Fun and Games (Hardback)

‘A funny and frank coming-of age-drama, propelled by the heart-swelling comic agony of the protagonist’s incapacity to act without second-guessing the consequences for his social rank’ Observer, ‘The best new novelists for 2025’ ‘One of the most exciting writers working in Ireland today’ Sally Rooney, author of Intermezzo 'One of the funniest novels I've read in years. John Patrick McHugh writes with an unerringly acute, mercilessly affectionate eye about the chaotic mores and inescapable entanglements of small town teenage life. This is a lively, bighearted coming of age novel that is an utter joy to read' Colin Barrett, author of Wild Houses 'Fun and Games beautifully captures that complicated transitory period between youth and young manhood, and the external pressures one faces … A truly gorgeous novel from a writer of immense talent' Michael Magee, author of Close to Home ‘Lyrical and at turns funny and heartbreaking, Fun and Games is a startlingly compelling evocation of youthful passion and the often-fraught bonds of family and friendship … bittersweet and brilliant’ Ferdia Lennon, author of Glorious Exploits ‘Fun and Games is a charming, funny and sensitive novel … John Patrick McHugh has a gift for depicting interior life’ Nicole Flattery, author of Nothing Special ‘A completely candid and totally believable tale of late adolescence, with all of its tiny tragedies and tiny triumphs. Heartbreaking and raucous and filled with love, Fun and Games is a joy unconfined’ Aidan Cottrell-Boyce, author of The End of Nightwork ‘A remarkable depiction of burgeoning masculinity … John Patrick McHugh paints a portrait of a young man with vulnerability, compassion, and an illuminating and necessary kind of logic' Rebecca Watson, author of I Will Crash ‘Bighearted and boisterous, bursting with life … a gorgeous, aching whirligig of a novel’ Colin Walsh, author of Kala ‘McHugh writes with exceptional honesty, nuance and humour’ Caoilinn Hughes, author of The Alternatives