Trivia or Word Search? How to Choose for the Person You're Buying For
These two kinds of book get bought for the same birthdays and used in completely different ways. Choosing by the age on the cover and ignoring the format is the most common way to get this gift wrong.
A trivia book is an event
It needs a reader, and it is at its best with several people in a room. Our trivia books are 6 by 9 inches and 54 to 92 pages, with the answers in the back and a certificate. The 80th and 90th are multiple choice with four answers per question (254 and 202 questions in five rounds) and include a score sheet; the 60th and 50th have 200 questions each across 13 shorter rounds of quizzes and party games, with a look back at the birth year, a party scorecard and a keepsake page.
In the 80th and 90th books the multiple-choice format is doing quiet work. Nobody has to produce a date from memory in front of their family; a good guess has a one-in-four chance, and the conversation starts either way. If you want a plan for the day itself, there is a short guide to hosting a trivia game.
A word search is company
It asks nothing of anyone else. Our word search books are 8.5 by 11 inches — noticeably larger — 163 pages, with 80 themed puzzles and all 80 solutions in the back. The grid letters are set at 18.6 point and the word lists at 16 point, both measured from the print file.
That size is the point. It is the book that gets picked up for twenty minutes after lunch, taken to an appointment, or worked through slowly over a month. Nobody has to host anything.
Choosing between them
- Is there a party? Trivia, and give it to them before the day so they know it is coming.
- Do they live alone, or spend long stretches quietly? Word search.
- Is eyesight a concern? Word search, clearly — the grid type is far larger. The measured sizes are in our piece on what large print really means.
- Do they enjoy being quizzed, or do they hate being put on the spot? Some people genuinely dislike it. Trust what you know about them.
- Not sure? The word search is the safer default. It can be enjoyed alone, with no occasion and no audience.
Both, sometimes
For a milestone with a party, a trivia book for the afternoon and a word search for the weeks afterwards is a sensible pairing, and the two formats do not compete with each other. The gift guide walks through the rest of the decision, including which decades each book covers.
