# Puzzle Island **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [November 18, 2011, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puzzle-island/603374 "2011-11-18T18:59:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![dotchan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@dotchan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dotchan)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2011, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puzzle-island/603374/21 "2011-11-18T23:11:10Z")
> [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](#): > > Only three letters are really clearly pointed at: THE. But if they wanted to spell out “THE”, why all those superfluous details? In the next picture, there are no such extra “overlaps”. ---
**Author:** ![dotchan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@dotchan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dotchan)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2011, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puzzle-island/603374/22 "2011-11-18T23:19:08Z")
NETA: Slight break while I eat dinner. ---
**Author:** ![dotchan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@dotchan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dotchan)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puzzle-island/603374/23 "2011-11-19T00:05:40Z")
[Breather puzzle?](http://pics.livejournal.com/dotchan/pic/00013ys9) This one pretty unambiguously spells out “THE”. ---
**Author:** ![dotchan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@dotchan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dotchan)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puzzle-island/603374/24 "2011-11-19T00:20:23Z")
[Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar](http://pics.livejournal.com/dotchan/pic/000149zf) Letters this time: “C, O, R, S, T”, or without blanks “C, S” …I think. The way letters O through S are almost bracketed on that right side makes me wonder if it’s significant. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puzzle-island/603374/25 "2011-11-19T00:27:49Z")
Actually it says CROSS. ---
**Author:** ![dotchan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@dotchan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dotchan)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puzzle-island/603374/26 "2011-11-19T00:35:58Z")
…so it does. Oops! Anyway, [last page](http://pics.livejournal.com/dotchan/pic/000156xr). Uh. Once again we have a lot of ambiguous “overlap”. I’m guessing that “Q” isn’t a letter because we haven’t collected any instances of “U” (unless those stupid leaves in Goddamn Bats picture are supposed to count). The only certainty I have is that “E, O, R” are definitely part of the mystery word. ---
**Author:** ![steronz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steronz/32/11765_2.png) [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puzzle-island/603374/27 "2011-11-19T00:47:06Z")
OVER ---
**Author:** ![dotchan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@dotchan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dotchan)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puzzle-island/603374/28 "2011-11-19T00:51:51Z")
Okay, so, putting all of the clues together, we now have WITH JOIN FI®ST LETTERS(SETTLER)(TREE) (???) SOUTH (B)EAST THE THE CROSS OVER …I got nothing. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puzzle-island/603374/29 "2011-11-19T01:21:54Z")
I’m guessing there’s some clue elsewhere in the book to the order you’re supposed to read the pages. (The juxtaposition of “THE” and “THE” on adjacent pages suggests this.) I also think page 5 is supposed to be “NORTH” with the “AJ” having some additional significance. So the message would be something like “JOIN THE FIRST LETTERS OVER SOUTH WITH THE NORTH EAST CROSS.” ---
**Author:** ![dotchan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@dotchan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dotchan)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puzzle-island/603374/30 "2011-11-19T01:33:40Z")
Well, I wouldn’t know how you guys would be able to help me beyond this point without me scanning the entire book, and I don’t feel comfortable with doing that. ---
**Author:** ![steronz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steronz/32/11765_2.png) [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puzzle-island/603374/31 "2011-11-19T01:40:36Z")
Join the first letter of xxxx on the grid and see where the lines cross over. Like connect the top and bottom Ts with a straight line, the the left and right Ts, and see of something is at those coordinates. Assuming T is the first letter of something. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/puzzle-island/603374.md?page=1)