Dear Girls: Intimate Tales, Untold Secrets & Advice for Living Your Best Life

I have a tip for straight women who are married and want to stay that way: don't write a memoir. At least this time when I started the memoir by the straight woman lovingly detailing how awesome her husband is I immediately went to google to find out if they're still married. Answer: yes, but not for much longer, since they've filed for divorce.

And, honestly, knowing that made reading this book more of a downer, particularly the last chapter, which is by the husband, addressed to their daughters, and all about how perfect a match he is for Wong. Like. Sorry, Ali and Justin's kids, but this whole set of letters is going to sound a lot weirder to you than it was meant to.

But I really did enjoy reading this book, and Wong did get me to show more laugh a few times. She does a great job of telling specific stories about her life, and it's really evident that she's far more practiced and experienced than a lot of the professionally-funny-on-the-internet people whose memoirs I've read; she knows how to structure a story and she knows how to nail home a joke in writing as well as on stage. (She's also good at hitting beats in writing, which is not at all the same skill as hitting them out loud.) And she's had an interesting life, which always helps.

This is one of the better who-is-this-celebrity? memoirs I've read lately, and I hope Wong writes a book about the divorce, too. (Although he made her sign a prenup; I can't imagine he didn't include "no more talking about me in your work" in the divorce papers.) Basically, I'll read the next non-fiction thing she writes, no matter what it's about; I just will try to read it sooner, before it gets overtaken by events. show less

Not too much to say except I really loved this collection of essays by Ali Wong. I got to know a little bit more about her, her family, her husband, and how she started off in comedy. She manages to infuse her essays to her daughters with love, laughter, and sometimes tears. I did love how this collection ended with a letter from her husband to their daughters too. The family seems very tight-knit, slightly manic at times, but ready to pull a knife on you if you screw with one of their own.

I have to say that I found myself nodding along with Wong during parts of this essay to her daughters. I love what she had to say about marrying someone within their own culture and how it just makes things easier because you get things that someone show more else would not. I also loved her thoughts on traveling abroad to experience different people, countries, and food. All of the food mentioned in this book made me ridiculously hungry too by the way. When I traveled through Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Hong Kong years ago it felt like I finally came home. I ate everything I could and just went for whatever was put in front of me. I finally found countries that actually cooked food so hot it made the heat travel up through my ears. I was in heaven.

Wong of course goes into how she met her now husband, how things were not perfect, still are not perfect, but they loved each other. It's also wonderful to see how she handles being the "breadmaker" in the family while he does things that are typically assigned to women. I think in America we still have that problem with men that stay at home are looked down upon by not only other people, but within their own families. Somehow stay at home husbands are not manly enough or something. But we don't say a word about how women are not womenly enough if they stay at home.

Wong's family sounds completely chaotic and I loved the stories about her parents, her sisters, and her brother.

We also get such great insights into the comedy circuit and how she forced herself out there to play in front of audiences that were diverse in order to get better. If you just play in front of the same crowd of white men and women, how are you stretching yourself and growing?

Definitely would love to read another book from her in the future. show less

Dear Girls will be hugely popular with fans of Ali Wong's particular style of humor. Wry, self-aware, and built on a foundation of oversharing-is-caring, Ali invites all of us along for the ride as she writes about preparing her daughters for whatever life throws at them. This book is an encapsulation of humanity, our joys, our sorrows, our strength, our adaptability, and our many, many bodily fluids. Seriously, be cautious with this one if you're squeamish, because Ali is holding nothing back.

Loved this. I'm finding hard to say anything about it other than how great every single page is; packed full of some of the most vulgar humour possible, while managing at the same time to be deeply confessional and open about the realities of living and working as a woman and a mother.
I hope she writes more books: any topic, really. I'd probably listen to her read the phone book if she was allowed to annotate each entry with a joke.

Ali Wong was at her brash, bawdy, and unapologetic finest in this book. I love her comedy and was excited to learn more about the woman off the stage - I was not disappointed! I loved the openness she offered about her experiences, the hilarity of her anecdotes and just the all around honesty.

I'm not big into memoirs and the like, but this one was excellent.

One last thing, I've read a few reviews that didn't like the final chapter where her husband Justin offers his perspective, but I found it refreshing and interesting to see the story from the other side. To me it was less of a justification as to why he chose to support her career over his own, and more about trying to address the stigma that exists around men supporting powerful show more women... and that is something that definitely needs addressing more. show less

Ali Wong was at her brash, bawdy, and unapologetic finest in this book. I love her comedy and was excited to learn more about the woman off the stage - I was not disappointed! I loved the openness she offered about her experiences, the hilarity of her anecdotes and just the all around honesty.

I'm not big into memoirs and the like, but this one was excellent.

One last thing, I've read a few reviews that didn't like the final chapter where her husband Justin offers his perspective, but I found it refreshing and interesting to see the story from the other side. To me it was less of a justification as to why he chose to support her career over his own, and more about trying to address the stigma that exists around men supporting powerful show more women... and that is something that definitely needs addressing more. show less

"Nobody wants their identity and defining characteristics reduced to just race and gender" - Ali Wong

In her memoir, written as a letter to her daughters, Ali Wong takes us on a personal journey of self discovery and womanhood. She shares stories of her family's history and introduces us to Vietnamese and Chinese culture. She shows us what it feels like to navigate between three cultures. She takes us back to her roots and helps us understand how her traditions and culture have shaped who she is today. Ali comes from humble beginnings and she discusses how staying connected to your past helps to mold your future and identity.

I really loved how she was bold in challenging outdated expectations about women and motherhood. She is raw and show more honest about her challenges to become a mother. She shares her pain about miscarriage and people essentially blaming her for pregnancy failure. She challenged ideas about marraige, motherhood, fame, sexism, racism and feminism and leaves an empowering message, not just to her girls but to women all over the world. She reminds you throughout to keep pushing forward no matter and not to let anyone else define you. She sends a strong message about perseverance and resilience.

Her writing was honest and raw at times and laugh out loud funny the next. She was bold and insightful while maintaining her own unique style and delivery. I loved that throughout the stories, she reflects back to her mother's experiences and reconciles their relationship by seeing the world through her mother's shoes. She not only accepts faults but celebrates growth from them. I found myself digging past the punchlines and digging deeper for the hidden jewels she was dropping. I love that she included her husband in writing a letter to her girls as well. If you are looking for a funny read with purpose and celebration of women, then this is one you should pick up. This book dragon rates it 🔥🔥🔥🔥because there were moments that were TMI and did not add to the story but instead felt like filler. show less