Yes Please

I have to admit, I'm not completely sure why I picked this up in the first place. Other than binge-watching all of Parks and Recreation and the vague goal I set for myself to read more nonfiction, I couldn't really say why I chose this book. I saw my library had the audiobook and decided: Why not?

This was a joy to read. Or rather, to hear. I'm firmly in the camp that audiobooks are in no way “lesser” to their print counterparts, and sometimes, they're just plain better. This is one of those times. I've never experienced a book that was so clearly tailored to audio.

Amy narrates the book herself, using her own recording studio. Some chapters are recorded live in front of a studio audience. Others are written by guests, and they all narrate these sections themselves. You probably haven't heard of these guests, little obscure nobodies like Sir Patrick Stewart and Seth Meyers. Yeah.

Okay, I'm pretty sure Sir Patrick Stewart didn't write the haikus about negative body image, but he does turn them into gold.

There isn't a central theme of empowerment in Yes, Please. Instead, the book is a collection of Poehler's thoughts and memories, how she became who she is today and the people that helped her along the way. As a talented comedian (and apparently, audio narrator), she makes the book incredibly entertaining.

The book isn't all light-hearted fun, though. It covers several of Amy's regrets, such as when she accidentally made fun of a real disabled child in one of her Saturday Night Live skits. It covers the struggles and joys of raising children while working full-time, the difficulty of making a career in comedy, and her history with drugs.

It also covers her struggle to write this book. The introduction to the book is probably one of the most accurate, relatable descriptions of how writing can be hard. And not just hard in the sense that the perfect words don't always fall into place. Writing is hard because it's tough to stay up late at night and write with your screen dimmed while the kids sleep; it's hard because who the hell actually cares what you have to say?; it's hard because it's just plain hard. Again, Poehler manages to make this hilarious.

For a such an honest, written-from-the-heart book, I was a little surprised that it ended on such a casual note, with Amy reading a chapter about how robots and technology will take over the world in front of a live audience. But, when I consider her career in comedy and determination to say “Yes, Please!” in the face of life's hardships, perhaps such an ending is only fitting.