Title: Of Dice & Men
Author: David M. Ewalt
Published: Aug 2013
No of Pages: 276
Now here is a thing that you may not know about myself, I am a avid D&D fan, I have both played and ran my own campaigns and even written a few of my own stories to play out with my friends. Because of this, this book was particularly difficult for me to read as its customary within the community to have strong opinions/beliefs on what D&D is and how D&D is played, Ewalt also has a strong aversion to being called a Nerd, which I myself do not share, but the book as a whole was whitty, fun and somewhat informmative.
Within the book Ewalt explores the history of Dungeons and Dragons, starting from its humble beginnings in Gary Gygax’s basement, to becoming a million dollar a year company, to Gygax getting forced out and the company being sold out from under him. Ewalt also covers the evolution of the game itself, from the original edition all the way to its current incarnation, D&D Next.
This is interesting just on its own, but what intersted me more was that he includes a number of accounts from his own gaming experiences, some of which I can draw direct comparisons to my own, particularly those experiences he shares surrounding his home-brewed games. He also talks about how he grew away from the game/ community as he got older only to rediscover it later and rekindle his passion for it, which i find very heartwarming and can also associate with.
I certainly recommend it to anyone that is a fan of or plays D&D, but also to those people like me who have an appreciation for the fantasy genre as a whole, who may want to learn more about the game and the influences behind it.
Until next time, read more books!
Between|the|Blurb 