Avidly Reads Board Games

We are in the middle of a board game renaissance these days. New games are hitting the shelves all the time, pushing the boundaries of what we thought board games could be, all while encouraging us to take a step back from technology, gather a few friends, and simply play a game together.

Avidly Reads Board Games puts this marvelous form of group entertainment center stage and explores both the author’s personal connection with the genre and how different games create different experiences, both intentionally and unintentionally. The highlight of the book is undoubtedly Thurm’s story about how playing Settlers of Catan changed his relationships with his friends and family.

Covering topics like the pluses and minuses of cooperative games, the emergence of legacy games, the infamy of Monopoly, and the curious subgenre of political games (both the intentionally nasty and those that history has judged poorly), Thurm offers glimpses into various aspects of modern gaming.

More a series of short essays than one cohesive narrative, Avidly Reads Board Games is one man’s look at a world of games that are constantly evolving, yet remain tied to their earliest successes. Given how this book is a collection of opinion pieces, no matter how well-informed, your mileage may vary.