The Sellout is a hilarious, pop-culture-packed satire about race in America. Beatty writes energetically, providing insight as often as he elicits laughs. [...] Beatty is at his best when parodying attempts to correct racial prejudices from within the ivory tower.
In the lyrical prologue, Beatty’s protagonist turns a snarky, discerning eye toward Washington, D.C., observing that the city is supposed to look like ancient Rome, 'that is, if the streets of ancient Rome were lined with homeless black people, bomb-sniffing dogs, tour buses and cherry blossoms.' He’s waiting for his case -- 'Me v. the United States of America' -- to be heard by the Supreme Court. When standing before the jury, ready to outline the complex injustices committed against him over the course of his lifetime, he wonders why there’s no legal gray area between 'innocent' and 'guilty.' He thinks, 'Why couldn’t I be ‘neither’ or ‘both’?
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