The Straw Man

Straw Man is a delicious look at New York's artworld in the days when the Met ("the Urban" in the book) was expanding into Central Park. The hero has more money than happiness; his adolescent fantasies revolve around the women in million-dollar paintings, and his grown-up pursuit of an enigmatic woman is a great read. (Especially apt is the scene in which he has to walk a long way uptown because he doesn't have anything smaller than a $100 bill for a cab.) If you're interested in the New York artworld, you MUST read this book.