The Art of Fielding: A Novel
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.99 (593 Votes) |
| Asin | : | 0316126675 |
| Format Type | : | paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 544 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2013-01-24 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
The Art of Fielding explores relationships--between friends, family, and lovers--and the unpredictable forces that complicate them. Harbach has penned one of the year's finest works of fiction.--Kevin Nguyen. Best Books of the Month, September 2011: Though The Art of Fielding is his fiction debut, Chad Harbach writes with the self-assurance of a seasoned novelist. The Art of Fielding is somehow both confident and intimate, simple yet deeply moving. There's an unintended affair, a post-graduate plan derailed by rejection letters, a marriage dissolved by honesty, and at the center of the book, the single baseball error that sets all of these events into motion. He exercises a masterful precision over the language and pacing of his narrative, and in some 500 pages, there's rarely a word that feels out of place. The title is a reference to baseball, but Harba
In the aftermath of his error, the fates of five people are upended. Henry's fight against self-doubt threatens to ruin his future. And Pella Affenlight returns to Westish after escaping an ill-fated marriage, determined to start a new life.As the season counts down to its climactic final game, these five are forced to confront their deepest hopes, anxieties, and secrets. At Westish College, baseball star Henry Skrimshander seems destined for big league until a routine throw goes disastrously off course. College president Guert Affenlight has fallen unexpectedly and helplessly in love. Itis an expansive, warmhearted novel about ambition and its limit
Heather Adair said It was good -- BUT.. First thing I'll admit: I purchased this not so much because I was hankering to read a baseball-themed bromance about self-discovery in the dregs of a protein shake, but more because the dollar figure of writer Chad Harbach's advance was leaked to the press and legions of curious had to know if the writing warranted that giant $650,000 figure. As if any of us know what "warranted" looks like in this case, as if we had anything to compare that against. I just knew that was a lot of money, and if a first time novelist could command that dollar figure (in this era of declining advances and tightened publish. "Dumbfounding, Farcical Fiction That Insults Gay Athletes as Juvenilely Sex-Obsessed" according to W Perry Hall. This novel scorns both logic and reality. Near its opening lies one of the most absurd scenes in "serious" fiction:Owen, a college baseball player, reads French literature in the dugout as he's about to go on-deck to bat in the game then lustily hits a sacrifice fly after which he swoons over the opposing pitcher.C'mon, gimme a break! Anyone who has competed in sports (from 10 years old to 22) sees through this farce immediately. No one reads during the competition (e.g., in the dugout) and I don't care if this is the co-ed intramurals semi-finals, Lizzy Caplan's look-alike is pitching, Amanda Seyfried's. "Absolutely one of my favorite books of all time" according to SD. Absolutely one of my favorite books of all time. very well-developed, amazing characters by the end of it, I just wished it would keep going. I love when an author can do really well with writing a story that develops over several years and this one was one of the best at that. I will be going back to re-read this!
. He is a cofounder and coeditor of n+1. Chad Harbach grew up in Wisconsin and was educated at Harvard and the University of Virginia