This is a funny, light, self-deprecating peek into Kaling's single motherhood, dabbling in Hinduism, love of brunch, life as a producer, and love for her friend B.J. Novak.
"She's worked hard her whole life. It's good she has such nice things." It was the most Indian thing I'd ever heard.
Fun fact: I first saw Mindy Kaling in an off-Broadway play she'd written with and was starring in with Brenda Withers called "Matt & Ben" in the early 2000s. Mindy played the role of Ben Affleck and Brenda played Matt Damon, and in the play the script for Good Will Hunting literally falls from the sky into the boys' dumpy apartment, at which point the two realize they're being tested by a higher power and debate whether to pretend it's their own creation. It was clever and hilarious, and I loved it.
I promise I'm going to talk about this book, but first let's talk audiobooks for a second.
I'm usually an all-Libby (library app; free) audiobook listener, but I wanted to read Michelle Obama's newest book The Light We Carry without waiting to move up the sizable library wait list, so I listened to my audiobooks via an Audible trial for a month. (Note that Nothing Like I Imagined seems to be only available through that app as an Amazon-only offering.)
But, dear reader, I've now incorporated Libro.fm into my book-devouring system--and Libro supports independent bookstores, ding ding ding!
Anyway, let's talk about this book!
Nothing Like I Imagined is a short (118 pages, if you're reading; 1 hour 22 minutes if you're listening) series of essays with Kaling at her witty, self-deprecating, funny best.
Her "kind of Hindu" exploration is as emotionally deep as things get here, but I'd be happy to sit around for much longer than an hour listening to Mindy Kaling talk about brunch, a strange evening and an accosted thief, the perks and frustrations of her single parenthood, her obsession with Coach Taylor, persistent social awkwardness, Conan O'Brien's Christmas party and facing an unnamed action-movie hero she had talked (deserved; minor) trash about, her search for (just a few) effortless friendships, her love for her best friend B.J. Novak, and more.
Mindy Kaling is so irresistibly appealing to me, I am in for this and anything else she wants to put out into the world.
Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book?
Mindy Kaling is also the author of Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me (And Other Concerns) and Why Not Me?