Word-Finds Companion. Volume 314
[Blue Bell, Pennsylvania]: Kappa Books, 2022. Single volume, measuring 8 x 5.25 inches: [1], 4-97, [1]. Original color-printed wrappers. Forty-three word searches followed by answer key. Half-inch closed tear to foot of front wrapper.
Volume 314 in Kappa’s popular Word-Finds Companion series, one of thousands of mass-market puzzle books published for wholesale distribution in American grocery, drug, and dollar stores. This volume is notable for its Puzzle 23, titled “Women Poets,” which represents a deep dive into postwar American poetry, featuring Elizabeth Bishop, Ruth Stone, Maya Angelou, Adrienne Rich, Maxine Kumin, Sylvia Plath, Anne Sexton, Denise Levertov, Joanne Kyger, and Louise Gluck. Living poets include Rita Dove, Marilyn Hacker, Sharon Olds, and Anne Waldman. With the exception of Sappho and Anna Akhmatova, all of the poets named in the word search write in English; Emily Dickinson is a surprising omission from the list. An unusual topic for an ephemeral Kappa puzzle, whose creator (a moonlighting graduate student?) is uncredited and unknown.
Price: $50.00