Humor, irony, and exaggeration are the three necessary components of the satirical novel, and if this sounds enjoyable to you then I have three excellent titles to recommend.
Javier Perez, or Javi, takes his hustle to a life-altering level when a representative of the college admissions committee for a prestigious university encourages him to aim for a full academic scholarship. To do this, it is hinted that Javi should detail his disadvantaged youth in the application essay. His murdered drug-king father, his struggling mother, and his imprisoned gangbanging friend are choice fodder for his creatively enhanced story of overcoming treacherous hardships on his way to academic excellence. Acknowledging his true feelings, that he didn’t feel like his childhood had been as disadvantaged or as dangerous as the admissions counselor would have him claim to be, Javi soothes his conscience by rationalizing that it’s simply a means to an end, which is to complete college and become a famous author. This launches an increasing overdramatization and falsification of his opinions and life experiences as his articles find their way into well-respected and widely read journals.
A racist, entitled, Caucasian psychopath, June Hayward is also a failing author who unhesitatingly steals her successful contemporary’s book after this friend, Athena, is killed under bizarre circumstances. That the author is Asian and has written authoritatively and beautifully about World War I Chinese laborers is of no concern to June, who simply rebrands herself as ambiguously multicultural. She tries to dodge Athena’s shadows as the ugly darkness of her misdeeds consumes her.
Black Buck by Mateo Askaripour
This title has been previously reviewed by a fellow blogger, but deserves another mention in my collection of Satirical fiction. Author Mateo Askaripour is not dainty in his scathing condemnation of racism in all of its macro-and-micro aggressive forms, which should be obvious from the title alone. Prepare to be provoked and challenged as he skewers America’s workforce and the near-unattainability of the American dream.