Book Review: Of Dice and Men

Of Dice and Men
By David M Ewalt
Review by Mida (currently playing an Artificer and running a game on the sly)

Let’s file this under books that pleasantly surprised me! A perplexing blend of memoir, history of gaming, and handbook for D&D, Of Dice and Men contains multitudes.

While it may seem niche from the beginning, Ewalt does a splendid job of making the more complex (read: nerdy) concepts accessible and easy to understand. He manages to keep things pretty beginner friendly, with footnotes, citations of the relevant chapters in the core rulebooks and definitions of certain bits of jargon, so readers with every level of experience are able to enjoy this book. Combining experience from his own D&D and other TTRPG campaigns –as well as a concise history of gaming – and stories from players and creators, we are able to get a wonderfully detailed overview of this bizarre hobby.

Despite having played D&D for about 5 years, I never took the time to learn much about the origins of the hobby. But after reading this book, I’ve been left with a greater appreciation for the creative minds that brought one of my favourite pastimes into the world. When my journey alongside them came to a close, I was left feeling strangely emotional.

Seasoned players will be able to gain a deeper love for D&D from reading this book. This is D&D’s backstory. Even those who have never played will feel inspired to rattle some dice, dream up a character and enlist their friends to try something new.

You can listen to Mida’s review from RDU below