The Game We Play

by Susan Hope Lanier

"Susan Hope Lanier's collection of brilliant short stories, The Game We Play , is a triumph. Detailing distinct human relationships, moments of connection, and modern crises, these stories--all effortlessly rendered, all deeply felt--evoke the best of Raymond Carver and Lorrie Moore. An outstanding debut that should reaffirm our shared belief in the absolute necessity and imaginative possibility of the short story."--Joe Meno, author of The Great Perhaps and Hairstyles of the Damned Ten riveting, emotionally complex stories examining the decisions we make when our choices are few and courage is costly. Topics include a young couple facing disease and commitment with the same sharp fear, a teenager stealing from his girlfriend's mother's purse to help pay for her abortion, and a father making a split-second decision that puts his child's life at risk.
Susan Lanier earned an MFA in creative writing from Columbia College in 2012 and currently lives, writes, and photographs in Chicago, Illinois.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction

120 pages, Paperback

First published August 18, 2014

About the author

Sooze Lanier is a writer living in Brooklyn.

She also draws cartoons as Sooze the Goose

Reviews

[Ashley Holstrom]

Each story is more riveting than the last, filled with passion and fear and pain. These little worlds are already sticking themselves to my mind, ready to stay for a while.

And! I met her last weekend at a lit fest, and she signed my copy with "What are you doing after school?" which is still puzzling or funny or nice. Or all of the above.

[Noelle]

It's been a long while since a book of short stories so completely captivated me. The Game We Play is both hilarious or heartbreaking; Susan Hope Lanier creates miniature worlds, in which it's easy to lose yourself while gaining a new perspective. In one word or line, Lanier shifts the story's world or brings new facts to light. It is a book that bears reading not only once, but many times.

[Andrea]

I took advantage of a Curbside Splendor special (all books only $5 each!) and got four books, including this one, and VILE MEN by Rebecca Jones-Howe. What an incredible deal I got--both books of short stories were exceptional. I can't wait to read more by Susan Hope Lanier.

[Curbside Splendor]

It's the coming out partay for Chicago's newest voice, Susan Hope Lanier.

[NICOLETTE]

This book sucks. Contrite, petty, immature, and just plain boring. The writer seems to be holding onto something that should be worked out in therapy, not published.

[J]

2.5 stars. This writer has a lot of potential. I think just about every one of the stories could have gone through another round of drafts. "Felecia Sassafras is Fiction" is fun but there is a lot more there to be done. What is missing most for me is character development. Things happen in the stories but to who? In most cases the characters are summed up by their actions or their emotions. They're listless and aimless and fogged up by drugs. But who are they? What opportunities are they missing? What possibilities are they wrestling with? What are their desires?

[Matt]

Ah, surprises! I confess I have never read any of Susan Hope Lanier's work before this book, but man oh man was I missing out. I love it. It's great. The subtlety with which she writes about fairly common, if often fairly horrible, everyday human interactions is topnotch. It's pure pleasure. I wish everyone I read who had something to say about things like romantic relationships could read Lanier and see first how it's done. Awesome book.

[Tia]

I enjoy collections with different story structures and content. In too many books, after you've read the first story, you know the format for the remainder. Lanier has traditional dialogue-heavy stories, short and chaptered stories, and even a bit of flash fiction. I'm also a sucker for minimalism, and she knows how to choose each word carefully, cutting the stories to only what's necessary.

[Abigail Lalonde]

This book of short stories was so refreshing, fun, and full of interesting characters and situations that I won't even dock it a star for its misuse of the title of the Pavement song "In the Mouth a Desert" as "In the Mouth of the Desert." Also, kudos to the cover designer. I totally picked it up on a whim at a bookstore based solely on the pink blocky lettering.

[Michael]

Subtle and satisfying like Carver or Moore. It gives life to the short story form and the possibility for empathy. Each character shares the malaise of contemporary life, but we root for their consciousness regardless. The sentences are constructed so that we can feel the fear of embedded in each story and see how it reflects back at us. Lanier serves up an appetizing debut.

[Morgan]

Some of these short stories are certainly more riveting than others, as you'll find with any compilation. I don't want to give anything away since the book isn't out yet, but each story is very diverse & the writing is very easy to follow.

[Jennie]

I won this book free from goodreads.com

This book was well-written and contained a variety of short stories that really make you think about personal choices. I found myself trying to "finish" the stories. Overall, a good read.

[Nik Perring]

A very interesting, and very well written, debut collection, and I think, now, I'm more interested in what Sooze writes next because there is a huge potential here. Definitely one to check out - you'll thank me for it.

[Andy]

Lanier uses matter-of-fact, minimalist prose to pull some heartstrings. I finished this in a night.

[Todd Garrity]

Some of these stories had me counting pages until they were over while others left me disappointed they were so short. Overall it was a good collection, but nothing special.

[Jennifer Ricks]

F-bomb on the third page = Not for me.

[Ben]

All Splendor and Play. It changed my life.

[Christine]

A promising debut; most of the stories are marvelous, a few fell flat for me, but overall, I'm looking forward to reading more from Lanier. Recommended.

[Victor Giron]

Yes...

[Vykki]

I like some of the short stories but some of them were to weird over all it was a pretty good book.