I have fond memories of putting together 1000 piece puzzles with various family members at our cottage on rainy summer days when I was a kid. Like many cottages, ours had a specific table just for the purpose of putting puzzles together. We'd work at them from anywhere for a couple minutes to a couple of hours at a time, depending on how frustrating certain parts were. It could take several days to put them together. I remember there was always that "one piece" that didn't seem to go anywhere until you miraculously found the spot.

A few days ago I was in our local Mastermind looking in the puzzle section. Boy, have puzzles ever come a long way. In addition to the challenging and absorbing traditional Ravensburger puzzles, there are now a variety of different kinds of puzzles that include puzzles within puzzles, puzzles made out of more environmentally friendly materials such as cork and chipboard, puzzles in the form of games, 3D puzzles, and sudoku style tile puzzles. Here are a few highlights:

• 3D puzzles: Part model, part puzzle, while this replica of the Sydney Opera House has only 57 pieces, it is the equivalent level of difficulty of a 250 piece standard puzzle. The pieces are made of foam and cardboard and are easy to put together without tools or glue. There are several other models in the series including the ancient Roman Colliseum, Neuschwanstein Castle, and the Great Wall of China.

• Magic Square Puzzles: A puzzle that's like a suduko game. You have to make the image so that one object is in each row or column only. There are three levels of diffculty: 25 pieces (5x5), 36 pieces (6x6), and 49 pieces (7x7). The 49 piece puzzle's challenge is that it is "almost impossible!" See if you agree.
• Ravensburger Puzzles: This company is known for its puzzles and has puzzles for children aged 3 years, right up to 2000 piece puzzles that should keep you occupied for a few hours to a few days.
• Cityscape puzzles: These puzzles are made out of chipboard made from recycled material. They feature the artwork of Eric Dowdle and include New York City skyline, Paris and London. The puzzles are 1000 pieces and are stored in a suitcase-like container so even if you can't get to Paris, London or New York, you can dream about going. ($22.95 each).