Parlour Games for Modern Families

Myfanwy Jones and Spiri Tsintziras chat with Richard Aedy on Radio National – Life Matters

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Parlour Games for Modern Families sets out to revive the tradition of indoor family games: push aside the consoles, turn off the telly, and bring some mental stimulation, silliness and laughter, joy and connection back into your living room. This book is bursting with games of logic and memory, wordplay, card games, role-play, and rough and tumble. Not a single game requires equipment that you won’t find in your average home: a pack of cards, a dictionary, an hourglass, dice, paper, and pen. You can play to your heart’s content without wasting a single natural resource — except perhaps the delicious jam tart, recipe found herein.

Games are organised thematically and referenced for age-appropriateness. All are set out with clear rules and instructions. There are games that will challenge and stimulate you, and games that will have you in fits; games that can last all night, and games to fill that empty half-hour before tea; games for adults and older children, and games for your four-year-old’s birthday party.

With Parlour Games for Modern Families, a book for fun-lovers aged four to 104, the authors wind back the clock to remind you of games you’d forgotten and then a whole lot more. Remember: there is always enough time for playing. So, gather the family together; ask over some friends. Warm the milk for hot cocoa, play Squeak Piggy Squeak, and watch the good feeling spread; see it grow exponentially. Whether you dip into it as the urge takes you or read it from cover to cover, a very good time is guaranteed.

Extract from Parlour Games for Modern Families | Buy Parlour Games for Modern Families | Reviews of Parlour Games for Modern Families

Reviews of Parlour Games for Modern Families

‘When it was time to wind up and go to bed, my eight-year-old daughter pleaded: “Daddy, can we play one more round, please, please, please?” It was the same with all the games we have tried from this marvellous book.’
THE GUARDIAN

‘It’s amazing how much fun you can have with blindfolds, a thimble, socks, a ping pong ball and a lot of people who love each other.’
THE TIMES

‘Every family and every home needs a copy.’
YORKSHIRE EVENING POST

‘****I can think of no game for children not found in these 250 pages. As the authors say, it’s all much better than watching television.’
TELEGRAPH

‘Who knew you could have so much fun without power cords? I love this book.’
CATHERINE DEVENY

‘Planning Christmas with the whole clan? Forestall cabin fever with Parlour Games for Modern Families by Myfanwy Jones and Spiri Tsintziras. A great way to occupy nephews and nannas without resorting to Bourbon or horror movies.’
SUNDAY TELEGRAPH

‘In this day and age, it’s hard to prise the kids away from their electronic equipment (TV, computers, game consoles and on the list goes), not to mention you, the parent, from your chores. But this little corker of a book should help you out… Gather up the clan into one room, choose a game (Farkle, Pontoon, Flip the Kipper or Picture Consequences, perhaps) and have a bit of genuine fun, and family time.’
HERALD SUN

‘We all agree that children should watch less TV (insert finger wag here), but Jones and Tsintziras have actually done something about it. Written with both adults and children in mind, Parlour Games sounds like it should be a sort of “June Dally Watkins does recreation” – a bit naff and dull – when in fact it is the opposite. ****’
TIME OUT SYDNEY

‘This will take you back. Remember when you played cards or knucklebones or noughts and crosses? Or made chatterboxes…? Or what about charades, murder in the dark, I spy or hide and seek? This book has the lot. It may even wean you off the telly.’
SUN HERALD

‘With a passionate introduction that calls for the reintroduction of parlour games into family life, the authors put forward a case for family members connecting with each other via old-fashioned, unplugged fun.’
SUNDAY MAIL

‘I was thrilled to open, taste and subsequently devour Parlour Games for Modern Families – a paperback stacked with a paper carnival of fun… Adults will delight in the whimsy of memorable games from childhood and will love enthralling the kids when hauling them out of the past.’
AUSTRALIAN WOMEN ONLINE

‘Classic fun family games that can be played any time, any place. Parlour Games for Modern Families is a perfect find for today’s families! I love this book.‘
MOMMY PR

‘Here’s a book brimful of ideas for family fun – and there are no power cords or batteries involved! Great games and ideas to entertain on holidays – and more.’
WOMAN’S DAY

‘What a fascinating book it is, there’s history, literature, cooking, lots of humour, and some droll one-liners… Parlour Games for Modern Families will be an invaluable resource book for rainy days, heat-wave days, impossibly windy days, and all Melbourne’s usual weather surprises. It’s a book every family should own.’
NEOS KOSMOS

‘This book proffers a window into a simpler world… a must for all family gatherings this season.’
TOWNSVILLE BULLETIN

‘If you are tired of television, DVDs, radio and computers, here is the answer.’
BALLARAT COURIER

‘Old games, new games, games of skill and games of chance, silly and serious, riotous and quiet: they’re all here, charades to hangman, snap to whist, blind man’s buff to knucklebones, thumb wrestling to dictionary games. This book is a veritable treasure trove of ways to be entertained and connected with your family.’
STORY TIME BOOKS FOR KIDS

‘It’s easy to forget how much fun you can have watching others make fools of themselves, all in a good-natured way of course. Myfanwy Jones and Spiri Tsintziras give a modern twist to games that are sure to become future favourites for the younger generation.’
ABOUT SENIORS

‘Parlour Games for Modern Families includes a wide enough range and variety of games to bring everyone you know into play, many times over. This book is something you will treasure - a resource that will lead to whole-hearted, side-splitting family and community fun.’
BERNIE DEKOVEN, author of The Well-Played Game: a playful path to wholeness and Junkyard Sports

‘We played our first one last night, and the laughter around the table after dinner, plates still stacked in the middle, has made me treasure this book already.’
SUNDAY TASMANIAN

‘Easy-to-read and easy-to-follow games and activities will have the whole family engaged and sharing some fun, quality time together without a Nintendo in sight. Highly recommended.’
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