Higher Or Lower Bookish Game

This higher or lower bookish game will have everyone making their best guesses on book themed trivia as you compete for a prize. It’s a fun twist on a typical trivia game that evens the odds so that everyone has a fair shot at winning!

I’ve been a member of a book club (and hosting book retreats) for as long as I can remember and I’m always looking for different things to do at book club other than discussing books.

This bookish game is a great way to mix up a book club conversation or girls’ night with other book loving friends. You could also do it as a baby shower game, a birthday party game, or at a librarian’s retirement party.

It’s a really fun, no-prep game that people will love. And it’s filled with random number based book trivia that people likely won’t know so everyone has a fair shot to win whether they read that month’s book or not!

And if you love it, you should definitely try out our Christmas higher or lower trivia game when the holidays roll around!

Why You’ll Love This Game

• Stress-free game – it really is as simple as printing out the questions and playing. The hardest part is picking out prizes, if you want them.
• Not your normal trivia – trivia gets a bad name, especially if you don’t remember facts easily. This game evens the playing field by letting guests choose just higher or lower, no having to actually remember things!
• Fast paced – with the way players answer, the game moves much faster than typical trivia, where people have to write down what they think.

Supplies

I mentioned this is a stress-free game, partially because you can play with only three things. Here’s what you need to play.

• Bookish higher and lower questions – these have all been made for you. All you have to do is download them at the bottom of the page or pick them up in my shop, then print them out.
• Higher and lower cards – each person will need both a higher and a lower card. You can find the printable version to download at the bottom of the page. If you don’t want to print them, you can easily write your own. Or you can skip the cards and use a thumbs-up or thumbs-down instead.
• Point markers – to keep with the book theme at our book retreat, we used themed mini-books. However, you can use any marker you want, from poker chips to coins to chocolate chips. You’ll need ten per person playing.
• Prizes – I am always a fan of prizes, big or small. This game is set up so you can have one winner, or everyone can win. Depending on how you want to play, you’ll want that amount of prizes.

How to Setup the Game

Now that you’ve got everything you need to play and I’ve told you how fun it is, let’s jump into how to play.

As far as setup goes, it’s really simple. You’ll need to cut up the higher and lower cards, print out the questions, and hand out the markers.

Once everyone has ten markers and their own set of higher and lower cards, you’re ready to play.

How to play higher or lower

Have all the players sit in the same area so they can see each other; it doesn’t need to be a circle or anything specific, I just think it’s more fun to see what other people answer and who is the competition.

Before you start, you will need to explain how the game works as follows. Each trivia question will contain a number in it. The number in the fact is not correct, and the player’s goal is to correctly guess if the real number is higher or lower than what is stated in the false trivia statement.

For example, one question might say: There are fifteen books in the original Harry Potter Series. The players who put up the lower card would be correct, because the correct number of books in that series is lower than stated in the question.

Once everyone understands how the game works and has their supplies, you are ready to ask your first trivia question. Once the question has been read, the reader will count to three, then all the players will raise either their higher or lower card. Whoever gets it right gets to move a book from their pile (or marker) to the middle.

There are no consequences for being wrong or bonuses for getting multiple correct answers in a row. The game continues until someone runs out of books. That person is the winner!

You can stop at one winner or have a variety of prizes that people can choose in the order they go out.

How to Let Everyone Play

I have hosted a ton of parties and games, so I know that, as fun as it is to host, sometimes, the host wants to play too. This is the perfect game for the host to play too!

This way requires a little more setup. You will need to individually cut each trivia question out and place them all in a bag. Do your best not to read the questions while you do this, but don’t worry too much, they are so obscure that you likely won’t remember them anyway.

Once you have all the questions in a bag, you’re ready to go. Give everyone the same ten book markers and higher and lower cards.

This setup does require you to sit in a circle. Have the first person read a clue from the bag, count to three, and give the answer as normal. The reader will not participate in this question.

That person passes the bag to their left, and now the new person with the bag is the reader. The game continues the same with a new reader each time as it goes around the circle.

It’s a super easy adjustment that allows everyone to play.

Tips

• Use a physical marker. You want something that other people can see, so everyone knows who is close to winning or not. Using fingers, tiny markers, or marks on a piece of paper takes away from the fun.
• Do a practice round. It’s really simple once you’ve done it once or twice, but a practice round will make sure everyone knows what they are doing before you start keeping score.

Prize ideas

This game allows you to have as many prizes as you want. You can do one big winner, top three, or everyone wins. You pick what works best for your group.

When we played this at our book retreat, we had everyone bring a book basket as a prize. Then people got to choose which basket they wanted when they won. Everyone got a prize, and the host didn’t have to provide it all. It was a win-win in my opinion.

Here are a few of the other prizes that I think would be really fun.

• Books – used or new, this is a great way to do a book swap.
• Themed treats – they can be book specific or something simple like gummy “book” worms.
• Bookish items – this can include anything from book lights to Kindle covers to a cute mug. I have a great post with my favorite bookish gifts that would all be perfect!
• Big prize – if you are only having one winner, something like an Audible gift card or a reading pillow is great!

Game FAQs

Enter your first name and email address in the form below to get the printable free download PDF. You will receive a link to download the PDF to your email within minutes. Print on card stock and you’re on your way.

If you’d prefer to not provide your email address, you can get a copy in my shop here.

If you do not see the form, click here to get to it.

If you do not see the email with the printable design templates immediately after you fill out the form, make sure to check your promotions, spam, and junk folders!

The file will include:

• Bookish higher or lower trivia questions
• Instructions
• Higher or lower cards
• Use policy – all my printables are for personal use only and may not be used for profit