The central conflict in The Art of Fielding is man vs. We can all identify with the drive to be the best. Whether it's to pitch a perfect game, have the perfect wedding, look like Barbie or Ken, or get the perfect photograph of a weasel riding on a woodpecker, everybody wants to do something perfectly.

What is The Art of Fielding About and Why Should I Care? So step up to the plate and take a swing at The Art of Fielding today.

In order to decide which team to root for, you have to watch the team play first-or in this case, read the book. Judith Shulevitz of Slate calls it an 'oddly charming, upbeat' novel and compares Harbach favorably to David Foster Wallace. Myers with The Atlantic to call the book a 'hyped-up work' that 'fizzles.' But like the rivalry between Red Sox and Yankees, The Art of Fielding has a fair share of reviewers putting on a proverbial foam finger to cheer for it. (Maybe it needed more vampires in it-or dragons… or vampire dragons who just happen to be boy wizards.) Given those figures, Harbach's huge advance raised some criticism, prompting B.R. Baseball may be America's pastime, but Harbach's novel failed to reach the status of America's favorite book, selling just 142,000 copies in 2012. It sounds like Henry has trouble getting used to fame and success ( much like Harbach himself).Īnd 'success' here is perhaps not the best choice of words. Henry excels at college ball and has the potential for a Major League deal, until he chokes and can't stop overthinking his game, putting his prospects at risk. It follows a promising young shortstop named Henry Skrimshander. The Art of Fielding, which Harbach wrote over the course of nine years, was finally published in 2011. And the only performance-enhancing drugs Harbach probably consumed were gallons of coffee to keep writing. That figure was one of the highest advances ever for a book without a vampire in it. (Plus, we think Doubleday publishing would be better equipped to handle a book about baseball). We'll explain this way: how much would you pay for The Art of Fielding? $14.99 for paperback? $8.99 for a digital copy? Both prices are a bargain compared to the $650,000 Little, Brown, and Co. Now, replace 'team' in our intro with 'publishing house' and you basically have the behind-the-scenes story of author Chad Harbach and his 2011 debut novel The Art of Fielding, a book more famous for Harbach's blockbuster publishing deal than for the content itself. And hopefully you can do all this without the assistance of performance-enhancing drugs. If you're good enough, and maybe just a little lucky too, you might get a six-figure signing bonus with your favorite team and become a national sensation almost overnight. You have to practice every day, sharpen your skills, and maintain your focus, keeping your eyes on the prize. It takes years of training to reach the big leagues.

The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach