Satirical Novels That Understand How Power Works

Power rarely introduces itself as self-interest. It arrives as procedure, expertise, efficiency, tradition or a remarkably persuasive statement of the public good. These 25 novels make those disguises funny enough to inspect closely. The selection moves between states, universities, companies and smaller organisations, looking for the incentives and dependencies behind the ridiculous behaviour. Some are farces; others let laughter become dread. Older satire also needs a sceptical reader: exposing one hierarchy does not guarantee that a book has questioned all the others.