Made in the Shade: A Review

In the dog days of summer as a kid, I'd smoke cattails and swing in a hammock under a pile of books. My friends sold lemonade and I'd wave at them to bring me over a cup. We thought we had it "Made in the Shade;" "Living the Good Life!" Free to swing from limb to limb without fear of someone's mother shouting: "Get down outta that tree."

Under a green canopy, out of the sun and lost in a good book! And just after dusk, the lightning bugs lit up the branches. The new puzzle by Wanita Webb, Made in the Shade, a 125-piece teaser, brought back lots of good memories in addition to providing great fun in my dining room (in air-conditioning, with a glass of Pino Grigio and away from the bugs!)

Stave Catalog photo: Not actual solution

One of those blasts from the past, was Tiny Toe, a little creature who lived in a tree and his travails filled an hour of TV on Sunday mornings. The clown in Wanita's puzzle reminded me of Tiny Toe. But a devilish one! The adjacent pieces don't fit into the clown the way they do in most Stave puzzles. And when that happens, it's a little unsettling but then it makes the puzzle that more interesting.

Every now and then when puzzling away, I wonder if a mistake was made in the cutting because, after all, the pieces should be fitting together AND THEY AREN'T -- can't be my fault no way! The feeling is like when you hear a pianist or an orchestra playing and you could think somebody made a mistake -- and of course you're the only genius who hears it.

And even after completing umpteen numbers of Staves, I should know better but still doubt the pieces. All of a sudden: Voila. It's solved. It's "Made in the Shade" looking so good you just want to jump in and join the frogs and other little creatures. It's a dreamy, fantasy world and exactly what's need to get through the dog days of summer.

I didn't keep track of how long it took to complete. I was just lost in the fun of it. Guessing? Probably not more than 2.5 hours. But one measure I'm judging puzzles against more and more of late is whether they are "friend worthy." And this one is. I'm packing it along with several books, some bug juice and fresh mint and then heading to a friend's weekend home. We're going to sip lemonade infused with mint and puzzle under her big old Willow.