Center for Teaching & Learning

Not many of us have played college baseball. Not all of us have even played baseball at any level. But all of us should read Chad Harbach’s The Art of Fielding.
The Art of Fielding follows eighteen-year-old Henry Skrimshander, through his journey from a small town player to a pro-scouted college athlete. After being discovered by a college player, Henry’s baseball skills take him to Westish College, a small Mid-western school. Quickly, Henry’s baseball prowess causes problems, both for him and the team. Harbach does an incredible job of crafting an interesting, unique, new book for the ages.
Chad Harbach develops multiple, elaborate, characters, who are all, in some way, linked to Henry. Harbach eventually leads them all together, so they meet in a conclusion that can only be described as unexpected.
While the theme of this book may just appear to be the ups and downs of baseball, a second look shows just how much more it’s about: failure and perseverance, self-doubt, loss, and so much more. Harbach incorporates these themes perfectly into the context of baseball and all the pressure put on Henry because of his skill. Henry’s thoughts throughout the whole second half of the book show the demons he is struggling to rid himself of. This angle of vulnerability makes the book all the more realistic and made me, root for Henry’s recovery.
One pitfall of certain books is a lack of realistic dialogue- often characters’ language sounds forced and fake. The Art of Fielding is the exact opposite, with dialogue that sounds perfectly natural and thoughts and feelings that were real and relatable for me, as a reader.
The style of this book, a third-person narrative heavy with dialogue and introspection gave me a first-hand look into what characters were really like, and allowed me to form opinions about what I thought was going to happen to certain people.
The best books aren’t always the fastest-paced books. Some are dense and slow, while others just drag. The Art of Fielding is an exception to this, as readers are quickly thrown into the action of the book. I personally liked this approach: it kept me engaged instead of losing me on the way to the climax.
Chad Harbach may not be a household name yet, but I believe that with more books like The Art of Fielding, he can become a popular contemporary adult or young-adult writer. I would recommend this book to young adults or older, simply because certain aspects of the books theme wouldn’t make sense to a younger audience. I personally rated it a ten, and think it’s a book everybody should read.
Finally, I advise you not to judge a book by its title. The Art of Fielding sounds like a book meant solely for baseball players, while in reality it is a book anyone could, and should, read.
Back Bay Books, 544 pages
Nicco