Van Boyle was once a Major League ballplayer, a champion, before a devastating injury cost him his career, his family, and his home. Now, the former Baltimore Orioles player lives on the fringes of society, a nomad in the Maryland countryside, perpetually haunted by the game that defined him.
From sleeping in hollowed-out trees and shipping containers to foraging for food, Van is reduced to scraping by, his only remaining ties the fragile hope of speaking to his estranged son and daughter. Yet, Van is no victim. He's a "wanderer, out of necessity", a man who fiercely rejects pity and defines "home" on his own brutal terms: "My home is where I make it".
Told in sharp, episodic bursts, this poignant and darkly humorous novel traces Van's final years, shifting between the raw, derelict present and the glorious mirage of his youth.
Van Boyle is the story of a fighter, a man clinging to his pride as he plays the final, desperate inning of a life defined by regret and the elusive search for peace.
