Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns)

Mindy Kaling
2011

As a complete disclaimer, I feel like I have to admit that this book took me almost two weeks to read, which is completely ridiculous seeing as even Mindy Kaling says that it’s going to be an easy read. The truth of it is that I started reading the book, realized that I was going to love it, then stopped reading it. Instead of sitting down and reading it, I ended up carrying it around with me for almost two weeks, reading snippets at a time. I read it when I was feeling down, or when I was just too tired to read “Game of Thrones” (Game of Thrones review is pending).

Going into this book I already knew that I liked Mindy Kaling. But once I got started in this book I realized that I love Mindy Kaling, I have a total lady crush on her, and I think we could be really good friends. Not best friends, she already has enough of those, but maybe just close friends, the kind of close friends where one completely idolizes the other.

“Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) is the story of Mindy Kaling’s life up to now, with anecdotes and advice just tossed in there. There’s a good ratio of Mindy’s life to funny anecdotes so it doesn’t completely feel like a memoire or a joke book.

The main thing I learned from her book is how smart she is. She tends to play fun bubbly characters, and even on her own show where she’s a doctor she still seems fairly ditzy. But in real life she went to Dartmouth, and her writing is clever and smart. Fuel for a lady crush. I have a soft spot in my heart for people who don’t have famous parents and who have just worked really hard to get where they are and are still in touch with themselves.

However my favourite tid-bit the book offered was her stance on comedy and women. She explains joining a discussion on this topic is like asking "Should dogs and cats be able to care for out children? They're in the house anyway." She is wonderful

Writing books seems to be the new Pixar voice acting for a lot of celebrities. It’s something else to keep a career a float, or it’s an obvious cash grab. And I am not talking about Tina Fey’s book here, I’ll get to her’s later. But Mindy’s book seems somehow necessary. She is such an awesome writer but she doesn’t seem to get the credit she deserves for it. No one thinks of the Office and goes directly to Mindy Kaling, they usually go to Steve Carell or B.J. Novak. And the characters she plays do not do her brain power justice. Her book gives people a deeper sense of who she is, and how hard she’s worked, and how amazingly endearing she is. 

I’ll give her four out of five lightning bolts!  

Reviewed by Meg!