Small Game Quotes

“Mara felt suddenly that she might cry. But that didn’t make sense. She knew that the reason her eyes stung wasn’t the reason Tom was comforting her. That whatever fear he thought he was speaking to, a different one had emerged. But for the moment, just the moment, she pretended that wasn’t true. She took his comfort and made it her own.”
― Blair Braverman, Small Game

“This is survival,' he said. 'Real survival means using whatever resources you find. That's the whole point of it. You're surviving. Anything goes.'
'This isn't survival,' said Mara. . .
'Look at us,' said Kyle. 'Of course it's survival.'
'It's a survival game,' she said. 'We're playing the game. It's not survival if you have a choice.”
― Blair Braverman, Small Game

“I can’t afford to,” he said. “We need the prize money. My wife needs . . .” He swallowed again. “I can’t afford to leave.” None of the rest of them had much to say about that. They needed the money, too.”
― Blair Braverman, Small Game

“One day Mara found a snakeskin in the grass. It was a whole skin, almost three feet long, and tied in a loose knot. As if the snake had curled through itself to shed. She thought about showing it off, but the snakeskin felt like hers alone, a secret, and she snuck it into one of the earth bags, nestled between one layer of dirt and the next. A talisman; her own contribution to the build.”
― Blair Braverman, Small Game

“It's almost like you have to pay less attention. At least to any one thing. Relaxed, but you're just--you're alert, too. You know that feeling when you're driving, and even if you're not looking in the rearview mirror, you know there's a car behind you? Because you're just keeping track of it? It's like that, but for everything around you. You need to know what's happening even when you're not looking. Like your mind is shallower. You can't think too much. You just feel.”
― Blair Braverman, Small Game

“Mara couldn’t tell if she wanted the morning to come or if she didn’t. But like every morning, it came.”
― Blair Braverman, Small Game