Humor Me

A grieving 20-something woman struggles to work her way up the ranks of a late-night comedy show at the height of the #MeToo movement in Shook’s endearing sophomore effort (after If We’re Being Honest). Presley Fry, an assistant talent booker, enjoys chatting with her work crush Adam about romantic comedy tropes and the city’s stand-up scene, even though he often talks about other women. Though Presley has a toehold in her dream career, she makes minimum wage and has little prospect of a promotion or raise. She got the job through her late mother’s friend Susan Clark, whose husband, Tom, is an executive at the network. After Susan’s life is upended by allegations that Tom sexually harassed his colleagues, she reaches out to Presley with an invitation to dinner, and the two women begin an unlikely friendship. Some of the plot turns are predictable, but readers will find it easy to root for Presley as she tires of being in the friend zone with Adam and pounds the pavement in search of a comedian whose rising star she might hitch her wagon to. This charms. Agent: Andrianna deLone, CAA. (July)