Books: “Playworld” by Adam Ross

Kids who grow up in New York are just smarter and cooler than kids brought up anywhere else. They can hail a cab in a snap, grab the straps of an M11 bus and pretend they’re flying down Columbus Avenue, and back in the day, get into Studio and be served at Dorrian’s with the greatest of ease.

Which is why I, who grew up in small-town New Jersey, am especially envious of Griffin Hurt, the young Manhattan protagonist of Adam Ross’s wonderful everything-plus-the-kitchen sink novel “Playworld.”

If Holden Caulfield were growing up in 1980–the setting for this novel—he’d be Griffin—a 14-year-old who attends a fancy NYC all-boys private school but who’s a little lost in his personal life. He’s passionate about wrestling but he can’t make weight in time to win a match. He can walk onto a HS stage and nail any part in a school play without rehearsing. But he can’t win the affection of Amanda, the girl he really wants to date, who attends an all-girl private school in Manhattan.

Sound fairly typical? Well, he’s also having a Mrs. Robinson kind of affair with Naomi, the MILFY wife of his dad’s best friend, who is 25 years his senior.

The mitigating factor in their relationship

is that Griffin is wise beyond his years. He’s got a side hustle as an actor in a successful but junky live-action kids show, which earns Griffin enough to cover his tuition.

There are detours in the narrative: Griffin has deep discussions with his father (an actor and voiceover talent) and his mother (a Pilates instructor), plus there’s a weird Christmas trip to relatives in Virginia. All of these tangents paint a rich picture of a character you are rooting for from the get-go.

Ross has stated that "Playworld" "rhymes with my life," meaning it's somewhat based on his experiences as a child actor in Manhattan, but it's not a literal lift. And while there are similarities to “World According to Garp,” and “Catcher in the Rye” this is a book only a funny, snarky, honest-to-God wordsmith can write. I can’t wait to read “Mr. Peanut,” his earlier novel. Meanwhile start with “Playworld.” You’ll love it—even if you didn’t grow up in New York.

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