David Jacobsen continues to bring fun to the world of treasure hunting! This time with his brand-new book –Best Riddles. Inside this fun collection of riddles is a Treasure Challenge: The Hatter’s Riddle! If you can solve that one particular riddle inside the book, you can claim a valuable treasure (learn more in the Six Questions below)!
This isn’t David’s first treasure adventure to be released for all to enjoy though. One of David’s other treasure hunt books, Treasure Island, although recently solved, held a treasure valued at over $10,000 dollars to claim. Yet, another treasure hunt book, The Hatter’s Hat, holding a treasure of similar value remains hidden. Who will find that one? It could be YOU!
And if all that wasn’t enough – along with his larger treasure hunt books – David released The Mad Tea Party in 2021 – it too holds a treasure yet to claim! Let’s learn more about how YOU can join these exciting searches for treasures.
Six Questions with David Jacobsen:
- 1Q) I’ve enjoyed reading and putting my mind to work on the wonderful collection of riddles inside your new book of Best Riddles. Please tell us more about the treasure to win by solving The Hatter’s Riddle inside the book! I realize the exact value is difficult to give, but can you share a conservative estimate?
Thank you, Jenny! I’m glad you are enjoying the riddles.
The Hatter’s Riddle cache is a nice little treasure cache. It contains silver coins, a number of jewels, including a wonderful sapphire, a beautiful ruby, and an enchanting emerald ring. There is a pearl bracelet, and even an American Eagle 1/10 ounce of 99% pure gold as well. There are also some world coins including an old roman coin from the first centuries. So there’s history in that chest as well as some visual appeal, but there is also some bullion value. It’s tough to put a precise number on the street value of something like that, but I do know the gold piece alone is worth at least a couple hundred dollars. And gold is always going up in value over time. Anyway, I’ve never had the other pieces appraised, but the cache is a very nice prize for solving a riddle.
But more importantly, it’s a lot of fun. I think the idea of putting your mind to something and trying to learn something new in exchange for the possibility of a real-world treasure is something that will appeal to many folks. It certainly would get my attention.
- 2Q) Best Riddles is only one of the many treasure books you’ve written. What are you enjoying most about writing, and have you written any other type of books, or have a desire to?
I really enjoy writing. In fact, I love anything involving creative expression. I was a musician for many years of my life, a visual artist, and I am a writer as well, as you know. I have written a good number of books now on a variety of topics (at least a dozen or more that I can think of). Many of them I’ve never published. Most will never see the light of day. But I find myself gravitating towards fiction, fantasy, and children’s books (middle grade, young adult, and chapter books).
Grown-ups, like myself, are far too boring if you ask me. It’s much more fun to live in the imagination of a child and to talk about things like dragons, and treasures, and fantastical worlds than to talk about mundane topics such as what the stock market is doing on a given day. The thing I enjoy most about writing, I suppose, is escaping from the stresses and annoying facts about the primary world (the real-world in which we live). I write for the same reason many people read: to escape.
- 3Q) How did you choose the Riddles to include inside the book Best Riddles? Are the riddles some of your favorites or did you choose them because their answers or wordings might offer clues to solving The Hatter’s Riddle in some way? Or both? Or neither?
Oh, now you’re going to get me into trouble. There certainly was a criteria for choosing the riddles, but I don’t want to give away any of my secrets. Let’s just say they’re each special in their own unique way. There may be more to the story, but I’ll wait until someone has solved the riddle before providing the details.
- 4Q) Your book, the Mad Tea Party also holds riddles, with the chance to win a treasure. Two of these have been solved (their treasures claimed), but the last one remains unsolved. Are the clues to the answer of the March Hare’s Riddle within that particular riddle’s section, or might searchers need to look beyond that section or possibly even outside the book?
The clues are in the corresponding section. Boy, I just made it a lot easier, didn’t I. I suppose I shouldn’t have done that. That’s ok. That hunt’s been going on for a while. I suppose it’s ok to give your readers some added direction and clarity. I’m sure they will appreciate the added help.
- 5Q) Your books, The Hatter’s Hat (and Treasure Island), requires physically going in search of a proxy item to claim the treasures valued at over $10,000 dollars. Treasure Island’s chest was recently claimed! Congrats on its successful conclusion. But Best Riddles and The Mad Tea Party are fully armchair- in that searchers need only email the correct solutions to claim a treasure. What do you appreciate most in each type? What would you say is the most challenging aspect for each type?
Personally, I enjoy boots on the ground hunts. I’ve always loved real-world adventure – getting out into the great outdoors and exploring nature’s true treasure. That is, of course, what got me into this whole treasure hunting business in the first place. I wanted to give people a reason to get off the couch and to have an adventure.
On the other hand, during the pandemic lockdowns it became apparent that getting out into nature wasn’t always an option for some people. And there are some populations who have trouble getting outdoors even if there is no pandemic to worry about. I wanted to do something for that audience as well.
I think each type of treasure hunt has its appeal and benefits. But if you’re young and able, I would encourage you to get outdoors every once in a while and to have a real-world adventure if you get the chance. To me that has always been the most fun. Plenty of people have emailed me and shared with me over the years the wonderful adventures they’ve had while looking for the Wonderland treasure. Many people have discovered new and wonderful places because of the hunt, and that’s the part of this that excites me the most. What could be more fun than getting out into the mountains, or woods, or walking along a stream or a riverbed in search for a real-world treasure?
- 6Q) The book cover of Best Riddles has ‘Volume One’. Should readers expect another to follow soon? Or what might your plans be?
There may be a second volume coming. It depends I suppose on how much fun searchers have with this one. As of now, people appear to be enjoying themselves, so I wouldn’t be surprised to find myself releasing a second Best Riddles volume sometime in the near future. Stay tuned.