I loved this book, I thought that it was incredibly real and heartfelt. The format that it is a letter to the author's children is adorable, and I enjoyed that she did not hold back anything. It felt authentic, and brought up a lot of topics that women in society do struggle with. I thought that including her husbands essay in the the back was a nice reflection on the other side of her life, and was refreshing to hear his struggles as not being the breadwinner but also what joys he has been able to inspire from not having that pressure. Ali Wong does an incredible job (as her husband states) at breaking up shame and stigma and I hope she continues along that path.

I had always been a huge fan of Ali Wong, enjoying her Netflix Stand up specials, Baby Cobra while she was 8 months pregnant, and her recent Always Be My Maybe. In this book, each chapter is a letter dedicated to her girls Mari and Nikki, detailing her most intimate feelings and advice to her daughters regarding dating and sex life, going through the stand-up circuit through the comedy clubs and late night shows, as an Asian American woman in a male dominated industry. She talks about how she met her husband, how to order food in restaurants, and other advice to her daughters on how to live their best lives like traveling abroad and learning another language.

This book was so funny to me and reads like a stand up show. her writing is real, raw, raunchy, and rambunctious Ali Wong Style. I loved that she says things I can only dare think about and completely relatable. I get her and I love that she is so real and the gritty honesty can make you squirm and uncomfortable and I love her for it.

The afterword by her husband as the last chapter was so poignantly written and shows just how beautiful their love and utmost respect for each other in the pages he writes. It is a sweet review of what Ali Wong narrates in a more sterilized fashion and truly heartfelt to read for his children as a father and a husband.

I thoroughly enjoyed this amazing book and highly recommend it for those not easily offended or too sensitive and know how to laugh about this adventure we call life.

Thank you to Netgalley, Random House and the author for the ebook copy. All opinions are my own.

This book wasn’t my kind of humor but from what I read she’s a great story teller. Readers should be aware of the explicit content in this book. Fans of her will enjoy this book. Did not finish but thank you for the ARC.

Who doesn't love Ali Wong and her hilarious views on life? If you didn't before you will after reading her new book, "Dear Girls." Wongs words are what I would like to tell my future daughters and what I wish someone had told me. She is insightful, hilarious, and full of words of wisdom that will resonate with any woman.

Surprisingly vulnerable but, to me, not as laugh out loud as I hoped it would be - I was hoping for a memoir with belly laughs (like Samantha Bee's I Know I Am. But What Are You? or Dave Holmes' Party of One ) and this is a bit more straight-ahead. There are some genuine laughs strewn around as Ms. Wong is funny in her bones but I think I wanted something more light than what she delivers. As such, I would recommend this more to fans of the memoir-genre as Ms. Wong really lays herself bare and tells a well-constructed anecdote. A recommend but with light strings attached.

I can't remember the first time I saw Ali Wong but I do remember laughing hysterically and wanting to keep watching. I was excited to be granted Dear Girls to review and it didn't disappoint. Definitely unapologetic, funny, (gross), and honest -- to the point where I'd be horrified if I was reading letters like that from MY mom -- the book gives a clear picture of what motherhood is like, especially for a comedian yet encompassing working moms in general. Reading how she met her husband and why she appreciates/loves him is an amazing model for finding the right partner; tips on judging a good Asian restaurant, living abroad, her experiences, and learning more about Asian American culture is eye opening however I don't think I could recommend this book to just anyone, -- it definitely takes guts to read this book.

I didn't really know Ali Wong's work before reading this, but figured I like funny books by comedic writers, and I also love supporting Asian Americans and Multicultural is one of my favorite genres; however I think I was looking for something like Mindy Kaling's Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me, and Ali Wong is much more vulgar, not that there's anything wrong with that. The gimmick of writing a raunchy book in the form of letters to ones babies didn't really work for me personally, but I did really like all the bits where Wong discovered her culture for herself, and I'm glad this wasn't another "wah, I don't fit in anywhere" book but more of a celebration like yay, I can fit in where ever. It was smart to have her husband include a chapter at the end (how are his brothers Kenzo and Akira and he's Justin?); I felt it gave the book balance.

I learned a lot about Filipino culture and food, interesting terms like Jungle Asian, and that Beyonce's husband is HOV. The thing about reading stand-up comedians is a lot of the things that make me laugh aren't meticulously researched or properly cited so like 98% of exchange students are not female, and yes Tyson Beckford is part Chinese but not half but okay. One of my babies was diagnosed with IUGR too, and that's something that doesn't get mentioned much and I'm also a Jeff Ross fan so I like that Ali Wong listed him twice in her list of 38 funny white guys.

I really enjoyed Ali Wong's "Dear Girls." Ali's voice comes through very clearly in her writing; I can picture her on stage saying some of these things in her act. Fair warning, however, that this book is not for the faint of heart or anyone who is easily offended by foul language or "dirty"/"taboo" subjects. Ali talks a lot about sex, bodily functions/fluids, and other things that some readers might find objectionable. That said, there were some very funny, and at times outrageous, stories included here, but also some pretty good advice along with a loving message for her daughters.

My favorite chapter was the one on Ali's study abroad experiences. While my own year abroad in college wasn't quite as colorful or adventurous as Ali's, I totally agree with her that study abroad is something that all young adults should experience if they have the opportunity. I also enjoyed the afterword by Ali's husband, which was very sweet and a nice way to wrap up the book.

Overall,"Dear Girls" was an enjoyable and well-written debut that made me laugh out loud quite a few times. I would definitely read more books by Ali Wong in the future.

*ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are my own.

I'm not a particular fan of Ali Wong's stand up, so I found this book to be just okay. Fans of Wong, however, are likely to adore it. I also think it would make a cracker jack audio book if it were read by the author. Without her distinctive voice, it somehow loses something.

I love Ali Wong I love this book it was so emotional but in a good way I cried happy tears and I am so way ecstatic That I got a Arc of this book!!!! Thanks thanks so much to Netgalley and the publishers

Ali Wong. She is both so wrong and so right. Her choice of topics and language are a bit over the top at times but underneath is a woman who knows who she is what she wants. Her daughters are going to have a crazy ride with her as a mother but they will always know they are loved. Every young woman should read these letters to her daughters and know that this is what their quiet, middle aged Caucasian mom wants for her daughters also.

Ali Wong is hilarious and real AF and I will read anything she writes, down to her grocery lists. Much like her standup on Netflix, her book addresses real life situations with a humor that is unique to Ali. A must-read for anyone who loves her!

Dear Girls by Ali Wong is hands down one of the funniest books I’ve read this year! You have to read this book. I was laughing so hard that I was crying at times. Ali Wong is a great comedian and a great writer. I really enjoyed this book and it had me reading the whole book in one sitting.

I have read dozens of comedian memoirs and often they fall flat. The humor from stand-up doesn't always translate to book form. But Ali Wong is brilliant and I laughed out loud with every page. As a mixed Asian American from the San Francisco Bay Area, I really felt like I could connect with the author through this book. It left me wanting more. I hope she has more books in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for providing this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I enjoyed Dear Girls- I haven't laughed to tears since I read Bossypants years ago, and Ali's work is definitely reminiscent of it. I appreciate that she (or the publisher) didn't censor the book, because's Ali's profanity laced-comedy is a big part of her success. She doesn't hold back on anyone, but that goes both ways- you learn about the people who spectacularly grossed her out, and the people that she loves unconditionally. A long overdue comedic success with heart!

So few books written by celebrities capture their personality, but this one captures Ali perfectly! I could picture her saying everything in this book and found myself laughing out loud several times while reading it! I love her honesty and am a huge fan of hers! I hope that there is a follow up book coming soon!

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed Ali Wong a lot in the romcom she made for Netflix, "Always Be My Maybe" although I haven't seen much of her standup. The whole super raunchy thing isn't entirely for me, but I didn't mind it so much in book form, as it clearly is a fairly straightforward continuation of the persona Wong presents in her standup. It's overall a much better written selection of essays than I've come to expect from this strange sub-genre of comedian memoirs/essay collections in the last few years, and there were definitely moments that made me laugh out loud. I also really enjoyed all the somewhat more serious elements, like Wong's musings on her cultural background and heritage; I learned a lot from her take on what it is to be Asian American.

"If a hospital has great food it's probably a terrible hospital. Good food takes a lot of focus, and I would rather that focus was on me and my erupting body, and not on whether fava beans make a good side dish for dry-rubbed cumin lamb."

In Dear Girls, Ali writes a series of letters to her daughters Mari and Nikki. These letters hilariously describe pregnancy, dating, studying abroad in Vietnam, miscarriage, pubic hair, living in NYC, her relationship with her mother/sisters/brother, being Asian in America, and a smattering of other topics that she wants to give her daughters advice about. I've watched her Netflix comedy specials Baby Cobra and Hard Knock Wife, and it was refreshing to read that the comedy in this book was mostly new material. A number of the jokes are tangentially related to the material she's performed in her stand up routines, but they are new bits told in a different way. Additionally, it was refreshing to read that DAMN, not only can Ali perform on stage, but the lady can WRITE. Let's be honest: it's hard to find people who are triple threats. I already knew that Ali was a funny comedian and actor, so I went into this book skeptical that she could write well too. Yeah, yeah, yeah, the stakes were low because I got this ARC book for free (thanks, NetGalley!) but I still didn't want to invest time in a book that was a poorly written money grab penned by a famous person. So I was very excited to discover that this was absolutely not the case. Ali, you are indeed that unicorn triple threat comedian/actor/writer. Well done.

The feminist angle of Ali's writing is spot on. A lot of the material in this book dances around sexism and racism, as does her stand up comedy. But she writes it in a way that's non-ranty and just straight up tells it like it is. I will absolutely recommend this book to ladies and gents, to white people and not-white people, because Ali writes in a way that miiiight make you slightly uncomfortable. But it's the type of uncomfortable that you should feel, because it makes you THINK.

The worst part of this book is the Afterward, which was written by her husband Justin Hakuta. The dude may be a lot of things - smart (a Fulbright scholar and Harvard Business grad), a world traveler, a great husband and father - but he is no comedy writer. I mean, it was written well, I'll give him that. But it was boring AF. Good thing I read that right before I went to bed, because it helped put me to sleep.

Justin may be a boring writer, but he is still a kick-a$$ feminist guy who gave up his career so that Ali could have hers. Props to him. With that, I shall close with my fave quote from the book:

"When cars pick us up to go to the airport, drivers who don't know who I am will often call Daddy "Mr. Wong." They engage with him mostly, ask him the best way to get to the airport, and look to him for instructions on what to do with the luggage. The same happens at hotels and restaurants. People who don't know who I am always assume I took his last name. And it never bothers your father - he always says afterward that he's proud to be Mr. Wong. And whenever he does, I fell so lucky that I trapped him."

I watched Baby Cobra when I was pregnant and laughed so hard I was sobbing (hormones are a hell of a drug). So I am a big Ali Wong fan. Still, I hesitated to read this book when I saw the title because I was afraid letters to her daughters would be too sentimental and not funny. My worries were unfounded,,, the first letter is about boners. These letters aren't sappy, but they are love letters. To her family, her friends, her career, and her culture.
I usually find memoirs by comedians to be okay but disappointing, but not this one. Ali Wong is so funny, smart and unapologetically herself.

Thank you Random House and Netgalley for sending me an e-copy of Dear Girls by Ali Wong for an honest review.

Dear Girls is an autobiography told in a series of letters to her daughters. Each letter was about a different time in her life and the experiences she had in comedy as well as some of her student exchange trips and her childhood. The ones that resonated with me the most however, were the ones discussing pregnancy and motherhood. I like how honest she is about it and doesn’t sugar coat her birth experiences or how hard it is, even as she is writing the book to the people she raised.
A quick fun read, especially if you enjoy her comedy.