Comedy writer Simon Rich, known for his work on ‘Saturday Night Live,’ recommends 9 side-splitting books that he believes are pure comedic brilliance.

If you're curious about what was happening in Simon Rich's life during any given period, just dive into whatever he was working on at the time.

‘All of my stories are deeply personal,’ Simon Rich explains in an interview with Mytour. ‘That’s surprising to some people, because the tales I tell often involve robots, pirates, and time-traveling aliens. But I use those outlandish scenarios as metaphors to explore real, everyday experiences that are just a bit dull on their own.’

The former *Saturday Night Live* writer has spent the last 15 years turning the tough realities of life into comedic gold. He’s taken the saying ‘Life is hard’ and added a funny twist—by introducing monsters, or even a flawed Bible character. In addition to his books, Rich has adapted several of his works for film and television, including the 2020 film *An American Pickle*, starring Seth Rogen (based on his novella *Sell Out*), and TBS's *Miracle Workers*, featuring Daniel Radcliffe (the first season, based on *What in God's Name*, and the second season, stemming from the story ‘Revolution’).

In *New Teeth*, his latest collection of short stories, Simon Rich explores the relatable highs and lows of family life and parenting. The stories feature pirates trying to co-parent a stowaway, a human-ape hybrid struggling to juggle work and life after being reassigned from alien defense to middle management, and an adult woman dealing with resentment toward her imperfect adoptive parents—who happen to be wolves.

The protagonists in Rich’s stories are often charmingly clueless, reflecting the author’s own feelings about the confusing and disorienting world around us. ‘I’ve always found myself drawn to characters who know less than the reader,’ he shares. ‘I feel much more aligned with them than with the smarter, more capable characters. In my own life, I relate much more to Homer Simpson than I do to Chandler from *Friends*.’

Despite their cluelessness, Rich’s characters are carefully crafted. ‘I’m definitely a cards-on-a-corkboard kind of writer,’ he says. ‘If anyone saw the steps before I actually start writing, they’d probably think, ‘Whoever did this is a total nerd.’ There’s a lot of color-coding involved.’

Rich’s dedication to detail is evident in his reading habits as well. He enjoys everything from the works of Henry James to *Stephen King*—and, naturally, plenty of comedy. Read on to discover the humorous and satirical books that occupy a permanent place in Rich’s meticulously color-coded personal library.

These entries have been edited for clarity.

1. The Road to Wellville // T.C. Boyle

‘T.C. Boyle is one of my biggest writing inspirations,’ says Simon Rich. ‘Not everything he writes is strictly comedic—his work spans a range of genres, from grand epics to intimate domestic dramas. But when Boyle aims for humor and satire, he truly nails it. *The Road to Wellville* is, in my opinion, his funniest novel. It’s a sharp satire of early 20th-century health enthusiasts, and features one of the most hilariously bizarre antagonists of all his works—a madman running a health spa. Boyle has this incredible ability to make even the most bizarre settings feel grounded in reality.’

2.

The Magic Christian // Terry Southern

‘This is a classic choice among comedy writers, but I have to mention it anyway: *The Magic Christian* by Terry Southern. It centers around a billionaire who spends his vast wealth on elaborate pranks just for his own amusement, and there's practically no real plot. It’s simply a list of pranks he pulls on people, and it’s absolutely hilarious. Unflinchingly funny. I’m a huge fan of Terry Southern,’ says Simon Rich.

3. Being There // Jerzy Kosinski

‘This story is about a gardener who has spent his entire life on the estate where he works. Through a series of events, he is thrust into society for the first time. He’s a good-looking, well-spoken, and clean-shaven man, so he starts to gain power in the world despite having no idea what’s going on around him. His knowledge is limited to gardening, but everyone interprets his thoughts on the subject as profound metaphors for society. He climbs the social ladder completely oblivious to the fact that he’s utterly ignorant and naïve in every way.’

4. Ripley Under Ground // Patricia Highsmith

‘Muriel Spark and Patricia Highsmith belong in the same league for me, as both are so vicious in their satire that it often veers into horror territory. Personally, I find the *Ripley* novels by Patricia Highsmith incredibly funny. Even though they’re technically capers, they’re laced with dark satire. One of them, *Ripley Under Ground*, revolves around art fraud and follows a fraudulent painter. While it’s still a crime novel, the satire in it is brilliant.’

5. Et Tu, Babe // Mark Leyner

‘Mark Leyner often writes about a character named Mark Leyner, a megalomaniacal writer. One of my favorite moments is in *Et Tu, Babe*, where he teaches creative writing classes. If anyone submits a truly great story, Leyner makes it his mission to destroy that person so the story can never be published, thereby keeping his grip on the literary world.’

6. The Neal Pollack Anthology of American Literature // Neal Pollack

‘This book is essentially a collection of fictional journalistic works written over the last century. The premise is that Neal Pollack is a world-traveling, award-winning journalist who’s had access to every major event in history, and these are his reports. It’s a brilliant and hilarious parody of the journalistic genre.’

7. How I Conquered Your Planet // John Swartzwelder

‘Another one I love is *How I Conquered Your Planet* by John Swartzwelder—he’s a legendary writer from *The Simpsons*. His characters often display a level of ignorance that I try to channel in my own work. Swartzwelder has a series featuring a detective named Frank Burly, who’s always attempting to make sense of his surroundings but never succeeds. That series really inspired the short story in this collection, 'The Big Nap,' where I pushed things even further by making the detective a literal baby who knows absolutely nothing. That story is a bit of a tribute to Swartzwelder.’

8. The Magic Kingdom // Stanley Elkin

‘Stanley Elkin is such a master of humor. The funniest novel of his I’ve read has to be *The Magic Kingdom*, which follows a group of terminally ill children on a trip to Disneyland. It might sound darker than it is, but it’s definitely a close call to cynicism—yet it never crosses the line.’

9. The Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle Treasury // Betty MacDonald

‘These are children’s books, but they’re so incredibly good... I absolutely adore the *Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle* series; they’re absolutely hilarious. I have *The Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle Treasury*, which is a giant collection of all the stories. I just think those tales are absolutely brilliant.’