The Sellout

by Paul Beatty

Reading Club Session: 15th March 2018

A biting satire about a young man's isolated upbringing and the race trial that sends him to the Supreme Court, Paul Beatty's The Sellout showcases a comic genius at the top of his game. It challenges the sacred tenets of the United States Constitution, urban life, the civil rights movement, the father-son relationship, and the holy grail of racial equality - the black Chinese restaurant.

Questions for discussion

Reviews

The Guardian
The Telegraph
The New York Times
The Independent
The Irish Times
RollingStone
The Huffington Post
Financial Times
NewStatesman

Interviews

TheGuardian podcast
BBC interview (Hardtalk)
Catchnews interview
Paul Beatty on writing, humour and race
NPR interview

Paul Beatty is the author of three novels --- SLUMBERLAND, TUFF and THE WHITE BOY SHUFFLE --- and two books of poetry: BIG BANK TAKE LITTLE BANK and JOKER, JOKER, DEUCE. He is the editor of HOKUM: An Anthology of African-American Humor. In 2016, he became the first American to win the Man Booker Prize. He lives in New York City.