Rumors about Aziz Ansari writing a book have been floating around for a while, but apparently it’s a done deal now. Publishers Weekly says Ansari has signed a $3.5 million deal with Penguin Press for his book, putting his rumored advance just $200,000 below what Lena Dunham got from Random House. (Now he can treat himself to some rad frittatas or something.)
Ansari’s book is reportedly a semi-academic look at modern single life, with the Parks And Recreation star asserting that “the basic issues facing a single person—whom we meet, how we meet them, and what happens next—have been radically altered by new technologies.” Ansari has been chatting with academics and conducting “original research” for the book, presumably with people other than himself, for quite a while now, an interest he first conveyed to us back in a candid Valentine's Day interview about the elusiveness of modern love. In fact, the below quote from Penguin's press release is almost word for word what he told us then:
"You know when you text someone you're romantically interested in and you don't hear anything back and then you see them post a photo of a pizza on Instagram? That's exactly what I want this book to deal with. These are strange conundrums that no generation has ever faced before and it's a fascinating jumping off point for what I hope will be a very interesting book about modern courtship."
So, kind of like Steve Harvey’s Act Like A Man, Think Like A Woman, but by a guy wearing much smaller suits.