I had pretty high hopes when I picked up “How I Became a Famous Novelist.” First of all, the fake best-seller list on the back cover showed that the author had a keen eye for the absurdity of mass market publishing.

Secondly, Steve Hely, the author, has a strong Hollywood resume, writing previously for David Letterman and “30 Rock” and currently for “The Office.”

OK, maybe that last one is a bad example given the way last season turned out, but he knows funny and managed to translate that to this satirical novel which pokes fun at pretty much everyone involved in putting the most popular books on the shelf. The end result met my expectations.

The book follows the path of Pete Tarslaw who achieves the titular achievement completely out of spite. He can’t stand the phoniness of a famous author and wants to rub is success in the face of his ex-girlfriend. Ergo, the most formulaic, hackish novel one could ever imagine.

Not only does Pete put together a master plan to piece together a novel with all the awful pieces that make up the imaginary best-seller list – which is spot on, by the way – but he reaches insane heights of success and milks them for all they are worth so he can be rich and live a life of luxury by thumbing is nose at the literary world.

Of course, the real world gets in the way and some shady associations from his past intervene, making for a less than satisfying ending. The ride which brings you to that point, however, more than makes up for it.