The Floor Is Lava: And 99 More Games for Everyone, Everywhere

by Ivan Brett

With 100 games to start a party, ideas to trigger conversation, storytelling setups, and fiendish puzzles—no materials required—The Floor Is Lava is a how-to for turning screen-free time into quality time. Put down the phone and pick up the fun! Analog play is known to stimulate imaginative thinking, problem solving, and interpersonal connection. However, games only seem to exist on screen now and quality time spent together—in person—is rarer than ever. The Floor Is Lava is perfect for anyone looking to disconnect from technology and spend some time with family or friends. Packed with one hundred screen-free games, it’s the necessary antidote to digital overload and the answer to every - hosting a party - long car rides - cooling off on summer days - sitting around the dinner table - holiday gatherings - rainy days The best part is, you don’t need anything to play. So what are you waiting for? Jump up and get started—the floor is lava!

Genres: Nonfiction, Childrens, Parenting, Games, Reference, Education

312 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2018

Reviews

[Tucker Almengor]

Many thanks to Sydney at Gallery Books for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review

my cousins are coming to stay next month so we will defititely be using this book to make mischeif have fun.

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[Cheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. These are the kinds of games I like. I so very much wish I'd known them when my sons were young. Most can be done with as few as two people, and most need not even paper & pencil. Many have variations, so there's even more than 100 in the book. Includes word lists and other prompts to help.

I'm only 1/4 through and have already marked nine games to try with my youngest, with whom I still walk every day. And we did try Boink!, which is about making sentences with pairs of homophones. Not easy, but so fun! So, I've ordered my own copy! I need to get this one back to the library so that everyone can read it!!

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such an awesome resource. Great for raising kids, planning parties and get togethers, running camps and other youth programs, and even using in the classroom. All the games are clearly described, usually with examples, and those that require pre-written suggestions (think “Charades”) have little strips of paper in the back of the book that you can tear out or photocopy and separate. I picked it up as a way to find some good games to play in the dining hall at the camp I volunteer for, but I look forward to adding some to my family’s small cache of verbal games we play while hiking, waiting for a table at a restaurant, or riding in a car on a road trip.

[Neil Pasricha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Did you play that game when you were a kid where you pretended the floor was lava and you had to jump between all the couches and coffee tables to avoid melting into the Earth’s molten core? Well, I never really thought about it but what was most beautiful about that game is that you didn’t need … anything. Nothing! You didn’t need a thing. This book is a collection of games like that. Fun games you can play around a dinner table or on a long car ride. My wife Leslie loves it and we’ve successfully introduced a few good ones to the kids.

[Sonja Ferrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Checked this out just before our library shut down for COVID19. It wasn't his intention but this was an excellent book to have on hand during a quarantine with 2 young children while rationing our internet.

[Abantika(hiltonjenkin) · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Floor Is Lava is a fun book packed with 100 games. You can play these as a couple or in a group or even ALONE!!! How cool is that to tackle boredom?

Also, you can play these absolutely anywhere. Like in a car when stuck in a jam or in a thanksgiving party or in maybe in a farm on a picnic. Because these games are really simple and the diversity is praise worthy. Some of them can be played with just a pen and paper nearby. Some doesn't even require that.

The explanation of the games are kept crisp and Ivan Brett does not bore you with elaborate descriptions. Each game is explained strictly within 1 to 1.5 pages. Number of Players, Difficulty Level and Estimated Time Required to play it is tabbed right at the beginning of each game. Then materials required is cited. And finally How To Play is explained in a couple of paragraphs.
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I have played a few of them with my husband and 'Hangman Mastermind' has come out to be our favourite. 'Hangman Mastermind' can be played with two or more players and is basically a word guessing game. It is really easy and refreshing. If you love playing 'Scribble' you'll love this too.

Then there's another game named 'Squiggle Challenge' that I love to play. It is somewhat an idle drawing game with absolutely hilarious consequences.

Also, did I mention that these games can be played at ALL AGES?!! YES!! This is a keeper.

I definitely recommend this book to everybody who's planning to spend some quality time with their family and friends.

[Nicki · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is such a fun book, packed full of so many great games to play with your family, friends and even by yourself if you’re struggling to get to sleep.
I’ve only managed to play a few games with my husband and 17 year old son, but the ones we have played have had us in stitches on more than one occasion.
If you love puns you’ll enjoy the “I’m in Business” game and if you’re any good at rhyming you’ll do very well at “Crambo”, a medieval game that I absolutely loved. If you’re a bit of a James Bond fan you’ll enjoy the fantastically titled “No Mr Bond I Expect You to Die” game. I thought it would be quite easy, but of course like any scenario involving a Bond villain it’s not as easy as it looks.
I’ve got lots of post-it notes stuck in my paperback copy to try with my family, and I’m trying to persuade my son to play a few with his Dungeons & Dragons friends. This book will definitely be coming along on our holidays from now on.
I thoroughly recommend this if you enjoy playing games and you’re looking for something else to do with your family and friends.

Thanks so much to the author for my copy that reached me via Becky Hunter at Headline Publishing Group.

[Julie Schooler · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is no excuse not to have fun after reading this book. With 100 games for grown ups and kids, most not needing anything except sometimes a pen and paper, you will find a new game to play on that long car ride, family vacation or rainy Sunday afternoon. There is so much creativity, enthusiasm and joy throughout this whole book. A small downside is it is written from a UK perspective and a couple of the games (eg: involving car number plates) may not work in other areas. I absolutely love and encourage us all to embrace play more and this book is the epitome of that. Absolutely recommended for everyone.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so much fun! It has games to play for lots of scenarios- car rides, kitchen table, vacation, parties, one on one time, rainy day games, long games, holidays, relaxing...
There are so many great, accessible ideas for ways to play with kids. I've already had a blast trying these out. Definitely recommended if you want to do something with your family or friends other than screen time.

*Thanks to Gallery Books/Simon and Schuster for the free copy and goodreads for hosting the giveaway.

[Rachael · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love games, particularly ones that require you to think but are easy to learn and don't need many items to play. This book is full of those kinds of games. Some maths related, many language related and quite a number of really out there and silly (in the best possible way) too. Some are revisions of old favourites with exciting twists. I enjoyed reading about them and plan on going back and putting study note stickers on the ones I most want to try. Some are so easy we've already started playing them as a family and the kids are often the ones who request them.

[Franchesca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some really great games and creative ideas! There were some games that I already knew and some that don't really feel like "games" at all, but all are good ideas to combat boredom, get through a snow day, family gathering, long car ride, and pretty much any other situation you find yourself in. I have tried a few of these and look forward to trying more. This book will be coming with me wherever I go.

I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway!

[Melissa Shelley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I won this book and I just got it today. My daughter has already taken the book and doing one of the games by herself. I am looking forward to playing some of the games with my daughter and family. We are going to try a few at our family night. The book is easy to read and understand. I will write another review as soon as we do a few of the games. So far it is 5 stars for me.

[Leslie Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the most wonderful book! There are ten different categories of games including games for Christmas, parties, trips, and at the kitchen table. Each game has the number of players, difficulty level, and time to play at the start of the instructions, and the games are clearly explained. My family is going to love this book for years to come!

[Sandra Crane · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great book! Full of games and ideas to keep my granddaughter entertained this summer. She rarely watches tv and doesn’t play video games. So thank you Goodreads Giveaway and Gallery Books for keeping me sane and entertained this summer.

[Renee · Rating 5 out of 5]

A) The author is hilarious
B) I'm a teacher
C) I have kids
D) Sorry, you can't have my copy - I'm keeping this one on hand, so many awesome ideas!
And for the love of God, keep those kids off of electronic devices and have them join the human race by getting this book!

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this even more than I expected to, so that was lovely. It's got a wide selection of cute games, all of them reasonably easy to understand and play. I rather like the organizational method as well, separating them out into circumstances where they might be a good option.

[Ashley Murray · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has so many amazing games that are suitable for the whole family. I love that anyone of any age can play most of these games. Some of them helped us make it through summer and a birthday party.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has some really good ideas for games to play with kids of all ages. With the COVID threat keeping us home together a lot more than before, a book like this can actually be a bit of a life-saver when you're tired of Xbox, phone games, and YouTube.

[Jksmith · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn’t finish the book. I read a fourth of the digital book and realized I needed a physical book to enjoy. This needs to be dog-eared, written in, and kept in the car or luggage for vacation or long road trips.

[Elisabeth :) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very fun and inventiv, unique games :)

[Colin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some good ideas in here!

[Craig Nicol · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of great ideas. A great book to pass someone whenever they say "I'm bored"

[Bert · Rating 5 out of 5]

well laid out. Entertaining. Informative.

[Teddy · Rating 5 out of 5]

We have enjoyed finding games in this book for different occasions. Some of them are games I’d forgotten about as a kid. We take this on holiday and also to family parties for inspiration.

[Raquel Pilar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book with a variety of games with very little resources but countless hours of fun!
I selected 29 favourites that I can't wait to try.
Great to have at home ❤️