Review: Why Not Me?

Why Not Me? by Mindy Kaling
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

"If my childhood, teens, and twenties were about wanting people to like me, now I want people to know me. So, this is a start."

Mindy! Oh sweet, hilarious Mindy.

I thoroughly enjoyed her second book. It takes off strong from the first page and definitely kept me laughing and highlighting passages of golden nuggets of wisdom for its entirety. She has this incredible gift for storytelling, which I know I've said before, but it's so true! Not only is she great at captivating her audience with her insane humour, but she continues to hold our attention because what she has to say about life is just so spot on.

"...I knew the truth, which is if someone really wants to see you, they always find a way. Always. That hurt my heart, but I realized, unlike in past relationships when I was younger, it didn't need to be dramatic."

Mindy published her first book 3 years ago, so she's had a few more years to reflect on her busy life in Hollywood and to feel more comfortable as an adult in the working world. In her last book, it's quite apparent that she was still going through some growth not only in her career but with herself as well. I read in a couple other reviews that between her two books, she seems much more at ease with herself in this one, more unapologetically "Mindy" than before. I have to agree. She is obviously at a good place in her life right now, comfortable in her career and finally ready to ask "why not me?" instead of worrying about what everyone else thinks of her and whether or not she's a capable comedic writer, which she clearly is. Her maturity and self confidence not only reflects in how she speaks about herself but in how she speaks about her relationships with people in her life. I feel like I related to her quite a bit in her first book, but I relate to her even more in this one. She's still Mindy, but better.
Mindy '2 point 0' (The Office, anyone?)

A few of my favourite chapters are:
"Things to Bring to My Dinner Party"
"Player"
"I Love Sex Scenes!"
"A Day in the Life of Mindy Kaling"
"One of the President's Men"
"Soup Snakes"
"A Perfect Courtship in My Alternate Life" [Can this be a real story please?!]
"Why Not Me?"

So, if those hilarious and mysterious chapter titles intrigue you at all, and you have a sense of humour, and you like Mindy Kaling (hey, even if you don't!)...read this book!

"'Soul mates' is what you aim for, but soup snakes is what you get sometimes."

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