If you enjoy reading books by Sam Lipsyte then you might also like the following authors:
George Saunders writes witty, imaginative stories that use humor and satire to explore modern anxieties. His voice balances absurdity with real empathy.
A good example is his novel Lincoln in the Bardo, where he blends historical fiction with a touching exploration of grief and love, all set within a surreal ghostly realm.
Gary Shteyngart blends sharp wit, dark humor, and thoughtful insight into themes like immigration, technology, and identity. He captures life's weird contradictions and awkwardness with warmth and sharpness.
Consider his book Super Sad True Love Story, which envisions a hilariously bleak future obsessed with technology, consumerism, and superficiality.
Jonathan Lethem creates stories that blur genres with humor and imagination. He often plays with elements of noir, sci-fi, and literary fiction, offering insightful views of society's quirks and troubles.
Check out Motherless Brooklyn, a detective tale featuring an unforgettable narrator with Tourette's syndrome, full of humor and depth.
Ottessa Moshfegh's unapologetically blunt writing captures the complicated inner workings of her isolated, introspective characters. Her books are edgy, darkly funny, and unafraid to tackle loneliness and self-obsession.
Try her novel My Year of Rest and Relaxation, where the protagonist attempts to sleep away an entire year—offering sharp observations about modern life, privilege, and emptiness.
Denis Johnson offers intense, poetic writing that explores troubled characters facing desperation, addiction, and spiritual searching. His stories are gritty yet profoundly beautiful, filled with humanity and intensity.
Jesus' Son is a powerful example—an interconnected collection of stories following a young man's journey through drug-filled chaos toward moments of clarity and hope.
Donald Barthelme is a master of witty and surreal short fiction that combines humor, absurdity, and sharp observations about modern life. His stories often playfully poke at society's conventions and our expectations, offering a mix of comedy and fresh insight.
If you enjoy Lipsyte's satirical view of contemporary life, you might appreciate Barthelme's imaginative style in Sixty Stories, a collection filled with clever, inventive stories that challenge narrative norms and keep you thinking.
Martin Amis offers biting social satire and razor-sharp wit with elegantly crafted prose. His novels often explore moral ambiguity, dark humor, and characters navigating morally complicated situations.
Fans of Lipsyte's cynical humor and sharp criticisms might enjoy Amis's Money, a darkly funny novel that portrays excess, greed, and moral decay in the fast-paced world of finance.
Bret Easton Ellis writes novels that sharply critique modern culture and consumerism, layered with dark humor and irony. Like Lipsyte, Ellis creates characters often adrift or lost within shallow, chaotic worlds.
A perfect introduction is American Psycho, Ellis's infamous novel about Patrick Bateman, a Wall Street banker living a nightmarish double life—a harsh commentary on contemporary emptiness and narcissism.
Joy Williams crafts literary fiction and short stories with understated humor and sharply observed social commentary. Her stories often subtly highlight life's absurdities and the strangeness underneath the everyday.
Readers drawn to Lipsyte's subtle comedy and deeper social observations should look into Williams's short stories collection, The Visiting Privilege, which showcases her unique voice and precise sense of irony.
Ben Lerner is known for fiction that blurs the line between memoir and novel, often examining existential questions and the absurdities of everyday life. He combines thoughtful insight with sharp humor, critiquing modern literature and culture in unexpected ways.
Those who appreciate Lipsyte's humor and critical outlook on contemporary society might enjoy Lerner's Leaving the Atocha Station, a smart and funny novel about a young writer living in Madrid who navigates artistic ambition, confusion, and disconnection.
Joshua Ferris writes darkly funny novels that show how absurd modern life can be. His stories often focus on office life, frustration, and the struggle to find meaning.
His novel Then We Came to the End follows a group of office workers dealing with layoffs, anxiety, and workplace madness. His wit and satire will appeal to fans of Sam Lipsyte's sharp commentary.
Tibor Fischer is known for satirical novels that mix absurdity, humor, and wit. He explores life's weirdness and human folly with a creative playfulness that's both dark and funny.
Check out The Thought Gang, about a philosopher-turned-bank robber whose hilarious misadventures raise questions about life's meaning and human behavior—something Sam Lipsyte fans will appreciate.
A.M. Homes creates dark, funny stories filled with suburban dysfunction and biting observations of society. Her characters grapple with loneliness, anxiety, and desperation, making for sharp, unsettling reading.
Try May We Be Forgiven, a clever and sometimes painful look at family crisis and redemption. If you like the humor and anguish in Sam Lipsyte's novels, you'll find plenty to like here.
Shalom Auslander is a fearless, funny writer famous for dissecting religious guilt, anxiety, and family issues with sharp humor and honesty. He often confronts painful truths about faith, identity, and cultural constraints, making readers cringe and laugh in equal measure.
In Hope: A Tragedy, Auslander imagines a curious scenario in which Anne Frank survived and now resides hidden in someone's attic. His unsettling, irreverent style mirrors Lipsyte's satirical edge and dark comedy.
Nathan Hill writes ambitious, funny novels centered on identity and personal connections within complex social issues. He portrays relationships, family dysfunction, and disillusionment with warmth and biting irony.
His impressive novel The Nix explores family secrets, political upheaval, and personal disappointment through vivid characters and sharp comedic insight. Fans of Sam Lipsyte's thoughtful yet humorous portrayal of modern life will find plenty to appreciate in Hill's work.