A
few weeks ago…actually, it’s been more than that. A month, maybe? Yiiiikes.
Anyway, [insert some amount of time that isn’t as long as it’s actually been] I
participated in Blonde Undercover Blonde’s and The Nerdy Katie’s Book Swap. And,
awesomely, I was paired up with Myra, who didn’t flake out on me (like my very first swap partner, not that I’m bitter—okay, I’m actually still a little
bitter, like bitter-lite).
There
was a small snag when she sent me a book that I’d already read: Bossypants by Tina Fey, but Amazon is
cool with exchanging things as long as you don’t download them, so I was able
to pick another book instead. Keeping with Myra’s theme, I chose Mindy Kaling’s
Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And
Other Concerns).
Now,
to be fair, I think that watching The
Mindy Project added to my enjoyment of this book. Mostly because I was able
to hear it in her voice. I’m also a fan of The
Office, so there’s that, too. And really, this is somewhat redundant
because if you’re interested in reading this book, it’s probably because you
also watch The Mindy Project and/or The Office. But if not, I’d suggest
watching either because being able to hear Mindy’s mile-a-minute, somewhat
nasal voice makes her punchlines…well…punchier.
Okay,
on with the review.
This
book was funny. Not Bossypants funny,
but funny nonetheless. However, it wasn’t Mindy’s accounts of her work that I
found the most amusing. It wasn’t that I didn’t enjoy those sections but the
parts I liked the best were her unique take on the world. As in, how she lives
her life. Consequently, I now totally want to be her friend.
One
of my favourite chapters was titled: I
Love Irish Exits and it’s pretty much when I fell in hetero-love with her.
Instead
of paraphrasing, I’ll quote her definition because that’s the only way to do it
justice (my contributions are in purple):
Irish exists are supposed to be subtle, a
way to leave without creating a disruption, and yes, on occasion, a way to
perhaps escape notice for epic drunkenness (Ohemgee, I love her). The
only snag is that you have to be comfortable lying directly to the faces of
people you like (Seriously, Mindy. I want to be one of the people you have to lie directly
to).
She
then describes a situation where she needs to pull an Irish Exit because her ex shows up to a party with his new girlfriend (something that we can all sympathize with, right
ladies?).
This
is how she handles it (my contributions are, again, in purple):
A word about Chloe (the new GF, who coincidentally has
the same name as my grade-school nemesis. Don’t worry Mindy, I hate her
already). Chloe was so young (or young looking) she’d actually played
the daughter of an actress four years older than me on a TV show. But the worst
thing about Chloe is that she was sweet.
Chloe approached me.
CHLOE (shyly): Can I just say you’re my
hero? I took the Long Island Rail Road out to see Matt & Ben when I was in
middle school.
Don’t you dare, Chloe. Don’t you dare make
it impossible to hate you. Quit looking at me, all earnest, with those Bambi
eyes. Also, I’m your “hero”? What am I, ten thousand years old? I quickly said
something weird like, Bless you, child,” excused myself, and walked briskly
away. I went over to Louisa, who was standing with my friend Pete when I began
to initiate an Irish Exit.
Another
favourite chapter was: Non-Traumatic
Things That Have Made Me Cry, which included: Valet guys who are her Dad’s
age, Mark Darcy, and Joni Mitchell’s Blue.
Mindy is also very much pro-male-chest-hair and dedicated a shorter, yet complete
chapter to the cause. Awesome.
Yes,
there are times where Mindy is borderline racist but she manages to finagle her
way out of those uncomfortable moments by (a) acknowledging that she's teetering over the line and (b) being funny.
And, despite it not being a solid 10 on the hilarity scale, it’s still an 8. That is, of course, unless Mindy wants to hang out with
me, which will bump that number right up.
Call me, girl!
