to think carefully and logically.  No special knowledge is required - just use your common sense.  So relax, have fun, and focus your brain on these problems:

Meet a pair of twins - one of whom always lies, while the other always tells the truth.  Can you figure out who you're talking to?
Solve  murder on a train as four fellow passengers speak only two sentences each.
Try this short teaser: The month begins on a Friday and ends on a Friday too.  What month is it?
Win bets by shifting coins from one design to another with the fewest moves.
Take on the fiendishly frustrating Hidden Words and Secret Numbers, and play dominoes with no dots.
 
Hints and clues are available along the way, and so are the answers if you try too hard and simply have to have them. 

One-Minute Brainteasers $6.95
by Alan Stillson

Have a minute?
 
Then you've got time for a baffling brainteaser!  Compare your results with American Mensa members, people who have an I.Q. in the top 2 percent of the population.  Not in a rush?  Try as many as you like - they can be solved independently.  Every mind-boggler here was tested by a Mensa puzzle-testing panel and can be solved within 60 seconds!  Find back-to-back words with the same number of letters that are spelled alike except for one vowel.  Fill in the missing word in a sentence that alludes to the topic at hand, from the culinary arts to computers.  Figure out the "Something in Common" and the kid-friendly "In Reverse" brainteasers.  Now do you feel like a genius?

Quick-to-Solve Brainteasers $6.95
by J.J. Mendoza Fernandez

Use your imagination...stay alert...and keep an open mind - or you'll never solve these logic puzzles and riddles.  The answers to all 289 brainteasers are easy...once you catch on to the tricky wording, that is! Can you figure this one out?

A physical feat:  How can you tie a knot in a napkin by holding one end in each hand without letting go of it?  You might think it's impossible but it's not.

These puzzles will keep your mind working for a long time!

You'd Better Be Really Smart Brain Bafflers $6.95
by Tim Sole & Rod Marshall

Succeed at these mind-bogglers and you're exceptionally clever.

This gold mine of stimulating challenges isn't for everyone - just for the best puzzle solvers.  Are you among this elite group?  Try these and find out:

Punctuate the following so that it makes sense: Time flies you cannot they go too quickly.

What property having to do with factorials makes the number 145 interesting?

P and Q are five-digit numbers that between them contain all ten digits, as does their product, P x Q.  If P = 54,321, what is Q?

Now you know you're brilliantly brainy.

Brain Bafflers $6.95
by Robert Steinwachs

Get ready for more than 250 ways to baffle and befuddle your mind.  Everything is fair game: your name, your friends and family, numbers, and words!

Before you go any further, try some of these:
How many apples would you have if you took two apples from three apples? (Two apples!)
Write down the number eleven thousand, eleven hundred, and eleven.  (12,111)
A boy and a girl born on the same day of the same year with the same parents are not twins.  How is this possible? (Two out of a set of triplets)
Divide twenty by one-half and add three. 
What is your answer? (43)

If you think you're ready for the rest of these mind mixers, then start keeping score, because these bafflers are fun to play with your family and friends!

Mind Bafflers $6.95
by George J. Summers

The Situation: Someone's trying to get away with a crime.
The Solution: You solve it and stop the culprit.  These 36 puzzlers will challenge your logical thinking, engross you for hours, and transform you into an amateur sleuth.

Try these to start:
- Which musician in the group started an argument  and murdered a choir member?
- Who cheated at cards? And how did this lead to a killing?
- How could a little backstage whistling (which many actors consider bad luck) cause still another death?

There are dozens more lawbreakers to apprehend, plus seven other puzzles where you have to find a missing word or number.  Take a peek at hints or clues, if you must and study the pointers for help in devising a strategy.  If you use your brain, you'll soon be right on the trail of the evildoers.  So catch them if you can!

Mind Sharpening Logic Games $6.95
by Andrea Angiolino

Whoever thought that six dots and a pencil could provide such a challenge?
Deceptively simple, these baffling logic games are built on logic and strategy for hours of mind-bending fun.
Try these 40-plus games and variations.  Helpful illustrations and interesting historical facts on the origins of each one will get you started.  Some use timeless logic played with words, pencil strokes, and numbers; others have been adapted into board games like Black Box, Mastermind, and Quo Vadis.
Go beyond tic-tac-toe, through mazes in Francoprussian Labyrinth, and into battle with Mine Field.  You'll even find a car-racing game using mere pencil and paper.
A table of games is included in the back with the number of players, type of paper (graph, etc) needed, and difficulty level, so you can pick just the right one for each occasion and crowd.

Crime Scene Whodunits $6.95
by Jim Sukach

Liars, cheats, thieves, and murderers: join the famous Dr. Quicksolve and his friends as they search the evidence for clues to fight crime.  See how fast you can figure out who did dastardly deeds.

One thing is for certain: solving these mini-mysteries is fun!

The Case of the Curious Campaign $6.95
by Robert Mandelberg

So begins the first of these mini-mysteries that, once solved, add up to the big revelation.  Figure out each whodunit individually, and by the end you'll have enough information to uncover the inside story of a political scandal.

Day by day, follow Mayor Hugh Ever's campaign for reelection.  As the race comes down to the wire, Ever and his opponent, Quentin Milestone, are neck and neck in the polls.  Suddenly it seems that Milestone has discovered something in Ever's past that could cost Ever the election.  So the Mayor's friends at the Bust Body Detective Agency are doing some frantic super sleuthing.  AS they investigate, more details emerge and more mysteries get resolved.  See if you're as good at figuring out the facts as the private eyes at Busy Body and have fun along the way.

Baffling Whodunit Puzzles $6.95
by Jim Sukach

Join famed professor of criminology Dr. J.L. Quicksolve and his son, Junior, in solving more than 40 devious crimes.  Match wits with kidnappers, safecrackers, thieves, and murderers.  Be on the lookout for suspicious behavior and impossible explanations.  All the clues you need to solve the crime can be found within each mini-mystery story, but you'll need to pay close attention and think like a detective to find out "whodunit".

Hard-to-Solve Cryptograms $6.95
by the National Puzzlers' League

Sharpen your pencil and your mind, because the world's oldest puzzle organization is about to put your wits to the test!

Each 300 cryptograms here is meant for the brightest and the best. With no concessions to the less than skilled, every puzzle uses weird words, strange letter combinations and trick syntax.  The highly unusual has been sought out: for example, one puzzle feature quite a few words that end in O - a very rare occurrence.  These are the cream of the crop - the most challenging cryptograms you can try.

Cryptogram-A-Day $6.95
by Louise B. Moll

Test your wits with a cryptogram for each day of the year!
Start the year with this one:
FXA SRZ YMJIJS UC SRZ YZXYUT VOXEEZT AUHI RZXIS XTE TUHIJYR AUHI YUHO.

And you won't be tempted to glance at the answers for the following day.  Solutions are cleverly scattered to prevent easy peeking.  Day after day, you'll be challenged and enlightened by this captivating collection of cryptograms.

Challenging Cryptograms $6.95
by Helen Nash

W.C. Fields, George Burns, Winston Churchill, Joan Rivers, Margaret Thatcher, woody Allen, Mick Jagger, and Henry Kissinger are just some of the 250 witty personalities whose funniest words have been turned into cryptograms - "substitution"" puzzles that keep everyone guessing!

If you love to spend hours solving cryptograms but can never find enough puzzles to satisfy your craving, then you're going to be delighted to get your hands on the 400 gems in this incredibly funny collection.

Clues to each of the cryptograms, plus the answers, are in the back.  So, even if you can't figure a puzzle out, you can still have a good laugh when you give up.

Clever Cryptograms $6.95
by Louise B. Moll

Get ready to challenge your brain and feed your soul with 300 sayings from 30 of the world's greatest thinkers, writers, and philosophers, all encoded to test your cryptographic skills.  Start with the trial-and-error method and, with a little perseverance and imagination, you'll be able to figure out the codes.  Unravel Einstein's famous statement: AXYAB QU HBOA UAOKQU ABL ALUA FR LPVLXQLKIL or Oscar Wilde's provocative observation: G JGO SNW XQYQ OWV VNMOT RWD NMJWYUR, XWYQ OWV VNMOT GV GUU.

Grab hold of a pencil and eraser, and curl up with Descartes and Disraeli, Gandhi and Goethe, Maimonides and Moliére, and 24 others, each of whom is captured in an original, full-page drawing.  "How-to" tips will help budding cryptographers get started, and of course the answers are included for those who get stuck.  With quotes from masterful minds turned into clever cryptograms, this collection will both satisfy the puzzle-solvers hunger for a mental workout and also provide food for thought.

Funny Cryptograms $6.95
by Shawn Kennedy

Decoding these coded quotations will make you laugh out loud.  That's because they come from a wide range of your favorite celebrities, from comedians Johnny Carson and Dave Barry to Henry Kissinger, Newt Gingrich, and others you would never suspect to have a sense of humor.
Try this one:
ON XSAQA'M BTFVTA GOMXATOTD XV LSVY O VLA YVTAF, O'Y CQACBQAZ XV NVQDAX OX ON FVK BQA
- AQQVG NGFTT

The Great Book Of Cryptograms $6.95
by Louise B. Moll

It's the ultimate collection for all you cryptogram fans!

Here are 300 secret scrambled codes for you to break.  Search out the patterns and structures of the words and sentences and stick with a trial-and-error search - and you'll crack the codes.  Each one is a famous quotation from a great thinker - Sigmund Freud, Henry David Thoreau, Jean-Paul Sartre, and many more!

Try exercising your abilities in logic, imagination, and perseverance, and figure out what Ben Franklin is really saying :

KISS FLEI CT PIGGIX GWBE KISS TBCF.

Or try to imagine what Hume meant here:

YDFKYR OI GZERGYI GB ECBDXQFIXH GXNDBBGCXI.

If you've never solved a cryptogram before, there are tips to get you started.  And the answers are in the back.  You'll be challenged to break every code.

Humorous Cryptograms $6.95
by Helen Nash & Dorothy Masterson

Get ready for lots of laughs with humorous witticisms.  The trick to this collection lf humorous observations and remarks is that in order to get the joke you've got to solve a challenging cryptogram!  By substituting another letter for each letter of the alphabet, the 400 funny quotations and the names of the people they're attributed to - including Roseanne Barr, George Burns, Woody Allen, Erma Bombeck, and Groucho Marx - have been transformed into head-breaking puzzles.  To decode the saying, use a simple trial and error method and a little logic.  If you're stuck, get help from special clue sections that provide you with up to two of the letter equivalents.  If you put in the effort to solve each puzzle correctly, your sense of humor will be well rewarded!

Amazing Magic Tricks with a Scotch & Soda or Dime & Penny $2.99
by Ken Simmons

Some of the most ingenious gimmicked coins ever devised - the Scotch & Soda and Dime & Penny - allow you to perform miracles.  And this book is your gateway to learning many of these fabulous feats.  Armed with your set of special coins and the information inside, you'll begin to look like a professional sleight of hand artist in minutes!
 
The tricks described in this book are audience favorites for many reasons.  One of their best features is the fact that most of them take place in a spectator's hand.  Even with their fingers wrapped around the coins, you'll still be able to work miracles.

Card Tricks Galore $5.95
by Bob Longe

Baffle, bemuse, and bewilder your audience with a wealth of ingenious card tricks.  Perform each one with crowd-pleasing flair.  Every trick offers something special: a new way of doing things, a surprise ending, or fresh audience participation.  Most require no sleight of hand at all, and a few involve  fun-to-use special moves for getting secret breaks, doing eye-catching shuffles and double cuts, and "milking" the cards.  With plenty of tips to ensure your success, you'll soon be dazzling friends and family (and yourself too) by finding chosen cards, predicting results, making cards change location, and mastering many other magical surprises.

Pinochle is the Name of the Game $2.95
by Walter Gibson

When you use this book you hire one of the game's foremost authorities as your personal pro.

The Complete Win at Spades Guide $7.95
by Joseph D. Andrews

Basic, Intermediate and Advanced Strategies and Official Rules.

The Complete Win at Hearts Guide $7.95
Joseph D. Andrews

Official Rules, Game Variations and Strategy.

Easy Hand Tricks $5.95
by Bob Longe

Astonish a crowd with more than 100 fantastic tricks anywhere, anytime.
 
Perform incredible feats of dexterity and manipulation using just your hands, feet, and a few common household objects.  Some appear to defy the laws of anatomy; others are funny.  A few, by their very nature, can't be kept secret; you call for props like a handkerchief and a dollar bill but don't require any manipulative skill.  All of the tricks are entertaining to watch.  Now you can do magic maneuvers that your spectators can't figure out. 

Money Magic Tricks $5.95
by Bob Longe

You've got the magic - and all you need is a coin or a bill to show it off!  With the more than 60 incredible money tricks here you'll astonish your friends and impress a crowd.  Make coins appear, disappear, change places, hop about under cards, and perform in many other astonishing ways.  Shock the audience by "tearing up" a bill and conjuring it "whole" again and turning a normal-size bill into a "miniature" one.  Try your hand at several fantastic challenges and puzzles - all involved with money.  And find out how to put different tricks together to form a routine, complete with great patter.

World's Best Card Tricks $5.95
by Bob Longe

You don't need fancy trick cards, double decks, or any kind of apparatus - only a deck of playing cards and you're ready!

Here a master performer selects more than 40 of the greatest impromptu card tricks ever devised.  And, with the enthusiasm of a brilliant showman, he shows you not only how they work, but also how to put them over, with clear step-by-step instructions and illustrations.  Plus, a special chapter explains what to do when something goes wrong.

All you need to be able to do is shuffle a deck and you'll pick up these surprising feats in no time.  Great for kids from eight to eighty.

Pick-a-Card-Any Card? $4.95
Card Forcing Techniques & Uses

The ability to force a playing card is one of the most important techniques a magician can master.  By making an unusual unsuspecting spectator select a card of his choice, the magician creates for himself a colossal advantage.  Thousands of tricks are made possible.  In this booklet, you will be taught several natural methods of forcing cards, including some that are practically self-working, others that require sleight hand, and even how to create gimmicks that will make forcing cards nearly automatic.

Once you have mastered card forcing, you will be able to perform the following tricks - and many more - which are explained in detail:

- Cause chosen cards to rise mysteriously from the pack, which is out of your hands!
- Predict the word a spectator will select from a random book!
- Cause every spectator to select the same card from a borrowed pack!  Transport a selected card inside a piece of fruit and much, much more.

Clever Card Tricks For The Hopelessly Clumsy $6.95
by Bob Longe

Perform these incredible card tricks with absolutely no sleight of hand, no coordination, or physical abilities at all!  That's right - you don't need to have great skill in handling a deck of cards to amaze and astound your audience.  These tricks have principles, methods, and secrets so subtle that many of them fool magicians as well as regular people.  like you and me.  Shuffles and cuts are made easy.  Learn the patter that will get your audience involved and advice on what to do if things go wrong.  Now you're ready to wow a crowd with mental, coincidence, location, number, and other tricks like:

A Very Little Turnover, Impromptu Liar's Trick, Let's Lose Your Card', Crime Does Not Pay, Kings In A Blanket, Nothing Up My Sleeve.

Even if you're hopelessly clumsy you can manipulate your cards with finesse when you perform the impressive tricks here.

125 Magic Tricks $3.95
by Graham R. Putnam, Frances Ireland Marshall, and Gabe Fajuri

"Do a Card Trick!"  Invariably, every magician gets asked this question.  Master only a few of the 125 miracles in this book and you will be able to answer the call of duty!  The tricks explained inside are, for the most part, easy to yet baffling feats that are within the grasp of everyone.  Little, if any sleight of hand, is required.  And better yet, they can be performed with an ordinary deck of cards. 

Armed with the information in this book and a deck of cards you'll be able to perform the following remarkable effects:

Wipe the pip off of a playing card, Force a spectator to select any card you choose!, Tear a pack of cards in half with your bare hands, Break a pencil in half with a flimsy playing card, Instantly know the name of the spectator's card, and much, much, more!

Card Games for Smart Kids $5.95
by Margi Golick, Ph.D.

Get Card Smart!

You know that card games are great fun - but did you know they could also make you smarter?  Just think about what you have to do to play a game.  You have to know all the rules and figure out the best way to win.  Sometimes, you have to make decisions really quickly or remember what card someone threw down or picked up.  it's important to know where your opponents are strong, too - and where they might make a mistake.

Speed - you'd better be fast to win this!
Coffee Pot, Drat!, and Multiplication Rummy require skill - not luck.
Bezique, Black Maria, and Sixty-Three have complex rules.  Can you remember them?
Have all your friends stopped by?  They can all join in and play Alliteration, Jackblack, and Gimme.

And over 40 more!  Soon you'll be a winner in every game you play!

100 Baffling Crosswords $5.95
by Thomas Joseph

Only the best crosswords can baffle you to distraction.

How mind-boggling do you like your puzzles?  The ones in this collection will satisfy even the strongest cravings for new challenges.  Each is difficult but none uses obscure words.  Although the answers may be familiar, you'll find these crosswords deviously confounding.

101 IQ Building Word Games
by Mayme Allen and Janine Kelsch

Do you belong in the dictionary hall of fame?

  Here's where you'll find out, with these colossal word games that test your ability with words!

  You'll be challenged to come up with all the words you can think of with a certain three letter sequence (for instance, that O-X-Y in that sequence); figure out how many different words can be created out of another word (if you can find 60 or more words in the playful noun "gamester," you're a master wordsmith);  match movies and songs to the artists who made them; and a whole lot more!  But these are just for beginners. 

Loads of real toughies will have you begging for the dictionary.  It's a wordiculturalist's nightmare - and dream come true - all at the same time.

$5.95

Awesome Crosswords for Kids $5.95
by Trip Payne

What is a seven-letter word that best describes these crosswords?

AWESOME!  That's because every puzzle has been created especially for kids.  The clues will test your knowledge about dinosaurs, movies, geography, music, sports, and more.  You will have so much fun solving these crosswords, you won't want to stop you've finished all of them.

Awesome Word Search Puzzles For Kids $5.95
by Mark Danna

What makes these word search puzzles so extraordinary and totally awesome?

For the first time ever, the shape of the every single one of them relates to the puzzle's theme.  Finding answers hidden in an ice cream cone (for "Here's the Scoop"), a bowling ball and pin ("Right Up Your Alley"), and a snowman ("Snowed In") is lots of fun.  There are even pictures that replace some of the letters in a word.  And all the puzzles contain a secret message.  That's why this collection is a challenge you'll love to tackle! 

Great Crosswords For Kids $5.95
by Trip Payne

Can you remember who chased the Road Runner, or name a vegetable that sounds like a letter of the alphabet?  Know who was the president after Washington or what the Earth spins on?  Test your word power with 40 super-fun crosswords for kids.  Each puzzle feature all the things you love - your favorite books, movies, and cartoons; the games you play; and lots more.  And when you come across a clue that stumps you - don't worry!  Just go on and do the others and soon you'll be able to fill in the blanks.  There are names of state capitals and zodiac signs, fairy tales, plus one of Harry Potter's best friends, the nickname for Texas, a kind of rodent, and lots more!

The Word Play Almanac $6.95
by O.V. Michaelsen

If it's interesting - and it has to do with word play- it's here, from riddles and rhymes to oxymoron's and palindromes.  Amuse, enlighten, and entertain yourself with these:

Life's a bleach, and then you're dry." - sign in a Chapel Hill, North Carolina,     Laundromat.

Place names: Bland, Missouri and Virginia; Peculiar, Missouri; Why, Arizona

Contradictory proverbs: Absence makes the heart grow fonder.  Out of sight, out of mind.

The longest English word without an "E" Floccinaucinihilipilification, which means "the action or habit of estimating a thing or an idea, etc. worthless" (Oxford English Dictionary).

Who could resist wit like this? And there's plenty more inside.

Challenging Puzzles for Word Fanatics $6.95
by George Bredehorn