The Publishing Event of the Year Is Here: On Chad Harbach's The Brightness

Almost exactly 15 years today, I had the privilege of sitting in the audience for a Chad Harbarch event in Milwaukee on his book tour for his debut novel The Art of Fielding. I wrote about the event here, and here was my review of The Art of Fielding from just a few days before the event.  At the time, having then no idea how much of a cultural phenomenon the novel would become, I wrote "Only time will truly tell if The Art of Fielding will join The Natural and The Brothers K in pantheon of great baseball novels."

Time has told: The Art of Fielding is a classic. 

Now, 15 years later, on another crisp autumn day, a drastically changed world welcomes another novel from Harbach. The Brightness, a follow-up to The Art of Fielding which continues the story about five years after the events depicted there, is the perfect autumn book: A big, immersive character-driven campus novel. 

To me, The Brightness is THE publishing event of the year, and I absolutely devoured this 700-page novel. I wanted 700 more pages. I want another Harbach novel next week. 😭

Anyway, I got to review The Brightness for the Chicago Review of Books. Spoiler: Of course I loved it. Even without baseball in this one, it's a novel that turns out to be more timely than Harbach could've imagined.

I hope you'll click over to CHIRB to read the review. There's an FAQ, a bit of plot summary, and more. I had so much fun writing this one, even as I tried to treat the novel's serious themes with appropriate gravity. Enjoy! And enjoy the novel, if you decide to pick it up. If you were a fan of The Art of Fielding, I don't think you'll be disappointed. 

Here's a short excerpt: 

It’s crucial to keep in mind, also, that good literature can and should walk and chew gum at the same time; that is, a novel can tackle vital and serious topics such as sexual assault on campus with appropriate solemnity, but also just be a rolicking good time. Indeed, rare is the good novel that doesn’t give us reason to think while also keeping readers rolling through its pages and, in this case, willing to follow these characters anywhere.