You Can’t Be Serious
- Downloads：3399
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-12-25 18:21:14
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Kal Penn
- ISBN：B08WHD3L3J
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Cecelia
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Highly recommend listening to the audio version
Deborah
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As to be expected， this was really funny and down-to-earth。 Kal Penn’s storytelling ability is excellent—the writing flows so naturally and feels like your friend is recounting ridiculous， but often heartfelt， anecdotes。 He talks about his family and growing up wanting to be an actor， he talks about micro-aggressions and （most of the time） blatant racism he experienced in Hollywood。 I especially loved the parts where he talks about how he got involved in campaigning for Obama and eventually took As to be expected， this was really funny and down-to-earth。 Kal Penn’s storytelling ability is excellent—the writing flows so naturally and feels like your friend is recounting ridiculous， but often heartfelt， anecdotes。 He talks about his family and growing up wanting to be an actor， he talks about micro-aggressions and （most of the time） blatant racism he experienced in Hollywood。 I especially loved the parts where he talks about how he got involved in campaigning for Obama and eventually took a break from acting to work at the White House。 Kal Penn came out to the public recently but he actually doesn’t discuss his sexuality in great length at all in his book。 What he does do hilariously is describe his first couple dates with his now partner of 11 years Josh。 Overall， a very enjoyable read 。。。more
Chrisiant
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I particularly liked the parts on his early life and early experiences with racism in Hollywood。 The Obama campaign sections dragged for me， but overall it was a fine read。
Piepie
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From acting to politics to acting to politics to acting！ Wow， what a wild ride！ Even if you're not familiar with Kal Penn， his story is very interesting。 His experiences are wide and varied， and I enjoyed how his stories include a range of characters， from his House co-star Olivia Wilde to former President Barack Obama。 **3 1/2 stars rounded up** From acting to politics to acting to politics to acting！ Wow， what a wild ride！ Even if you're not familiar with Kal Penn， his story is very interesting。 His experiences are wide and varied， and I enjoyed how his stories include a range of characters， from his House co-star Olivia Wilde to former President Barack Obama。 **3 1/2 stars rounded up** 。。。more
Cindy
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I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this memoir。 I was familiar with the actor from his role in Designated Survivor and therefore I had no idea how funny he actually is。 This book is eye opening to the plights of anyone attempting to break into acting and specifically to those who are Indian。 Kal shares so many sad and often funny memories both with his encounters with casting directors and movie/tv directors and within his family and community。 Great book to listen to as it is read by the actor h I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this memoir。 I was familiar with the actor from his role in Designated Survivor and therefore I had no idea how funny he actually is。 This book is eye opening to the plights of anyone attempting to break into acting and specifically to those who are Indian。 Kal shares so many sad and often funny memories both with his encounters with casting directors and movie/tv directors and within his family and community。 Great book to listen to as it is read by the actor himself。 。。。more
Cara Hinton
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Kal Penn's humor definitely translates to the page and having him read the audio version is priceless。 I loved this book and I learned so much about his life， and a life in Hollywood （Bollywood too！）。 This book is also a good tutorial for those who don't know much about politics。。。。and for the record， every administration has too few people who work too many hours。 Really enjoyed the humor in this book！！！ Kal Penn's humor definitely translates to the page and having him read the audio version is priceless。 I loved this book and I learned so much about his life， and a life in Hollywood （Bollywood too！）。 This book is also a good tutorial for those who don't know much about politics。。。。and for the record， every administration has too few people who work too many hours。 Really enjoyed the humor in this book！！！ 。。。more
Kaelyn
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As far as celebrity memoirs go， very good。 I liked the anecdotes he chose to share。 I'm not quite sure why people are up in arms about what he shared about his sexuality， if he wanted to talk more about it and make it more of a focal point， he would have done so。 As far as celebrity memoirs go， very good。 I liked the anecdotes he chose to share。 I'm not quite sure why people are up in arms about what he shared about his sexuality， if he wanted to talk more about it and make it more of a focal point， he would have done so。 。。。more
Shiva
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Candid， easy to read， funny and lays bare some of the conscious and unconscious biases in the American society
Stacey Kay
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Multitalented， brilliant， and genuinely funny—Kal Penn’s memoir hit all of the notes necessary for someone who is still in the heart of their career。 Penn discusses his life growing up as a first-generation Indian-American， his decision to go into acting， his detour into politics， and his initially reluctant journey to becoming a NASCAR fan。 I’m certainly looking forward to a follow-up at whatever point he decides to write about it。Now if you’ll excuse me， I’m going watch Harold & Kumar since I Multitalented， brilliant， and genuinely funny—Kal Penn’s memoir hit all of the notes necessary for someone who is still in the heart of their career。 Penn discusses his life growing up as a first-generation Indian-American， his decision to go into acting， his detour into politics， and his initially reluctant journey to becoming a NASCAR fan。 I’m certainly looking forward to a follow-up at whatever point he decides to write about it。Now if you’ll excuse me， I’m going watch Harold & Kumar since I haven’t yet。 。。。more
Caroline Chang
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10/10I laughed and I criedMy favorite read of this year
Laura May
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Loved this warm and interesting autobiography - make sure you listen to the audiobook， where the author reads it himself。
Kate
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This was a great memoir！ I actually haven’t seen too many of Kal Penn’s film and television roles but I’ve always thought he was an interesting guy given his jump to working in the White House。 His struggles to make a name for himself in Hollywood being a person of color were frustrating to read about but his resilience impressed me。 I also enjoyed learning how he got interested in politics and eventually worked in the Obama administration。 This book had lots of funny moments in it， Kal is a gre This was a great memoir！ I actually haven’t seen too many of Kal Penn’s film and television roles but I’ve always thought he was an interesting guy given his jump to working in the White House。 His struggles to make a name for himself in Hollywood being a person of color were frustrating to read about but his resilience impressed me。 I also enjoyed learning how he got interested in politics and eventually worked in the Obama administration。 This book had lots of funny moments in it， Kal is a great writer and made me chuckle quite a few times。 I did wish he had gone more in-depth discussion his sexuality since it’s kind of glossed over （aside from describing his first few dates with his now fiancé in a funny chapter that also details how he became a NASCAR fan）， but of course it’s up to him what he shares in his memoir。 It would have added an additional interesting dimension to his story to read about the intersection of being queer and a person of color working in two uniquely public facing industries。 Overall great read and Kal is just as interesting a man as I suspected！ 。。。more
Julie
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I really enjoyed the stories of his journey in Hollywood and his time in the Obama administration。 And his voice is very comforting; I listened to this as an audiobook。
Sanjay
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I have always enjoyed watching Kal on screen and it was great to read his journey in Hollywood。 I'm glad he wrote about the racism he's experienced in Hollywood。 It's something we all know exists but it was good to read the specifics on how racism works in Hollywood， especially towards Asians。 I'm sure others have similar yet different experiences of racism in Hollywood as well， and I'm hopeful the Millenials can find ways to overcome the systemic racism and make Hollywood more representative of I have always enjoyed watching Kal on screen and it was great to read his journey in Hollywood。 I'm glad he wrote about the racism he's experienced in Hollywood。 It's something we all know exists but it was good to read the specifics on how racism works in Hollywood， especially towards Asians。 I'm sure others have similar yet different experiences of racism in Hollywood as well， and I'm hopeful the Millenials can find ways to overcome the systemic racism and make Hollywood more representative of the United States and remove the white-washing that continues there。 I think this is a good book for young Asian actors who want to get into Hollywood and will hopefully inspire them to strive to make it in Hollywood。 。。。more
Tarra
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3。5/4
Stacey R
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Listen to the audiobook！ But honestly one of the most intelligent and funny memoirs I’ve read in years。
Jennifer Philbrook
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Funny， touching， and honest stories。
Helen
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Always enjoyed Kal Penn since "Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle"。 His facial expressions and smirk just make me laugh！ I had seen some of his interview plugs for this book and was very interested in reading his book。 I didn't realize he 's a Jersey boy。 I admire his work in Washington and wanting to give back to the country that gave much opportunity to him and his family and wish him nothing but success on his future endeavors。 Always enjoyed Kal Penn since "Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle"。 His facial expressions and smirk just make me laugh！ I had seen some of his interview plugs for this book and was very interested in reading his book。 I didn't realize he 's a Jersey boy。 I admire his work in Washington and wanting to give back to the country that gave much opportunity to him and his family and wish him nothing but success on his future endeavors。 。。。more
Tracy Berman-kagan
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I really enjoyed this， and not just because I went to middle and HS with Karl。 I appreciated his observations and comments about his experiences！
Carrie
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Really enjoyed this one！
Carol Palmer
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This is a heart-warming and very funny book about a son of immigrants becoming a successful actor and working in the Obama Administration。My one question is that he spends quite a bit of time talking about his various roles， but only mentions “Designated Survivor” （a TV show he was on for 3 years） in passing。 Why skip over that role？
Mediaman
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A political propaganda piece that's pure B。S。 It's filled with mistakes and misleading information。 It's not even really Penn's "memoir" as much as his attempt to call everyone he comes in contact with racist， except for the ridiculously overpraised Barack Obama administration。 The book is truly a major disappointment， but I'm sure leftists will love it because it reinforces all of the misinformation from the Democratic party over the past twenty years。First， Penn supposedly is smart but that en A political propaganda piece that's pure B。S。 It's filled with mistakes and misleading information。 It's not even really Penn's "memoir" as much as his attempt to call everyone he comes in contact with racist， except for the ridiculously overpraised Barack Obama administration。 The book is truly a major disappointment， but I'm sure leftists will love it because it reinforces all of the misinformation from the Democratic party over the past twenty years。First， Penn supposedly is smart but that ends up being just good P。R。 In truth he's not very sharp， did poorly in many school subjects， was rejected from most major schools he applied to， and admittedly lies a lot in order to "out smart" those he considers to be racist。 After reading this book I wouldn't believe one thing he says because he， like so many in his political party， believe it's okay to lie and twist data in order to push for their agenda。 It's truly pathetic and is only valuable because it confirms all the bad things you think about politicians。 Second， what he considers racism is almost never real racism。 When he is pressured by his editor of this book to give more specific examples of racism he can't come up with them。 While he wants to portray himself as constantly being put down for his race since childhood， in truth there are almost no examples of it in this book beyond what a normal kid would go through。 Penn has no empathy for others and must think every white kid grows up to be treated well。 I actually thought his childhood was much better than mine and many white kids I knew。 His expectation of entitlement is shocking。 He not only complains that he didn't get to mooch off welfare programs when younger （namely get handouts， scholarships， and free passes from others） but he promotes these programs as being good for people。 Instead of him working hard to make something of himself， he tries to blame others for not giving him things he hasn't worked for。 Penn reflects the typical entitlement young person who doesn't want to have to work hard for anything， spouts racism when he doesn't get everything he wants right now， and yet seems to be living the good life with cell phone， drugs， and drinking。 Penn fails to see that his total self-centeredness lacks any compassion for taxpayers that are working hard to make their dreams come true so they don't have to mooch off others like he did。He is offered a couple roles where they want him to do an Indian accent， which he throws a fit about and screams racism。 These are big breaks in Hollywood， which he doesn't really deserve， and instead of being grateful for what would lead him to get better roles he complains and even threatens to quit。 He is unreasonable from his very first serious job offer and should have been fired a couple times to teach him a lesson。 At least he had a great agent who reasoned with him （Barbara Cameron， Kirk and Candace's mom， who is very white and very what he would call privileged--so again he's living off someone else's kindness）。 Namely， instead of being grateful he criticizes and condemns the very things that got him where he is today。 It's called acting Kal Penn and there are tens of thousands of people who do it with fake accents all the time without it being racist。 He simply doesn't want to do it when ordered to by white producers and directors。 So in truth he is the racist in this book because it's non-stop anti-white name calling on his part。The problem is that Penn doesn't understand that his slamming white people with his stereotypes is true racism。 His section on being in Iowa is an embarrassment because he caricatures the people there in a way that if the same were done to him he would call it racist。 He should be ashamed of himself。 And， like so many with his political beliefs， he mistreats others the way he claims he's being mistreated。 He is not only a hypocrite but guilty of doing the very things he condemns others for。Finally， if you're looking for much about his real life you won't find it here。 Nothing much about romances or personal relationships or even much about the making of any shows he was in。 That appears to be because he wants this to be a book that is pushing a political agenda and so he leaves out anything private that would make a difference。 The title of the book should have been "I Can't Be Serious" because this isn't a real memoir。 。。。more
Nanette
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I listened to the audiobook -- narrated by Kal Penn -- and loved it from start to finish。 Interesting to hear about discrimination of brown people in the acting biz， loved hearing about Penn's work with the Obama campaign and administration， and laughed from start to finish。 Highly recommend。 I listened to the audiobook -- narrated by Kal Penn -- and loved it from start to finish。 Interesting to hear about discrimination of brown people in the acting biz， loved hearing about Penn's work with the Obama campaign and administration， and laughed from start to finish。 Highly recommend。 。。。more
DMuse
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This just wasn't for me， or maybe I wasn't in the mood。 The beginning was interesting， his childhood as an Indian American。 But then I really didn't get in to the rest。 This just wasn't for me， or maybe I wasn't in the mood。 The beginning was interesting， his childhood as an Indian American。 But then I really didn't get in to the rest。 。。。more
Michael
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I listened to the audio version and I can’t recommend it enough。 Get the tissues ready because you will laugh till you cry。 A wonderful， heartfelt book that I thoroughly enjoyed from beginning to end。
Shell S。
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Such a charming， hilarious and sometimes brutally honest autobiography of growing up as the son of immigrants and coming up in the entertainment industry and the Obama campaign and White House staff。Also Kal Penn's delivery as audiobook narrator is among the most engagingly funny I've ever heard。Not only have I gained a delightful show Sunnyside to catch up on （which sadly never got the promotional support it deserved from NBC）， starring Kal Penn and other talented comedians many of whom are als Such a charming， hilarious and sometimes brutally honest autobiography of growing up as the son of immigrants and coming up in the entertainment industry and the Obama campaign and White House staff。Also Kal Penn's delivery as audiobook narrator is among the most engagingly funny I've ever heard。Not only have I gained a delightful show Sunnyside to catch up on （which sadly never got the promotional support it deserved from NBC）， starring Kal Penn and other talented comedians many of whom are also first generation Americans， but。。。I walked away with a greater and more nuanced appreciation of how much the entertainment industry still needs to mature， particularly in its treatment of talented folks and script characters bursting with potential who are non-white。 。。。more
Pavithra Muthalagan
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Excellent audiobook！
Sara Oikawa
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It was really interesting to learn about Penn's upbringing and his struggles to un-stereotype himself in Hollywood。 I was not disappointed at my main draw for reading this book， how he ended up working for the Obama administration。 He is an impressive individual。 It was really interesting to learn about Penn's upbringing and his struggles to un-stereotype himself in Hollywood。 I was not disappointed at my main draw for reading this book， how he ended up working for the Obama administration。 He is an impressive individual。 。。。more
Ann Otto
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I agree that this memoir is candid， but I don't know if I agree with the publisher and reviewers on the back of the book that it is joyful and delightful。 It was discouraging and sad to read of all the discrimination that Penn has experienced during his life and career。 He makes a point that he has been able to make lemonade from lemons， and remains hopeful， but it was still not an easy or enjoyable read for me。 I agree that this memoir is candid， but I don't know if I agree with the publisher and reviewers on the back of the book that it is joyful and delightful。 It was discouraging and sad to read of all the discrimination that Penn has experienced during his life and career。 He makes a point that he has been able to make lemonade from lemons， and remains hopeful， but it was still not an easy or enjoyable read for me。 。。。more
Jessica White
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