The Game: Penetrating the Secret Society of Pickup Artists

The Game: Penetrating the Secret Society of Pick-up Artists is a non-fictional book written by investigative reporter Neil Strauss as a chronicle of his journey from “average frustrated chump” to “master pickup artist” using techniques devised by a self-help network of men developing the art of seduction with women.

In the book, he adopts the pseudonym Style, and details encounters with women as he studies with various experts at seducing women. The book’s publication began an explosion of pick-up artist jargon and introduced the world to a character known as Mystery.

The book was featured on the New York Times Bestseller List for two months after its release, reaching prominence again during the broadcast of the hit series, VH1’s The Pick-Up Artist. In its original published hardcover format, the book was covered in black leather and bookmarked with red satin, similar to some printings of the Bible. Televised news programs criticized the book as a demonic “bible” of seduction arts. Many love-shy men avidly studied the book for inspiration. Despite the reputation that The Game has received as an expose on the Seduction Community, it was primarily written as an autobiographical work.

The book is narrated by protagonist Neil Strauss, with emphasis on the personal transformation he undergoes to become an “influential member of the seduction community”. The dominant theme throughout the book is the doctrine of “the Venusian Arts” as taught to Neil by the Community. Although several wide-ranging beliefs and ideals for the perfect seducer are presented, Strauss takes after Mystery and his Mystery Method, providing what could be considered a literary endorsement for Mystery.

See also:
The Pickup Artist (2010, Villard)
Rules of the Game (2007, It Books)
Revelation (2008, Venusian Arts)
The Mystery Method (2007, St. Martins)