Review: Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling

To be honest, I don't watch The Office hardly ever, and as excited as I was about The Mindy Project, I never found the time to start watching it. Despite never watching the two shows that Mindy Kaling has become known for, I still find myself saying, "Mindy? I love her!" Why? It could be because we cope the same:

Or, it could be just because she's funny. When I hosted Micaela for my last Featured Reader segment, she was reading her book Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? and I finally got a copy of it the other day. 

This book was a very fast read. Part of this was because of the amount of lists that Mindy included in the book. In her introductory chapters, her first list is titled 'Alternate Titles for This Book,' and one of those alternate titles was 'The Book That Was Never a Blog.' Because of the lists and accompanying personal opinions, the book did kind of read like a compilation of blog posts. Lucky for me, I love to read blogs! Here is a list of some of my favorite lists:

-Her break down of the amount of ways people can be called overweight/fat/chubby/obese.

-Mindy's favorite eleven moments in comedy.

-The exact level of fame she wants.

-The 'Types of Women in Romantic Comedies Who Are Not Real.'

I loved reading the lists, and her opinions on a lot of these were relatable and hilarious, but it did give the book a slightly disjointed feeling. Between the lists was the tale of her rise to The Office fame (The Mindy Project didn't exist yet!). She describes in detail all of the odd jobs she worked, the success of a play she co-wrote about the bromance between Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, her failed attempt to be an NBC Page, and the meeting that sealed her fate as a writer for The Office, along with funny anecdotes about growing up, and her love life. There is nothing that she shies away from in this book, and if you're curious about anything in the world of Mindy Kaling, this book should touch upon any of those curiosities. 

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? tended to dart from place to place pretty quickly with page breaks and mid-chapter headers, but it didn't stop me from laughing out loud while reading and sealing in my love for her even more. If you enjoyed reading Bossypants by Tina Fey, you'll love this just the same. 

Rating:

Have you read this? What are some of your favorite comedic memoirs?