If you are a white woman aged 17-45 who feels like domestic life with a man is prison, this is the book for you. This book makes me want to never want to get married or even trust a man.

Chicken-Flavored and Lemon-Scented
Never before had I considered the sexual and power dynamics of the DMV. There was a one-off line about girls who look like they could be bribed into giving their driving test examiner a blowjob, and that seemed out-of-place and jarred me in a bad way. Is a cryptogram a crossword puzzle or is it something different?
3 stars

Damascus
This story repeats how unbelievably great the son is! And I certainly didn’t believe it. This mom just felt really pathetic to me—outside of one-sided relationships with her son, mom, and ex-husband, she seems to have nothing going on. There was a joke about the mom being 100% sure her mom made an afghan (and then it wasn’t), which limits how smart I found the main character in terms of how 100% was used. There was another line in the afghan blanket part of if afghan blankets were toilet paper in 2020, they would have been rich? I don’t think that was relatable or correct or endearing. I liked the overall sentiment of the story but I was kept from buying in entirely.
2.5 stars

Twist & Shout
I liked the opening, I liked the close, and I think this will sit familiar with a lot of white women in terms of familial frustration and reckoning.
4 stars

Turn Back, Turn Back
I liked this story and found it to be realistic but think I’m missing some connection. I felt for the main character though. Intuition girlll
3.25 stars

Games and Rituals
I was going to accuse the cover of being too similar to Exciting Times by Naoise Dolan, but it makes a little more sense now. This one hurted! Should I act up to my man?
3.25 stars

CobRa
I quite liked this one. Let it be known that she strays from the KonMari method almost immediately when she starts decluttering possessions that aren’t hers—but this is made known really well by the author and the true intent of CobRa is clear. I think having this story be from the male perspective adds a lot while still keeping to theme. As a KonMari fanatic I relate to all here—and timely as Marie Kondo herself is giving up tidying to focus on her family.
4.5 stars

561
Girl a dirty carrot??? We are not the same. Jokes aside, I don’t think this was a helpful depiction of suicide and hesitate to believe that a 24/7 line shuts down one hour a night when the two employees sleep at the same time.
1.75 stars

Pandemic Behavior
I groaned when I got into this one like ugh, here’s the COVID story. I liked it though. I like Esther’s dialogue. I thought it ended a little abruptly.
3.75 stars

Bridesmaid, Revisited
Aneurysm is spelled incorrectly.
There’s a weird metaphor about an erection that I don’t think lands right.
The entire plot line with the best friend adds nothing to me.
Actual review of the story: This chick needs to touch some grass!
2.25 stars

King Midas
I truly felt nothing as a result of this. I didn’t find a single character endearing. Men will do anything but go to therapy.
2.5 stars

Sky Bar
Bestie the wigwam??? This girl cannot make a good choice to save her life. I understand the emotional stunting is the point but this was just sad.
2.25 stars

Thanks to Knopf and NetGalley for allowing me to read an early copy of this story collection. I enjoyed the stories, especially the slyly funny one about a woman whose father eats his $4000 hearing aid thinking it's a cashew when he isn't even supposed to be eating cashews due to high blood pressure. And the story of the man whose wife is using the KonMari method and he is afraid she will throw him away. These stories are intelligent and show a nuanced humanity.

I really enjoyed this collection of short stories. A huge range of characters some I really empathised with and found quite funny.
Loved the writing style and will definitely be looking for more from this author!

I am not a big fan of short stories, but I really enjoyed them in Games and Rituals. Katherine did an amazing job with all 11 of the stories. The characters all had their flaws and it really captures what it's like being human. These stories show different parts of life through marriage, being parents, getting older, and life during the COVID pandemic. I feel that short stories are often forgettable, but I do not think that's the case with this. I enjoyed this book a lot. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

I was fortunate to receive an advance of this collection of short stories, and really enjoyed it! Katherine Heiny writes wonderfully flawed and quirky characters with an assortment of angst: in "Damascus" the mother who worries her teenage son has found drugs finds herself in a compromising position with mother/son roles reversed; the wife reading the bedtime story to her two young daughters in "Turn Back, Turn Back" who discovers out of the mouths of babes a Starbucks babycinno receipt and her struggling actor husband's affair; in "561" (my favorite), karma comes full circle as Charlie/561 finds herself helping move her husband's ex-wife out of the family home and out of each other's lives forever. These stories flowed and soared and I didn't want them to end.

Unique collection of short stories. Each of these stories truly evoked their own universe and characters, while reading I didn’t experience them running together, or any feeling out of place or unnecessary.

I am not a huge fan of short story collections personally, I find them harder to retain and refer back to, because of the amount of separate stories in one book, but this one was enjoyable for me, and I would recommend to someone who enjoys short stories.

Thank you to NetGalley for gifting me an E-Arc in return for a review!

I am so happy to have read an early copy of Games and Rituals by Katherine Heiny. I loved Early Morning Riser and really enjoy reading short stories, so I had high hopes for this collection. I was not disappointed! I think I enjoyed reading every single story, which must be some kind of new record for me - that never happens. I particularly enjoyed the first story (Chicken Flavored and Lemon Scented) about a woman whose job is to test new drivers for their licenses (yikes!) as well as the story titled 561, which is both humourous and heartbreaking - something I've found Heiny executes so well. All of her characters are so real - they all have flaws (many have LOTS of flaws - ha!), but all are sympathetic or relatable in some way. And her side characters are just a delight, which was something I really enjoyed about Early Morning Riser. I can't wait for others to pick this up and will be recommending it to all my short-story-loving friends.

“games and rituals” is a series of short stories involving odd relationships. not all of these relationships are romantic, which makes each vignette rather interesting than stagnant. katherine heiny writes about the oddities of human social behavior in a way that is fresh.

not all of these vignettes are equal. in fact, some were quite boring and held no emotional value to me. others were gripping and moving, holding my attention well while also providing an emotional response. i did not enjoy the references to fairy tales nor mythology; i preferred the vignettes that centered on real life and real social issues. unfortunately, the first vignette is the best.

thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an arc in exchange for an honest review!

First, let me say; I struggle to find short story collections that hold my attention. While I love Katherine Heiny’s writing style and adored Early Morning Riser, only a few stories in this collection felt complete to me. I laughed through several of the pieces but wanted more from these stories. While many will find these stories entertaining, I look forward to Heiny’s return to novels.

Thanks to Knopf and Netgalley for the chance to review this book before publication.

Pub Date: 18 Apr 2023
Star Rating: 3

Synopsis: The beloved author of Early Morning Riser brings us glittering stories of love—friendships formed at the airport bar, ex-husbands with benefits, mothers of suspiciously sweet teenagers, ill-advised trysts—in all its forms, both ridiculous and sublime.

The games and rituals performed by Katherine Heiny’s characters range from mischievous to tender: In “Bridesmaid, Revisited,” Marlee, suffering from a laundry and life crisis, wears a massive bridesmaid’s dress to work. In “Twist and Shout,” Erica’s elderly father mistakes his four-thousand-dollar hearing aid for a cashew and eats it. In “Turn Back, Turn Back,” a bedtime story coupled with a receipt for a Starbucks babyccino reveal a struggling actor’s deception. And in “561,” Charlene pays the true price of infidelity and is forced to help her husband’s ex-wife move out of the family home. (“It’s like you’re North Korea and South Korea . . . But would North Korea help South Korea move?”) From one of our most celebrated writers, our bard of waking up in the wrong bed, wearing the wrong shoes, late for the wrong job, but loved by the right people, Heiny has delivered a work of glorious humor and immense kindness.

#fiction #shortstories #newbook #bookstagram #bookshelf #whatagoodbook

I received an ARC from the publisher via Netgalley.

Rituals and Games is a collection of short stories, each focusing on a different type of relationship and the beauty (and heartache) that come along with it. From a mother who believes her teenage son is doing drugs, to a daughter taking care of her ailing father, to new roommates facing the early lock down of COVID, Heiny’s writing was laugh out loud hilarious in parts and also surprisingly sad in others. Her ability to create real, flawed characters over the course of one chapter is a testament to her writing skill.

I am normally not a fan of short stories, but I absolutely loved Heiny’s Morning Riser so gave this a shot and I wasn’t disappointed! Overall this was a fun, quick read. There was really only one chapter I wasn’t a fan of (Marlee and her bridesmaid dress) because I don’t think it really flowed with the theme of the rest of the book. Heiny is becoming an auto-buy author for me!

I’m a fan of Katherine Heiny and I was thrilled to receive an e-book ARC copy from NetGalley.

Normally, I’m not a fan of short stories but I enjoyed this collection of quirky characters and circumstances.

Games and rituals
A well written set of short stories

Chicken flavoured and lemon scented - a driving examiner in love with her coworker, her transition from one part of life to other.
Damascus - a mother worried that her son is on drugs , still having sex with her ex husband
Twist and shout - a woman visiting her aging father and trying to accept the fact that he's getting older
Turn back, turn back - a journalist with a stay at home- acting class attending husband and 2 kids. And her husband just might be having an affair
Games and rituals - day to day happenings and habits of a girl in newyork
CoBra - a husband fearing that he no longer sparks joy in his wife
561- a woman and her husband help his ex wife pack for a move
Pandemic behaviour - an aspiring writer with severe migraine can't write anymore
Bridesmaid, revisited - a receptionist goes to work in her old bridesmaid dress, reminiscing about her relationship with the actual bride
King Midas - a man having an affair, very much in love with the mistress but she probably is not ?
Sky bar - a woman returning to newyork from her hometown - but her flight is delayed so she's stuck at the airport bar, with people and some memories

All stories have a not conclusive but suggestive ending . They are all
well written stories that all imply that it's all going to work out, one way or the other

Another early read ARC from @netgalley
Thank you!! This was a collection of short stories-as always I wanted more of each story! But Katherine Heiny is a great writer, and the stories are worth reading. All different, all engaging and fun. Recommend this one, especially if you like short stories. #gamesandrituals #katherineheiny #netgalley #bookstagram #booklover #reader #bookblog #lovetoread #fictionreader #bookreview #bookrecommendation #readersofinstagram #bookloversofinstagram #takeapagefrommybook #readallthebooks #booksbooksbooks #shortstorycollection

Well, that didn’t go according to plan. I decided to get these short stories with the intention of squeezing in one a day. But after reading the first of these 11 stories, I know that plan wouldn’t hold. I could not stop reading these stories. Even after having finished them all, if each were written into full novels, I’d buy each one of them. These were incredible! I laughed out loud so many times and felt so many other emotions. I truly cannot wait to dive into this author’s backlog. 10/10 would recommend to every reader.

I had a lot of fun with this! short stores aren't my typical mode of reading but this was fun! it was quirky and inspirational and I really enjoyed it!

I'm usually not a big fan of short stories but I have to say that Katherine Heiny just made me realize I can actually enjoy short stories.

Story after story I couldn't stop reading. The writing is so so good and the way the stories are told makes this book perfect. Definitely recommend this to anyone whos looking for something you can read in one sitting and enjoy.

Games and Rituals gets right to the heart of what it means to be human – coping with imperfect current or ex-husbands, too suspiciously perfect teenage sons, current or soon-to-be former friends, or simply people who are thrown together in typical or atypical situations.

The tone is lighthearted for the most part, but right beneath the surface, there is poignancy and authenticity and the universal hopes, joys, disappointments, and losses that every single one of us experience in some manner or another as we go through our lives.

There was not a single story that was lacking in its execution although – as in any collection – there were a few that stood out. The collection gets off to a roaring start with Chicken Flavored and Lemon Scented, a story of four driving examiners at the DMV and how each of them identify and interact with each other and drivers who show up for their all-important driving test. Not a word was out of place.

In another favorite, 561, Charlene – who at one time manned the suicide hotlines with her husband’s ex-wife and eventually lured him away from her – is called upon to move that ex-wife out of the family home. Both are gracious – on the surface – as emotions are played out in a sometimes passive-aggressive manner. In Turn Back, Turn Back, a wife who shares two daughters with her supposedly loving actor husband discovers that he is using his best acting methods to hide an affair with his younger acting partner.

Katherine Heiny makes the art of the short story appear effortless, which, of course, it’s not. I am grateful to Knopf and NetGalley for enabling me to be an early reader in exchange for an honest review.

In her second collection of short stories, Katherine Heiny continues to explore dating and relationships: a woman crushes on her coworker at the DMV, a new arrival to New York City tries to make sense of her post-college relationship with her boyfriend, a man worries his wife is going to Marie-Kondo their marriage…Each story is humorous and heartfelt, and I highly recommend this collection

Heiny is one of my favorite authors, so it is no surprise that I adored her new book. Though I planned to read only one story a day, I couldn’t help but read two or three at a time. My favorites were “Chicken-Flavored and Lemon-Scented,” “Turn Back, Turn Back,” “CobRa,” and “561.”

My only complaint is that I wanted more stories! Though many of her main characters were not particularly likable, Heiny’s worlds were, as always, delightful. Only she could make me love reading about the DMV!

I recommend Games & Rituals to fans of lighthearted, character-driven fiction and to those who loved Heiny’s first collection of stories, Single, Carefree, Mellow.

Kathryn Heiny is a fantastic novelist, and I requested this book thinking it was a new novel. Slightly disappointed when I realized it was a set of short stories instead, I nevertheless kept getting trapped by the prose and the characters in each story until I found I had finished the collection in record time. While a few stories left me unmoved, most kept me interested and provided human behavior insight which is my sucker-point (as in I’m a sucker for narratives that include such). From a day in the life of a driving examiner at the DMV to a woman caring for her elderly father to unintentional affairs to pandemic inspired Migraine flairs, this collection hits a lot of human experience points. Fantastic writing, too. I’m including some of her more humorous lines, but suffice it to say that I spent a lot of time snorting with laughter as I read (apologies for the visual).

Quotes:
“Your elderly father has mistaken his four-thousand-dollar hearing aid for a cashew and eaten it.“ (first line of third story)

“Your shirt is stuck to your back, your underpants feel like a piece of hot, wet, spinach, wrapped around your hips.”

“William had begun to worry that he no longer sparked joy in his wife and that she would give him to Goodwill.” (another story first line)

“Some people say time is like a river, but it’s really much more like an accordion, constantly squeezing you back to high school.”

“She resists the urge to shrug her shoulders, to flick the weight of his gaze off like confetti after a New Year’s Eve party.“

Games and Rituals by Katherine Heiny is a collection of short stories that serve as a window into everyday lives. I thought the writing in each of these stories was terrific. The words painted vibrant pictures of the characters and the feelings were authentic and substantial. That said, I thought the milage of the stories varied; some stuck with me, and others were gone from my thoughts as soon as I finished reading. I especially enjoyed “Chicken-Flavored and Lemon-Scented”, about the dynamic between four driving test moderators at the DMV, and “561”, about the woman who is forced to help her husband’s ex-wife move. All in all, I thought this was a pretty good collection…I would recommend!