I have a lot of game rules in my head. I can’t teach every game in the library, but most of them. And I do have an alarming ability to internalize the specifics of how lots of games are played. Do I have room in my brain for things like phone numbers or where my wallet is? No, but that’s not the point.

I do forget rules from time to time, but I can make connections between and among games, kind of like a web of rules in my synapses, so that they become part of me. You’ve probably got something similar in your brains, maybe understanding how systems in a car work or intuiting how to get somewhere in town because the map of Cincinnati is just there inside you.

I can read a paper map, but I frequently need help “reading the map” of my car or planning for retirement or understanding my feelings or simply making a cocktail. I need others to help me navigate just as others need my game-rule-filled brain. It’s kind of miraculous, really, that each of us is like a library all by ourselves—our brains and bodies contain so much information that we could share with others.

I wonder what your internal library specializes in? And how do you share that knowledge with others?

Alice C, board game librarian

Play Blueprints of Mad King Ludwig!

First of all, King Ludwig wasn’t insane, necessarily, he was just very profligate with the state funds in building increasingly fantastic castles. And also gay and lonesome in a bygone era. A better name would be Sad King Ludwig. But I digress.

This game takes the beloved original game Castles of Mad King Ludwig and transforms it into a coloring-book game! Players draft room cards to draw into their personal castle blueprints and then get rewards like extra turns and points for completing them. There are all kinds of ways to make points in Blueprints of Mad King Ludwig including having the longest connected path through rooms, having the largest or most compact footprint, or having the most music rooms.

Come use your creativity and brain-power to try a new game, and maybe make King Ludwig less lonely, if posthumously.

Try the new Java Jenga!

It’s our take on an espresso martini: dark chocolate, espresso liqueur, and vodka, garnished with a charming stack of wafer cookies! You’ll want to try it next time you’re in, maybe over a game of Giant Jenga on the patio or a quieter game of Blueprints inside.

And keep your eyes open for the other brand new signature cocktails coming this week!