My colleagues Charlie Cooke and Alexandra DeSanctis may think they are the reason I like baseball, but in reality, it was Tom Playfair’s doing. Tom Playfair, Percy Wynn, and Harry Dee, that is. And it wasn’t just baseball they brought to life. These fictional heroes and their friends and professors exemplified for me, as a child, courage, studiousness, and kindness, along with a strong sense of humor and a wonderful conviction of faith.
When you cherish a book and its characters deeply, it can be difficult to convey their value to others without slipping into overwrought gushing. Such a display would cheapen these stories and annoy readers, so, simply put, the boys who fill the pages of Father Francis J. Finn’s three most popular books — Tom Playfair, Percy Wynn, and Harry Dee — teach readers about sin, faith, and redemption in a clear manner that challenges and inspires. But there is no stuffy preachiness to be found here. Father Finn understood boys, having taught for many years at a boarding school during the 1880s. He was also deeply patriotic and wished to show how being a proud American, being a lively boy, and being a devout Catholic are not incompatible. These books and characters were beloved in their day by numerous boys and girls, and perhaps their favorite character was the stalwart Tom.
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