Walker who wrote "The Color Purple" / TUES 9-24-24 / [Not my typo] / "Bye-bye," to Bonaparte / Bread served with baba ghanouj

Theme answers:

• VALLEY FORGE (17A: Washington post?) 
• FORTY NINER (31A: San Francisco examiner?) 
• PAUL REVERE (49A: Boston herald?) 
• TRAVIS KELCE (65A: Kansas City star?)

Word of the Day: PETRA(37D: World Heritage Site in Jordan) —

Petra, originally known to its inhabitants as Raqmu, is a historic and archaeological city in southern Jordan. Famous for its rock-cut architecture and water conduit systems, Petra is also called the "Rose City" because of the color of the sandstone from which it is carved. The city is one of the New 7 Wonders of the World and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The area around Petra has been inhabited from as early as 7000 BC, and was settled by the Nabataeans, a nomadic Arab people, in the 4th century BC. Petra would later become the capital city of the Nabataean Kingdom in the second century BC. (Wiki)

Well, that was fun! Quite a debut from constructor Kevin L. Shellito. The theme was clever, and some of the answers were fresh, while the unusual and trivia-filled clues were my favorite part of the puzzle. There was even a nice range to the theme answers. Two related to the Revolutionary War (VALLEY FORGE and PAUL REVERE). Then there were the FORTY NINERs, just predating the Civil War. And you get to the modern day with Taylor Swift’s boyfriend and Jason’s brother, TRAVIS KELCE (who’s sorta known for playing some football himself, too). 

 

I felt like I was learning something while solving the puzzle. I now know that there are approximately 20 quadrillion ANTs worldwide (which is mildly disturbing to think about) (64A). I learned that Ignacio Anaya invented NACHOs (33D). That EELs (18D) can swim backward. I was never a big science fair person, so I appreciated the reminder that baking soda and vinegar combine to create a LAVA effect (52D). And there were even more bits of trivia/facts for people — tahini is made from SESAME (38A); ELMS are the state tree of Massachusetts (23A); the Bosphorous is known for being NARROW (15A); etc. Basically, I’m ready to go crush it at trivia night right now. 

The clues were also quite fun. My personal favorite being Personnel in vestments as CLERGY (72A). That got me chuckling. I also liked how ERRANT (8D: Like a drive in the woods?) tried to throw us for a bit of a loop. And we got to see Zorro and Dracula in a puzzle with CAPE (55D). I enjoyed the reference to a TV show I know — “Euphoria” — with RUE (16A: Zendaya's role on "Euphoria") even if I only watched one season.

I hit a couple of snags from trying “awake” instead of ARISE (22D: Greet the day); I first put “scar” instead of SCAB (73A: Evidence of healing); I tried making it “Neet” instead of NAIR (26A: Hair removal brand); and I first typed “MBA” instead of the actual MFA (24D: R.I.S.D. grad's degree) because I didn’t recognize the acronym R.I.S.D. 

A few things didn’t quite work for me. In particular, a FORTY NINER (31A) was someone mining/panning for gold. Sure, they examined what they found, but they weren’t examiners. I also don’t know that I’ve ever seen a reference to a single FORTY NINER, unless you’re talking about a member of a certain football team. The people who descended on California in the mid-1800s were FORTY NINERs, plural. I also didn’t like SLEETS (44A: Comes down as a wintry mix) at all — even if it’s in the dictionary as a verb, it shouldn’t be. I think NACHO (33D) really needs to be plural. You don’t have a nacho. And NACHOs are a dish made of chips–and a whole lot of other goodies–not just a singular chip. 

But it was overall a smooth and enjoyable puzzle for a Tuesday!

Misc.:

• We could’ve had the Fever in the puzzle instead of the Indiana PACERS (51D: Hoosier hoopers). With the playoffs happening now, that would’ve been so timely. This season in the WNBA, we had the unanimous MVP A’ja Wilson (she’s legitimately incredible) and the unanimous rookie of the year Caitlin Clark, who plays for the Fever. 
• I didn’t think I liked PECAN (43A: Pie variety whose pronunciation inspires debate) pie for a while, but it turns out I just hadn’t given it a chance. Now it’s my go-to every year for Thanksgiving, and my family has become known for our tried-and-true recipe. 
• The New York Times agrees that it was a BRAT summer (11D). Charli XCX, anyone? Now what’s the fall going to be?? 
• While my Steelers have started strong, my mom’s poor FORTY NINERs have had a rough 1-2 start. My dad won my sister’s and my loyalty to his hometown Steelers when I was just 10 by buying us each a jersey. We haven’t looked back since! 
• I’m hopeful the DOG DAYS (9D: Hot summer period named for the constellation Sirius) are actually behind us. And speaking of the DOG DAYS, I’m going to end with one of my favorite Florence + the Machine songs, which is undeniably fun and catchy. 

Signed, Clare Carroll, a Steeler fan for life who knows that TJ Watt should win DPOY every year

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