Review: Yes Please by Amy Poehler

Book: Yes Please

Author: Amy Poehler

Pages: 329

I read it on: My Kindle

I read it in: 4 hours

Plot Summary: In Amy Poehler’s highly anticipated first book, Yes Please, she offers up a big juicy stew of personal stories, funny bits on sex and love and friendship and parenthood and real life advice (some useful, some not so much), like when to be funny and when to be serious. Powered by Amy’s charming and hilarious, biting yet wise voice, Yes Please is a book is full of words to live by.

What I Liked: I am an Amy Poehler fan. The woman is funny, smart and it seems like she likes who she is, which is such a rare thing in this world that it deserves all the accolades that it can get. So, like many other Poehler fans, I was quite excited when the book came out and I quickly bought it on my Kindle! 
I am happy to report, the book did not disappoint.. much.. I guess, any successful person can't help but include some gratuitous back-patting and hat-tipping their famous celeb friends and such like in such a book.. So, I am going to be generous and ignore those bits. So, let's get to the bulleted list:

• Like the blurb says, there are some useful nuggets of wisdom in there for anyone who is making their way in the world and trying to balance being a decent person, a good professional and a partner and/or parent. A lot of Amy's advice revolves around figuring out your own boundaries and what works and does not work for you and then setting the rules, accordingly. Like she says, right in the beginning, 'Works for you, not for me!' I believe that this is one of the most important things to realize for us in each of our lives. Especially, in our social media heavy lives where everyone curates everything about themselves to make it seem shinier than the rest. So, if you are out to keep up with the rest of the world, then you are taking on an uphill task! 

• I also enjoyed the glimpses into her childhood and young adulthood. Goes to show that a child raised with love and support from her parents can do wonders in her own life. 

• Similarly, Amy Poehler's journey from her college improv days to SNL to, well, now was really interesting to read about. I never gave much thought to where all these wonderful comedians on SNL and Late Night (American) TV came from and now I know! 

• The camaraderie described between her and all the talented people she worked with was sweet. The book also has bits written by Seth Meyers and Mark Shoemaker, which are also very funny. 

What I Didn't Like: Honestly, not much. But there was a rambly chapter about Amy going to Haiti in the aftermath of the devastating 2012 earthquake and being moved by the  state of the orphaned children there. I didn't get the point of that anecdote, apart from seeing how it helped her heal after her divorce. 

I am sure the event had huge personal significance for her, which is why it was put in the book, but as a reader, maybe perhaps a reader from a 'third world country', I didn't feel that chapter added to anything. I know the world has people of extreme privilege and those who have less than nothing. I know that even our lives, which are full of the middle-class angst and struggles are luxurious compared to millions of others.. So, I didn't get why that story needed to be included... It seemed like Amy Poehler didn't know or truly appreciate the kind of poverty and need that exists in so many places around the world! But that can't be true, right?! She is an educated and smart woman.. so.. back to my point.. what was the point of that chapter?! 

Rating: 4/5 

This is, largely, a fun book, which sometimes makes you think. Also, if you are a very hyper person, this may help you zen out.