Yes Please by Amy Poehler

[ashley_claire]

Everyone knows Amy Poehler from Saturday Night Live and Parks and Recreation. Her book, Yes Please, shares stories of her life growing up outside of Boston, discovering her passion for comedy, and eventually working her way up. Amy credits her boring, normal childhood with learning to create her own drama and entertainment.

Amy moved to Chicago after college and spent years studying improv before cofounding the performance group The Upright Citizens' Brigade. The group moved to New York City and found moderate success landing a show on Comedy Central. In 2001 Amy was hired for a dream job at Saturday Night Live and eventually went on to have her own show, Parks and Recreation.

I love that Amy focuses so much on the fact that it took years of working to make it into "the biz" and working a side job as a waitress to pay the rent. It took years of hard work and long hours and being poor. Behind the scenes scoops from SNL were a favorite of mine because I'm a fan of the show and it is arguably what she is best known for.

I feel like she did a great job of letting the reader really get to know her even without getting into things she would obviously rather keep private, like her divorce from fellow SNL alum Will Arnett. I thought the few stories included about Amy that are written from her parents and friends offered a unique insight and were fun to read. And I know I'm probably in the minority on this because a lot of people really like Bossypants by Tina Fey, but I actually enjoyed Yes Please more. It's inevitable that they will be compared and I walked away from Yes Please feeling overall more satisfied than I did with Bossypants.

Amy Poehler takes what could easily feel like your run of the mill celebrity biography and writes as a girl you want to know and be friends with while sprinkling in some great advice. For an overall rating I give this book 3 out of 4 stars.

[godreaujea]

I enjoyed this book, however I feel like it could have been a bit more coherent and a little less personal. I realize it is an autobiography, but I understand that Tina Fey's "Bossy Pants" is much more popular because, for one, it isn't as personal. I did get a few laughs out of it, and I found some of her musings insightful and inspiring. Overall, though, I found the book to be pretty meh. I still love Amy Poehler though!! Parks and Rec for life!

[Neha Panikar]

I've read Bossy Pants, and I didn't enjoy it at all.. I had to drag/force myself through the book... This is most likely because I'm of Indian origin and the references to pop culture were heavy and not relatable at all.. I was not alone to feel this way, but all the members of my book club (all Indian origin) felt so, even though we're all ardent fans of Tina Fey. Im wondering if the comparison with "Yes Please" by Amy Poehler means it's the same kind of book, in which case I wouldnt add that book to my " to read" list either.