I actually stopped watching The Office somewhere around the fourth or fifth season (whichever one had Michael drive his car into a lake due to his GPS) - I liked the second and third seasons, but I don't think the show ever had quite the same magic for me as other viewers. I also don't buy essay collections that often because it seems like there will usually be a few essays that are absolutely amazing and hilarious mixed with a lot of filler essays that are just okay. However, the title alone was enough to get me interested (it's a valid question), and then I found myself flipping through the first few pages of her essay on weight. When someone offered to take me on a shopping spree at the bookstore, this was one of the first books I added to my stack, and I am glad I did.
First off, it didn't seem like any of the essays were really filler as so often happens. They were all entertaining anecdotes from her life, or of her thoughts, and this is one of the few collections where I can honestly say they weren't a mix of hit or miss for me. Her humor is also very self-deprecating, and there were many things she said or did that I could have seen myself saying or doing. She also had random lists throughout the books, and really, I think she would fit in well at Pajiba. Personally, I like to think she's a reader. She had a list of stereotypical women one might find in a rom-com (such as the klutz, because that's the only imperfection a woman could possibly have), and explains that she loves romantic comedies but that she "feels almost sheepish writing that, because the genre has been so degraded in the past twenty years or so that admitting you like these movies is essentially an admission of mild stupidity (99)." Doesn't that sound like a comment Dustin would agree with? She also has a short essay with a list of movies that might be coming to movie theaters soon, including Apples to Apples 4D, and other game based movies due to her having actually having sat in a meeting about the potential of Yahtzee as a movie. I feel like this also came up at Pajiba in response to the initial news of the development of Battleship.
Her discussion of one night stands is also hilarious since she is the prudish friend - when her friends start telling her about hook ups, she starts asking random questions that imply they could have been murdered. I really liked her take on commitment, relationships and marriage. She doesn't want the big romantic gestures or moments, she is more concerned with the day to day things, like sharing guilty pleasure television. She describes her parents' relationship and their shared interest in gardening and milkshakes. Of course she hasn't been married and neither have I, but I agree with her take on it. I definitely recommend picking this up - she is very self-aware, and sarcastic, and it's just a fun read. Besides, to quote Mindy: "This book will take you two days to read. Did you even see the cover? It's mostly pink. If you're reading this book every single night for months, something is not right (5)." Why not give her two days? And let's be honest, it probably won't even take that long.
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