The Curious History of the Riddle: Solve over 250 Riddles, from the Riddle of the Sphinx to Harry Potter (Puzzlecraft, 6)

Part history book, part puzzle book, The Curious History of the Riddle is fully illustrated with over 250 riddles interspersed throughout the text for solving, so get ready to put on your thinking cap!

The Curious History of the Riddle investigates the fascinating origin and history of the riddle, from the very first riddle (the Riddle of the Sphinx) to the twenty-first century, with riddles found in pop culture, including movies, books, and video games. 

Riddles are ageless, timeless, and so common that we hardly ever reflect upon what they are and how they originated. Riddles come in all languages and from all eras of human history, making them a truly “curious” history. In The Curious History of the Riddle, puzzle expert Marcel Danesi delves deep into the riddle's origin and offers a concise snapshot of riddles throughout time—from the Riddle of the Sphinx, to the riddles in Benjamin Franklin’s Poor Richard’s Almanack and Lewis Carroll’s Alice books, to those found in the Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings book series, and much more—covering these fascinating topics:

• Ancient riddles
• Medieval riddles
• Riddles in the Renaissance
• Riddles as part of leisure culture
• Riddles in literature
• Riddles in popular culture
• Rebuses as visual riddles

The Puzzlecraft series from Wellfleet Press tackles some of the greatest conundrums of our time. Learn how to navigate the world’s trickiest mazes, solve the most complex crosswords, and finally get the answer to “Why is a raven like a writing desk?” Follow literature’s most famous detective, Sherlock Holmes, as he guides you through hundreds of challenging cross-fitness brain exercises inspired by his most popular cases and adventures. You can also train your memory to perform better and learn the meanings behind your own personality traits or the traits of others. These handy and portable paperbacks are sized perfectly to travel, whether on vacation or just for your daily commute. The intricately designed covers and bold colors will capture your attention as much as the engaging content inside.
 
Other titles in the series include: The Curious History of Mazes; The Curious History of the Crossword; Escape from Sherlock Holmes; Sherlock Holmes Puzzles: Code Breakers; Sherlock Holmes Puzzles: Math & Logic Games; Sherlock Holmes Puzzles: Visual Puzzles; Sherlock Holmes Puzzles: Lateral Brain Teasers; Solving Sherlock Homes; Solving Sherlock Holmes Volume II; Maximize Your Memory; and The Book of Personality Tests.
 

Marcel Danesi, PhD, is a full professor of linguistic anthropology and the director of the program in semiotics at the University of Toronto. He is also co-director of the CogSci Network of the Fields Institute for Research in Mathematical Sciences. He has written extensively on puzzles, including The Anthropology of Puzzles (Bloomsbury, 2018) and Ahmes’ Legacy: Puzzles and the Mathematical Mind (Springer, 2018). He also writes a puzzle blog for Psychology Today and composes puzzles for various magazines, including Prevention and Reader’s Digest.