Audiobook Review: Yes Please by Amy Poehler

Title: Yes Please Written by: Amy Poehler Published: October 28, 2014 by Dey Street (HarperCollins) (Amazon / Goodreads / Audible) Synopsis: Do you want to get to know the woman we first came to love on Comedy Central's Upright Citizens Brigade? Do you want to spend some time with the lady who made you howl with laughter on Saturday Night Live, and in movies like Baby Mama, Blades of Glory, and They Came Together? Do you find yourself daydreaming about hanging out with the actor behind the brilliant Leslie Knope on Parks and Recreation? Did you wish you were in the audience at the last two Golden Globes ceremonies, so you could bask in the hilarity of Amy's one-liners?  If your answer to these questions is "Yes Please!" then you are in luck. In her first book, one of our most beloved funny folk delivers a smart, pointed, and ultimately inspirational read. Full of the comedic skill that makes us all love Amy, Yes Please is a rich and varied collection of stories, lists, poetry (Plastic Surgery Haiku, to be specific), photographs, mantras and advice. With chapters like "Treat Your Career Like a Bad Boyfriend," "Plain Girl Versus the Demon" and "The Robots Will Kill Us All" Yes Please will make you think as much as it will make you laugh. Honest, personal, real, and righteous, Yes Please is full of words to live by.

I have been a fan of Amy Poehler since her SNL days. I feel like her humor just hits me in all the right places. Plus Parks and Rec is one of my all-time favorite shows. I kind of feel like I live that show in my current job as a community organizer for an environmental non-profit. It's been super surreal sometimes. Anyway, when I had heard she had written a memoir I knew I wanted to read it. And despite picking up the audiobook awhile ago, I never got around to reading it or listening to it. But as I was thinking about needing a book for the Rock My TBR challenge and wanting an audiobook I came across this one and I'm so glad I did.

For one thing this book reminded me just how much I love celebrity memoirs. A few years back these were some of my favorite things to read and listen to especially when it came to the ones by funny ladies like Tina Fey, Mindy Kalling, and Sarah Silverman. I very rarely read non-fiction but if I loved these kinds of books. I think I like them because you can see an actress or comedian and see yourself a little bit in them. They can be likable and relatable in an interesting way. But nothing backs that up more by hearing their real life stories and finding yourself in them.

That's exactly what happened here. Now obviously I cannot relate fully to Amy Poehler when she shares stories of motherhood, divorce, or working on SNL but there is still just something so relatable about her. But there is just something so fantastic about Amy's sense of humor. It's a little spastic and in your face while also being silly and intelligent. I'm not sure I laughed out loud at times like I have for some of these memoirs but I was thoroughly entertained.

Particularly I loved Amy's stories about her career. She talked a lot about her early standup days, how Upright Citizen's Brigade was founded, her time on SNL, and of course her work on Parks and Rec. I loved hearing each and every story. The stuff on SNL was so interesting because Amy definitely didn't hold back. She shared some of her best stories and things she is proud of but also some really embarassing moments. I definitely felt like she showed what it was like to be a part of all of that. I also really enjoyed her stories about Parks and Rec. There was a great chapter where she talked about the creation with Mike Shur and where she went through each of the actors on the show with her and sharing info and stories about them. As a big fan of the show it was worth the read just for that.

And of course I have to talk a bit about the audiobook. I listened to this instead of reading it and I think that was absolutely the right way to go. Amy narrates it herself with the help of people like Seth Meyers, Mike Shur, her parents, and even Carol Burnett and Kathleen Turner. It is definitely amazing in this format. You get the humor and emotion so much more when you hear Amy tell the story of her life. I know her from her acting and so hearing that voice just added so much more familiarity and fun to the book. Plus it was just amazing as an audio. If you are looking for something for a road trip I would definitely suggest this.

I give Yes Please by Amy Poehler 9 out of 10 stars

Buy/Borrow/Bypass: Buy. If you like celebrity memoirs especially those from funny ladies you should totally read this. And I would without a doubt recommend it to fans of Parks and Rec or Amy Poehler on the whole. The audiobook is fantastic and the memoir is fantastic. I really wish I didn't wait to read this but I'm glad I took the time.

Have you read Yes Please? What did you think? Leave me a comment with your thoughts. Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY READING!