Paperback
The Status Game: On Human Life and How to Play It
By Will Storr
‘Will Storr is one of our best journalists of ideas … The Status Game might be his best yet’ James Marriott, Books of the Year, The Times
What drives our political and moral beliefs?
What shapes our bitterest conflicts and wildest dreams?
What makes you, you?
Across the world, from Papua New Guinea to Tokyo and Manhattan, humans compete for status. Through games of dominance, virtue and success, it’s an obsession that has driven the best and worst of us: the Renaissance and the Industrial Revolution as well as spree killers and tyrants at the gates of Europe. But what makes status an all-consuming prize? And how can we wield our desire for it to improve our relationships, win social media battles and be the best in the workplace?
A breathtaking rethink of human psychology, The Status Game will change how you see others – and how you see yourself.
”'Will Storr is one of our best journalists of ideas … The Status Game might be his best yet” - James Marriott, Books of the Year, The Times
”'[The Status Game] challenged the way I think about the role of status in my own life and in some ways it made me feel less terrible about some of my unhealthy fixations. If you find yourself needlessly worried about status, it might do the same for you … I can’t stop thinking about it” - Sean Illing, Vox
”'Eloquent, entertaining” - New Statesman
”'Moving … Scholarly … Storr showcases a rare skill - the ability to use technical academic scholarship in solving a real-world problem” - Helen Dale, CapX
‘I haven’t finished reading The Status Game because I’ve only read it once. There's so much in this dazzling book I will be revisiting over and over again’Daniel Finkelstein, author of Everything in Moderation -
‘The Status Game could not be more timely and provides a missing piece for understanding where we are, and how to get out of this mess … I can’t recommend it highly enough’Greg Lukianoff, co-author with Jonathan Haidt of The Coddling of the American Mind -
”'Thought provoking and enlightening - you’ll be discussing The Status Game everywhere you go” - Sara Pascoe
‘Bursting with insights into the hierarchy-crazed hellscape of a world shaped by social media, this book confirms Will Storr’s own status as a master storyteller’Helen Lewis, author of Difficult Women -
‘A radical new theory of human nature … It should - quite appropriately - establish Will Storr as the finest science writer being published today’David Robson, author of The Intelligence Trap -