Book excerpt: Fun, Solvable Crosswords with a Cartoon Twist! Renowned New York Times crossword creator and illustrator Patrick Merrell has taken ordinary crosswords to a whole new level. Already famous for his Times puzzles--which stretch, twist, and outright shatter the rules of "ordinary" crosswords--Merrell has taken his extraordinary skills in both drawing and puzzlemaking and combined them in Punchline Puzzles. Each puzzle contains a cartoon at its center--a cartoon whose punchline is hidden within the grid. Solve the puzzle, get the joke: it's as simple as that. Plus each grid is full of bonus theme-related entries and extra cartoons to discover and enjoy! · 50 easy, fun crosswords · Introduction by Will Shortz, crossword puzzle editor of The New York Times · Top-quality puzzles featuring cartoon conundrums!