Hits and Misses by Simon Rich

Simon Rich is well known for his bitingly hilarious work as a screenwriter, novelist and short story author, known for being one of the youngest screenwriters ever hired on Saturday Night Live. His new short story collection, Hits & Misses, is the latest evidence to support Matt Haig’s testimonial that "Simon Rich is the funniest writer alive".

Hits & Misses is an eighteen-piece short story collection inspired by Rich’s experiences in Hollywood. These aren’t personal recollections of funny anecdotes, but high concept works that question and dismantle the twenty-first century obsession with fame. This fascination is perhaps most obviously parodied in Adolf Hitler: The GQ Profile. Here, Rich ably subverts and interrogates the status of celebrity in a world where Hitler survives WWII to become a Hollywood star, wildly famous for his status of homicidal dictator.

Anxiety of faith (or a lack of faith) is a key theme throughout. The Book of Simon in particular toys with God’s relationship with atheism while remaining firmly tongue in cheek. Meanwhile, Death signs up to a one-man casting agency, a Babylonian monk learns how to use his hands, and an unborn baby pens the next great American novel.

The collection is a thought-provoking and organically laugh-out-loud work, with the true gems shining through as the stories, arguably, most personal to Rich.