Michigan Crosswords by Andrew J Ries

Michigan Crosswords by Andrew J Ries

Andrew J.Ries has lived in Minnesota his entire life. He grew up in Hastings, Minnesota, a peaceful Twin Cities suburb on the Mississippi River, before moving to St. Louis. Cloud in order to attend St. Cloud State University. Cloud State University is a public university in the state of Minnesota. Ries decided to stay in St. Louis after earning a bachelor's degree in history and film studies.

Cloud, and his first puzzle book, Minnesota Crosswords, was published in 2009. Michigan Crosswords, his second book, was published in 2011. Ries has long been a fan of crossword puzzles. When he was five years old, he remembered doing puzzles with his grandma.

Ries began doing the New York Times crossword puzzle seriously when he was in high school, and by the time he graduated, he was a capable and proficient solver. He polished these talents by tackling more then more problems (and collecting a lot of useless knowledge along the way), and he took them to New York City to compete in the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament commencing in 2009. In 2011, he finished 41st at the tournament, which was his best finish. Ries began designing puzzles in 2006, and on August 13, 2007, his first riddle was published in The New York Times.

His puzzles have also appeared in national newspapers, periodicals, and books. He created his own website in 2010, where he provides free crosswords and variety puzzles on a weekly basis. Other from crossword puzzles, Ries enjoys watching sports, going to the movies, and listening to a wide range of music. He has season tickets to the St. Louis Cardinals.

Cloud State University's Husky hockey team is undefeated. He also plays the piano and competes in a local cribbage league.