Richard Powers (Bewilderment, The Overstory) delivers a novel of spectacular thematic scope and surreal drama, centered on the tiny French Polynesian island of Makatea in the Pacific Ocean and those destined to make it their home. Starring four principal characters and the intriguing manner in which their stories converge and collide, Playground glides across the final decades of the 20th century and spills into the present day, culminating in a dramatic vision for mankind's oceanic and land-based future.
Brilliant French-Canadian marine biologist Evelyne Beaulieu spends a lifetime communing with sea creatures across vast oceanic wonderlands. For Evelyne, speaking the language of dancing cuttlefish and magnificent reef manta rays is far easier than navigating relationships on land. Artist Ina Aroita can make sense of her place in the world only through her art created from deconstructed materials. Cosseted in his San Jose penthouse, Todd Keane is an ocean enthusiast and the billionaire founder of "Playground," a game he describes as "a little experiment in empowering and connecting people" that boasts more than three million users. His friend and nemesis is Rafi Young, a literary genius struggling under filial pressure to succeed as no Black man has succeeded before. Todd and Rafi, both in love with Ina, bonded over marathon sessions of the ancient game of Go, their friendship one long match until the very end.
Play, in all its manifestations, is a means of escape for Powers's talented cast. The book's title resonates with meaning at every turn in the story. And if Todd's latest project succeeds in ushering in an irreversible new age of artificial intelligence, play may indeed be all that they are good for.
In Playground, the author's genius shows in his formidable descriptive talents and the graceful clarity of his densely woven plot. It matters not whether one is familiar with the topography or colonial history of teardrop-shaped Makatea, for Powers meticulously sets the stage with vivid, immersive details to ignite the reader's imagination, while Evelyne's oceanic adventures sparkle with colorful imagery.
Deep in the novel, a Makatea ravaged by capitalism and attempting a fragile recovery is seduced by the shiny promises of foreign investors yet again--this time Americans eager to launch a "seasteading" venture. Against the island's luminous blue backdrop, Playground's leading actors reunite, their destinies yielding to the one true story left to be told. --Shahina Piyarali
Shelf Talker: A tiny French Polynesian island grapples with its oceanic destiny in this spectacular, surreal story of four individuals and the intriguing ways in which their paths converge and collide.