I picked this book up originally because it was about baseball. I loved the artsy cover with the jersey-like font, and I was curious to see what a legitimate novel about baseball would look like. Apparently, it looks a lot like a (relatively) standard novel about romance and college and life and things. I'm not sure I got all that much out of this book; the characters were pleasant, and I rooted for and empathized with all of them, but none of them were incredibly well-imagined or anything, probably as a result of the multiple storylines that weave throughout the book. The action was there, and Harbach seems to be a bit more than just a casual baseball fan, but it didn't have too much baseball, either. This is really a book about relationships and expectations, and while that doesn't mean it's not entertaining, it definitely wasn't the great mix of sports and life that I was looking for. By the end, I did care about the characters, and the climax was exciting (view spoiler)[(albeit a little abrupt) (hide spoiler)], but ultimately I was left wanting a bit more. A bit more... baseball? A bit more... development (yes, even in this 500 page book)? A bit more... something. It just didn't really grab me, didn't really stun me, and it wasn't really a fantastic journey. It was just a nice story that was about some baseball players and those around them. I gave it 3 stars because the characters were pretty great, but it was certainly a bit disappointing.