Wednesday, May 22, 2013

BOOK: Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling, (4 hours, 37 min)

This book and Bossypants will be forever linked in my mind. Both are written by hilariously funny women (Tina Fey and Mindy Kaling) and both audio versions are (in my opinion) the way to listen to them. They are essentially stand-up routines by non stand-up comedians. It happens that I listened to both books, and hearing the funny women read them adds a lot to the experience. Both are a series of essays and thoughts by two of the funniest women in show business.

Kaling is best known for The Office (I haven't watched her new show on Fox yet) and actually wrote one of my favorite episodes, "The Injury". It seems timely that I was listening to this book as The Office wrapped up it series. (Btw, great last season of the show. I love that they finally dealt with the documentary, and had Jim and Pam have some bumps, but ultimately their love shone through. Plus Dwight and Angela belong together.) I watched the show from the very hilarious beginning.

Kaling is surprisingly normal, and disproves the adage that comedians deal with the tragedy of their youth in their comedy. Not only did she have a pretty normal life, she relishes and appreciates her family and their normalcy. A few of the essays that stood out to me were her defence of marriage as evidenced by her parents, her confusion over the attraction of one night stands, and why is it best not to peak socially in high school. She is very funny, and observant, and my only complaint is that is wasn't long enough. I could have listened for several more hours.