The Best Puzzle Books for Adults
Free time is something we always dream about when we’re doing something we don’t want to do. But the truth is that free time isn’t always as fun and rewarding as we envision it in our heads. Boredom and stagnation can settle in quickly when free time is abundant. Adult puzzle books can help you put your free time to brain-building, boredom-breaking good use. These books run the gamut from sudoku, crosswords, riddles, and everything in between. To help you pick the right adult puzzle book for you, we’ve compiled this list of our absolute favorites.
The Ultimate Brain Health Puzzle Book
Brain Workout
We’re not exaggerating when we say that this adult puzzle book has something for everyone. With a well-rounded roster of sudoku, cryptograms, word searches, and crosswords, this book has a puzzle to work out every corner of your brain. Push yourself to beat old records and keep your brain sharp as a tack in the process. Not to mention, considering all of the incredible puzzles this book has to offer, you’ll likely be as delighted as we were to see an asking price this low. We can’t recommend this adult puzzle book enough for people looking for a varied and challenging puzzle book.
Pros:
- A varied assortment of puzzles
- Great value
- Challenging, but not impossible
Cons:
- There are a fair amount of typos strewn through the book
Funster 1000+ Sudoku Puzzles
Crunch the Numbers
Sudoku is the Japanese numbers game from the mid-1980s that has since taken the world by storm. With this book, Funster has compiled some of the most challenging and rewarding sudoku puzzles for you to enjoy. The book features over 1000 puzzles separated into three categories of difficulty, which makes this an ideal gift for teens as well as adults. Many adult puzzle books are cheaply made, resembling children’s coloring books more than anything else. However, this sudoku book from Funster breaks that stereotype with its elegant and sturdy design that features wide, thick pages made to withstand wear and tear. This book is an essential purchase for any and all sudoku fiends.
Pros:
- Over 1000 puzzles split into three difficulty levels
- Bold, large puzzle format that makes playing easier
- High-quality pages and book spine
Cons:
- These puzzles might be a bit too easy for more experienced players
Funster 100+ Large Print Easy Crossword Puzzles
Words for Wisdom
Crossword puzzles have been a staple of the Sunday breakfast table for generations. Funster took all the challenging, brain-racking fun of crossword puzzles and threw it into this adult puzzle book for you to play with (no newspaper subscription required). Crossword puzzles from newspapers are known for being next to impossible at times, but this book from Funster finds a way to keep things challenging without being inaccessible. The letters and numbers are big, bold, and easy to read, so you can leave those clunky reading glasses on the nightstand when you whip this book out. What’s more, Funster includes extra word search and sudoku puzzles online that you can download for free. For anyone starving for a crossword that they can actually finish, this is the pick for you.
Pros:
- Challenging crosswords that aren’t indecipherable
- Its big, bold lettering makes it easy for anyone to read
Cons:
- These puzzles may be far too easy for intermediate and above crossword enthusiasts
The 125 Best Brain Teasers of All Time
Riddle Me This
If you’re looking to start honing your critical thinking skills, there’s nothing better than brain teasers and riddles. With an artsy cover that portrays the riddle-loving Sphinx from Egyptian mythology, this adult puzzle book had us sold from the second we saw it. Each time you solve a riddle from one of the five difficulty levels, you’re treated to a little history lesson about the riddle’s origins. If you’re an older person looking to stay sharp with some challenging yet rewarding brain teasers, we highly recommend this book.
Pros:
- Five difficulty levels
- The book teaches you about the history of each riddle
- Great for honing critical thinking skills
Cons:
- Not as varied as a lot of the other adult puzzle books
1000 Word Search Puzzle Book
Build Up Your Brain
This gigantic book of word search puzzles has enough content to entertain your whole family for months on end. With 1000 puzzles and a whopping 586 pages, this thing is truly stuffed to the brim with engaging and interesting puzzles. Word search puzzles ask you to find real words hidden in a sea of jumbled letters, keeping your eyes sharp and honing your reading skills in the process. Once you’re done with a puzzle, flip back to the solution section to see how many you got right. These puzzles are the perfect antidote for a lazy, rainy night, and we highly recommend them to puzzle lovers of all stripes.
Pros:
- 1000 challenging word search puzzles
- Provides a solution section for each puzzle to check your correctness
- A good puzzle book for all ages
Cons:
- Word search puzzles don’t exercise your brain as much as other puzzle books
Frequently Asked Questions
Are adult puzzle books actually good for improving brain health?
The more you put your thinking cap on, the stronger your brain becomes. The brain is a muscle like any other in our bodies; it needs to get a workout to grow. Doing puzzles is a great way to keep your neurons firing and synapses building new pathways. Different kinds of puzzles will help different areas of the brain. For instance, sudoku and number puzzles will strengthen your mathematical abilities, while riddles and word games will strengthen your critical thinking skills.
Do these adult puzzle books contain puzzle pieces?
No, adult puzzle books contain the kind of puzzles you put together mentally, not physically. This includes word games, sudoku, crosswords, and brain teasers.
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