Tenderly poignant, wise and affecting. A beautiful, stirring reflection on the joys and challenges of fatherhood. -- Kirkus
In an epic road trip with his Little League son, a divorced dad's eight-ballpark journey tries to rescue his fatherhood--and learn how his dad's suicide might not doom him to repeat a father's mistakes.
The rarest outcome in sports is baseball's perfect game. One team does everything right, forcing the other to accomplish nothing. In 150 years of baseball, there have only been 23. Perfect is nearly impossible. As a divorced dad, Ron was trying to redeem his fatherhood with a road trip with his Little League son Nicky. Their odyssey of crossing eight states in a rented convertible was supposed to salvage Ron's life as an unsure father. Custody fatherhood demoted him to the second team -- he was certain of that. One sign of salvation came unbidden in an unscheduled tenth ballgame.
The adventures and revelations of the road lead to a deeper reckoning of how Ron's father had failed enough at his fatherhood to take his own life. Thousands of miles and dozens of innings delivered a discovery: a drive toward perfect fatherhood has a destination that cannot be found on any map.
Stealing Home is the tale of an eleven-day, nine-game trip with a Little Leaguer -- and how a father's plans for perfection delivered things deeper than scores, miles, and smiles. You don't have to drive 3,147 miles to find your way to fatherhood. When Ron did, something magical and rare appeared at the end, inside his heart as well as on a diamond.
"Part baseball, part fatherhood, and all boyhood, Stealing Home plays out the mystery of love and family. Fueled by his determination to become a better dad, Seybold's journey becomes a quest to reconcile the past and his future. The magic lies in the storytelling that travels the road to something perfect." Donna Johnson, author of Holy Ghost Girl: A Memoir
"Rich with sports metaphor, Stealing Home offers a touching and complex look at how, experience by experience, individuals repair generations of fury-fueled despair." -- Indie Reader
"A poignant memoir about the intersections of sports and fatherhood, its text evocative and careful...dynamic as it balances scenes in the present and the past. Its storytelling method is engaging and satisfying." -- Clarion Foreword Reviews
"Authentic, emotional, and brave, Stealing Home is a timeless journey of the universal struggle to rise above the past. It's a beautiful testament to the power of a father's love." - Claire Ashby, NY Times best-selling author of When You Make It Home
"In ably capturing the excitement of live baseball, the author's remembrance is a profoundly touching one, especially given his forthcoming candor and willingness to dispense self-criticism." -- Kirkus
"A beautifully written, touching memoir about family dynamics revealed in the bonding of a father and son." - Larry Brill, author of award-winning romance Deja Vu All Over Again
"Five Stars. It's so much more than a memoir. It's a grand road trip story as well as a real-life family saga. At its heart, Stealing Home is the consummate baseball story. An enthralling memoir, most highly recommended." Reader's Favorite
