The Great American Novel

The Great American Novel
by Philip Roth
read: circa 2002

What a crazy book.  I've read quite a few Philip Roth novels, but The Great American Novel wasn't like any of the others.  It's not an rich, internal dive into human psychology; it's a romp through a silly fictional baseball league.  I don't remember much of the plot, but I remember quite a few of the images and situations:

• Casts of misfits that put the Major League movies to shame, like players with missing limbs or a superstar player whose father insists he bat ninth to teach him humility
• A near-perfect-perfect game, as pitcher Gil Gamesh tries to register 27 Ks on 81 pitches
• The owner's son taking over the team with his spreadsheets, eschewing bunting and calling for constant hit-and-runs, which along with (now-manager) Gamesh's intense style carries a crappy squad to .500 ball
• Narrator "Word" Smith calling women "slits"
• The umpire rendered speechless by an intentional pitch to the throat, seeking his revenge years later

Is The Great American Novel great literature on the order of American Pastoral?  No.  Is it a really fun book, especially if you're a baseball fan?  You bet!