In “Circle Change,” author Gabriel Busch attempts to meld a love story with a deep story of reflection and redemption. Fortunately for the reader, he does this by connecting on several levels. Set against the backdrop of Major League Baseball’s dreams and aspirations, the novel has something to offer for almost any reader.

Do not doubt it, “Circle Change” is a love story. What distinguishes the novel are the allegories and the layers embedded in the narrative. The recurring theme of love prevails on several key levels. The love of the game of baseball is something many fans can relate to and is an important setting for the story. The love between a man and a woman is a universal and firmly approached motive. The love for the city of New Orleans is clear in the interaction of the characters with each other and the city in which they live. Most important of all, the novel fundamentally addresses the notion of self-love through introspection, grievance, forgiveness, and redemption. It’s no easy task, but Busch seems to be up to the task.

The story begins with Traynor Hamilton, a minor league phenom pitcher in the Houston Astros organization, fulfilling his lifelong dream (and destiny) of becoming a major league pitcher. Originally from the northeastern US, he works for the New Orleans Major League Baseball Club affiliate and grows to love his adoptive hometown. In the process, he befriends an older and wiser mentor in the form of his friend Charles, who constantly embraces wise ideals and instills a zest for life in Traynor. Seeing a beautiful woman outside an art gallery, Traynor enlists Charles to help him in his search for her to meet her. Once he meets Gracie, they fall in love not only with each other, but also with the city of New Orleans, with the notion of spiritual growth (achieved through the practice of yoga), and with the idea of ​​Traynor making the big deal. leagues And do the big leagues he does. Like any good morality play, tragedy happens and sends the protagonist on a search for answers, introspective reflection, and ultimately redemption.

The novel leaves a lot unexplained at the end. This is clearly by design, as Busch ultimately challenges the reader to determine an answer to the question: Is redemption possible? Apparently one can be guided by others in finding this answer, but ultimately Busch tells us that we can only answer that question for ourselves. The reassuring factor lies in the knowledge that we are never alone on our journey. Whether friends, family, or seemingly random strangers, our fellow human beings share our experiences, grief, pain, and love.

The novel has lofty ideals and delivers on most levels. Numerous grammatical and punctuation errors have occurred in the digitization of the novel, but this is an easily correctable problem. As for the effort, Busch deserves an “A” for equally delving into the worlds of baseball, love, joy, grief and loss, as well as an almost supernatural twist to the story involving the culture and spirituality of Native Americans.

The novel’s style is largely concerned with conversation rather than detailed description, and as such it reads almost like a script. This may be Busch’s intention, as the story would play out very well on screen. Regardless, Busch has positioned himself as a uniquely voiced author with more stories to share. Time will certainly tell, but his initial foray into storytelling with his first novel seems to indicate he’s on the right track.