Sunday, October 7, 2012
ACROSTIC, Puzzle by Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon
Edited by Will Shortz
This Sunday’s challenging acrostic draws a seriously delirious and somewhat fragmented quotation from Alphabet Juice: The Energies, Gists, and Spirits of Letters, Words, and Combinations Thereof; Their Roots, Bones, Innards, Piths, Pips, and Secret ... With Examples of Their Usage Foul and Savory by Roy Blount, Jr.
ALPHABET JUICE is a potpourri of comments on words and the English language, arranged in alphabetically-ordered entries and presented with Blount's characteristic good humor. It is somewhat akin to books on the proper use of words and language, but it should not be pigeon-holed as simply a user's guide. While it does contain a fair measure of advice and commentary on usage (Blount is not particularly uptight, but he does have a prescriptive bent), it also has generous doses of etymology, word play, jokes, and personal experiences and anecdotes. It appears likely that Blount has been collecting material for this book over many years of his career as a writer and somewhat populist man-of-letters. ~ R. M. Peterson, Amazon.com
The quotation: TRYING TO SPELL THE SOUNDS THAT PIGS MAKE ISNT EASY CHICKENS BEING MORE ARTICULATE YOULL FIND THEIR NOISES TO BE SIMILAR THE WORLD ROUND BABY CHICKS GO PEEP PEEP IN ENGLISH PIO PIO IN SPANISH PIYO PIYO IN JAPANESE
The author’s name and title of the work: ROY BLOUNT ALPHABET JUICE
The defined words:
A. Fail to keep up with demand (2 wds.), RUN SHORT
B. Article of sailor’s attire, OILSKIN
C. 1960’s rebel like Abbie Hoffman or Jerry Rubin, YIPPIE
D. Colorado’s official state animal, BIGHORN
E. Any D’Oyly Carte production (2 wds.), LIGHT OPERA
F. Hole, mouth, aperture, ORIFICE
G. N.Y. setting for some September smashes (2 wds.), US OPEN
H. Movie promoted with the tagline “Garbo laughs”, NINOTCHKA
I. Precipitous and out-of-control downturn, TAILSPIN
J. Condition induced by acupuncture, ANESTHESIA
K. Accidental aid for a famous Bobby Jones shot (2 wds.), LILY PAD
I. Attic orator, general and patron of the arts, PERICLES
M. “I could eat a horse” or “We laughed our heads off,” e.g., HYPERBOLE
N. Silky-coated cat with long legs, ABYSSINIAN
O. Monarch’s defense against predators, BAD TASTE
P. Cause of many a sci-fi apocalypse, EPIDEMIC
Q. Preordained course of study?, THEOLOGY
R. One way to drain a bucket, so to speak (2 wds.), JUMP SHOT
S. Period of economic recovery, UPSWING
T. Actress whose father wrote and sang “Atlantis” (2 wds.), IONE SKYE
U. Charge against the Hollywood Ten in 1947, CONTEMPT
V. Envelope-pushing quality, EDGINESS
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The full paragraph of the quotation: Have you ever tried to spell any of the various sounds that pigs make? It isn’t easy. It’s damn well worth trying, but eventually you have to settle on something close. (Chickens being more articulate, you’ll find their noises to be pretty similar the world round. Baby chicks go peep peep in English, pio pio in Spanish, piyo piyo in Japanese.)
As quoted in the acrostic: [Trying] to spell ... the ... sounds that pigs make ... isn’t easy. ... Chickens being more articulate, you’ll find their noises to be ... similar the world round. Baby chicks go peep peep in English, pio pio in Spanish, piyo piyo in Japanese.
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