''Pride of the Bimbos'' is the first novel by American author and filmmaker

John Sayles John Thomas Sayles (born September 28, 1950) is an American independent film director, screenwriter, editor, actor, and novelist. He is known for writing and directing the films '' The Brother from Another Planet'' (1984), '' Matewan'' (1987), ...

, published in 1975. The book is about a dwarf who is a traveling baseball player who dresses in drag and plays local teams. The baseball is always played without comedy and the traveling team (the Bimbos) almost always wins. As the book unfolds the reader learns about the midget named Pogo in flashbacks. At one time he was a gang leader, and another time he was a detective. Throughout the book, a man who is as tall as Pogo is short tries to find him to do him harm. ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' reviewer Raymond Sokolov called the book "an oddly unsettling satire of American machismo". ''

Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus. The magazine's publisher, Kirkus Media, is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fiction, no ...

'' said "it might be the unlikeliest book you ever thought to like", with its bizarre plot and "hugely funny scenes". They concluded "Sayles is a writer with more talent in the knuckle of his little finger than we've met in many a long season--full of spit and humor and affection." In 1988, Alida Becker of the ''

Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily nonprofit newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has long held the second largest circulation among Chicago newspaper ...

'' called the book a "rollicking examination of masculine self-esteem".

Randall Kenan Randall Kenan - American author (March 12, 1963 – August 28, 2020) best known for his novel ''A Visitation of Spirits'' and his collection of stories ''Let the Dead Bury Their Dead'' named a ''New York Times'' Notable Book in 1992, and ''The F ...

, writing in 1991 in ''

The Nation ''The Nation'' is a progressive American monthly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper ...

'', called the book a "novel by turns hilarious and poignant", showing Sayles's "highly individual vision."

References

1975 American novels Baseball novels American satirical novels Works by John Sayles Little, Brown and Company books {{1970s-satirical-novel-stub