The University Press of Kentucky has released Family Game Night: Board Games from the Gilded Age to the Roaring Twenties by Dr. Susan Asbury, associate professor of history at MGA.
The book explores the history of the board game industry during its "golden age" from the 1880s to the 1920s. Drawing on historical marketing materials, patents, diaries, and game boards, Dr. Asbury analyzes how early game designers idealized the Victorian parlor and shaped players' values, worldviews, and perceptions of the American dream.
Written for both general and academic audiences, Family Game Night offers a unique look at how the framework of play reflected a rapidly changing world.
