The Fourth Player: Three Short Stories

by Marie Chow

Marie Chow has created a min-collection of short stories that feature her trademark “slice of life” look at the Asian and Asian American culture. In EULOGY, written as a series of changing second-person narratives, everyone mourns the death of Karen Jasmine Harper, but their grief is not as straightforward as it seems. Told from the perspectives of those who knew her well and not so well, one thing is clear—a lot of people have guilt and unfinished business with the dearly departed Karen Jasmine Harper. LAUGHTER is the story of an online dating experience leads to a marriage that’s no longer funny or fun. Despite previously disastrous results, Henry decides to give online dating another chance and meets Nora. She tells him she needs a man who makes her laugh and Henry becomes that man. After marriage and a child, Henry finds that nothing is as he imagined it would be. THE FOURTH PLAYER is the unveiling of the much gossiped about I-Ling whose wealth and beauty are legendary. But to the other three players she’s an anomaly, a distortion of her legend and possibly the catalyst that destroys the group. No one writes emotion quite like Marie Chow, and this mini-collection is an excellent introduction to this talented author.

96 pages, Paperback

Published April 25, 2014

About the author

Marie is a lifelong student with degrees in degrees in chemical engineering, teaching, an MFA in writing, and a doctorate in educational leadership. Her writing focuses on bilingual and English-only children's books that feature mixed families, as well as literary and contemporary fiction focused on Asian and Asian American characters.