Yes Please gives readers insight into the crazy, hilarious, sweet and caring mind and life of Amy Poehler. She discusses everything from the day she was born, to the first time she realized she wanted to be an actress, to learning improv in Chicago. She talks at length about the hysterical workings of Saturday Night Live and how much she thoroughly enjoyed herself and working with her fabulous co-workers. Toward the end of the book she describes how wonderful her experience was working on Parks and Recreation and gives little anecdotes about each one of her colleagues and includes information like what made her laugh the most. It is great to hear all of these stories coming from the comedian herself but what made it even more special was she invited special guests to join her and do readings themselves. These guests include Seth Meyers, her parents, and Parks and Recreation creator Michael Schur and their input put the story over the top and made me laugh out loud.
What I really enjoyed about the book though, were the stories Amy shared about her two sons and her realizations about how lucky she is and ultimately her viewpoints on women's roles in society. She truly cares about her sons and listening to her talk about funny and heartwarming situations with those two made me smile. I got tears in my eyes when she shared her experience visiting Haiti after the earthquake and how humbled she was by the destruction in the villages and at the orphanages. And I really respect her viewpoints on women and how we deal with our insecurities, especially in a man-driven world. Basically, her book caught me off guard and I found myself listening intently. I thought she was just going to be funny but she's insightful, honest and kind of like the best friend you always wanted. I love this book for all of those reasons but especially listening to the audio version because I was able to hear when she laughed at herself and others and understood the seriousness of what she was trying to convey. And that made all of the difference. This is a great book for fans of Amy Poehler but also people who are just looking for a great, light memoir.