> Indeed, but puzzles have to be fair. The Alice books are
> overtly fantasy, but in your reading of /Pale Fire/ we have to
> figure out an extremely inventive (non-verisimilar) explanation
> of what looks like a realistic story with a ghost or three,
Dear Jerry,
"A realistic story with a ghost or three"?!
By the way, riddles aren't always fair, as Alice discovers when the Mad Hatter puts a riddle to her to which he doesn't have the answer (why is a raven like a writing desk?)
But a puzzle that is solvable is fair. Since I know of two people besides myself who have solved it, I can say it is very difficult (it took me I don't know how many readings - - and about a year),* but not impossible. I enjoyed the Royal Chase of the Goose, so I can't complain.
But don't get me started on Ada!
Carolyn
* A lawyer friend of mine guessed the answer after only reading PF once, but he's a genius.