Thirteen-year-old Julie Baldwin knows a lot about games--card games, board games, parlor games, you name it--but she's discovering that life itself is a game played by rules that completely baffle her. Ready to emerge from the cocoon of her traditional Midwestern family, she is beginning to wonder what her future will hold: Where will she fit in? What will people expect of her? What if she can't deliver? Enter Jonah Tanner, a fifteen-year-old mixture of brash confidence and well-hidden pain. Still reeling from a family tragedy, Jonah is determined to play the game to the best of his ability without ever putting his heart at risk--that is, until a second family tragedy causes him to rethink his strategy. Individually and together, Jonah and Julie must navigate a minefield of doubt, death, friendship, and betrayal, all to reach the realization that even though the game of life is often frustrating and ultimately unwinnable, it is still the best game around. Funny, insightful, and honest, The Game is an unflinching but optimistic glimse into what it means to be human.