Stealing Home by Allison Pittman is an interesting tale of living against the tide of tradition, existing under (and fighting against) blame, regret and excuses. It is fiction, set in the great days of baseball in the early days of the 20th century. The plot revolves around four main characters, a baseball star in need of peace and quiet, a woman scorned by her small town and living in isolation among them, a negro boy who works doing odd jobs but whom is practically invisible because of his status, and a man who watches and waits for his chance at his dreams. The characters converge in a situation which could free each one of them or could become dangerous. The story is well written and was easy to finish. The tag line is "A larger-than-life hero and the small town that awakens his soul". It was a good description, but other three characters drew me more than the baseball star. It was their emergence from isolation which satisfied me.

This is no picture perfect ending. It has its share of surprising trials, and yet each character stays true to himself while growing and changing. I think that quality is what I liked best about the book: Progress in character's lives while staying true to the character's voice.