Art of Fielding

The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach takes the prize as the most satisfying, entertaining novel of the summer [so far]. The setting is a small, Wisconsin school, Westish College, whose baseball team, the Harpooners, has suffered for years from mediocrity. That is, until phenomenally gifted shortstop Henry Skrimshander joins the team. Henry is first recruited and then mentored by team catcher Mike Schwartz. The Harpooners start winning, and the team looks like it will go all the way to a national championship. Then Henry inexplicably sends an errant throw into the Harpooner dugout, where it hits his friend and roommate Owen in the face. As a horrified Henry's life starts to unravel so do the lives of Westish College's president, Guert Affenlight, who falls in love with Owen, Mike, who can't figure out how to fix Henry's problems or his own, and Guert's daughter Pella, who finds herself caught between Henry and Mike while struggling to rebuild her life following a failed marriage. Harbach pokes fun at academia and college sports, but also shows great affection for his many flawed and complex characters. Highly recommended.