Arizona Athletic Grounds in Mesa, Ariz., has every sport imaginable, plus a cryochamber. The father and son co-founders await sentencing for fraud, and bondholders are out of luck.

The venue, now called Arizona Athletic Grounds, is a $250 million monument to America’s youth-sports frenzy. It spans 280 acres where General Motors once tested cars under the desert sun.

I arrived at a weekend book retreat with a grief-stricken heart, and left with a renewed sense of belonging thanks to fellow booklovers.