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leweylibrary's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
informative
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
2.75
I love Amy Poehler, but DANG a lot of this book did not age well in the 10ish years since it was originally published. It was absolutely killing me, and not in a good way, that she would not. Stop. Mentioning. Fucking. Louis CK. Like Jesus ma'am we get it he's your friend, you don't have to bring him up every chapter it felt like. And that story about the SNL skit in which she made fun of a disabled child but didn't know that child was based on a real person and she reacted poorly to it? Yeah that whole part felt so ick.
On a somewhat related note, the guests who were kinda random and didn't really fit into her story just felt like name-dropping just to name drop. People like Seth Meyers are fair because he is a really good friend, but a lot of the others, like the ones who just read the chapter title? Yeah, pass. I also would've taken a pass on a lot of detail in the pregnancy and child parts. Especially the "you understand what it means to care about another person" part like wtf Amy you never cared about other human beings before? I know you and your husband just got divorced after you were writing this but damn.
The things that saved this book imo: the Parks and Rec chapters (it's one of my favorite shows ever probably) and the last chapter that was live in front of an audience. I honestly wish more of the book had been read in front of an audience. She was so much funnier, probably because she had that audience feedback to vibe with and it helped her timing and whatnot a lot. The chapter with the creator of Parks and Rec was especially lovely because they clearly have such a fun bond.
On a somewhat related note, the guests who were kinda random and didn't really fit into her story just felt like name-dropping just to name drop. People like Seth Meyers are fair because he is a really good friend, but a lot of the others, like the ones who just read the chapter title? Yeah, pass. I also would've taken a pass on a lot of detail in the pregnancy and child parts. Especially the "you understand what it means to care about another person" part like wtf Amy you never cared about other human beings before? I know you and your husband just got divorced after you were writing this but damn.
The things that saved this book imo: the Parks and Rec chapters (it's one of my favorite shows ever probably) and the last chapter that was live in front of an audience. I honestly wish more of the book had been read in front of an audience. She was so much funnier, probably because she had that audience feedback to vibe with and it helped her timing and whatnot a lot. The chapter with the creator of Parks and Rec was especially lovely because they clearly have such a fun bond.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy, Ableism, Sexism, and Miscarriage
Minor: Drug use, Grief, Sexual harassment, and Alcohol
theverycraftyvegan's review against another edition
funny
medium-paced
5.0
A very funny book that had me laughing out loud a few times. My spouse even asked me to read a few things out loud so that we could laugh together.
Amy manages to keep things lighthearted throughout the book while also touching heavy topics such as sexism, childbirth, motherhood, divorce, and depression, just to name a few.
By no fault of the author a few things in this book have not aged well. Amy refers to Louise CK as a good dear friend of hers and deadnames Elliot page, but this is only because this book was written in 2014. Again, this is no fault of the author—just something to be aware of, as it may be triggering to some readers.
Amy manages to keep things lighthearted throughout the book while also touching heavy topics such as sexism, childbirth, motherhood, divorce, and depression, just to name a few.
By no fault of the author a few things in this book have not aged well. Amy refers to Louise CK as a good dear friend of hers and deadnames Elliot page, but this is only because this book was written in 2014. Again, this is no fault of the author—just something to be aware of, as it may be triggering to some readers.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Pregnancy, Alcohol, Cursing, Death, Sexism, and Drug use
Minor: Deadnaming and Eating disorder
deetabz's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Transphobia, Body shaming, Sexual harassment, Bullying, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Misogyny
eliya's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
3.0
Speaks in dichotomies a lot especially when referring to gender and that made me uncomfortable. I wish she was nicer to herself.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Fatphobia, Sexual content, Pregnancy, Cursing, and Body shaming
lifeamongpages's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcohol and Drug use
amandas_bookshelf's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism, Death, Drug use, Sexism, and Alcohol
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Eating disorder, and Rape
ande_4366's review against another edition
funny
fast-paced
3.25
1) There were a lot of typos in the first half of the book and that irked me to no end.
2) I liked how it was more conversational than written language because of how it sounded in my brain.
3) I feel like it achieved the goal of a memoir where I got to know more about the author and there are some good tidbits to take away for my own life.
4) I wished the organization made more sense. I didn’t understand the ordering and couldn’t see the larger picture (if there was one.)
2) I liked how it was more conversational than written language because of how it sounded in my brain.
3) I feel like it achieved the goal of a memoir where I got to know more about the author and there are some good tidbits to take away for my own life.
4) I wished the organization made more sense. I didn’t understand the ordering and couldn’t see the larger picture (if there was one.)
Content Warnings
Minor: Drug abuse and Drug use
helenferg's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Drug use and Alcohol
ciwanski's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
3.0
I like Amy Poehler, I love her work. This book was okay. As someone who has done improv comedy work and knows the Chicago improv scene, it was so cool hearing about it in its hay day. It was inspiring to think about how the good, talented, goofy, young, 20 somethings of the past are now the hoard of greats today, and it makes me optimistic for all of the greats to come.
This book was published in 2014, and while feminism and activism was alive and well, a lot of events that has shaped modern politics and semantics had not occurred yet. There was no Me Too movement yet, no Donald trump presidency, no national thought on critical race theory, no international pandemic. Some of the sentences in this book kind of rubbed me the wrong way because of this, but I have to remember that Past Amy was not writing through the same lens that Present Amy probably would now, and with that in mind I could move on. Still was uncomfortable by all the love to Louis C.K. throughout the book though.
I don’t necessarily know what I was hoping to get out of this book. It was honest and sarcastic and retrospective and I appreciate all of that and have gained insights by reading (listening) to it (by the way I highly recommend listening to it as you get cameos from people like Seth Meyers and her mom and dad). It’s not at all like Jenna Fischer’s memoir that talks extensively of the industry, or like Michelle Obama’s wholly inspiring rising-up-through-the-ashes memoir. It’s Amy’s memoir of her oopsies and triumphs and apathies and regrets and hopes, and it’s uniquely hers.
This book was published in 2014, and while feminism and activism was alive and well, a lot of events that has shaped modern politics and semantics had not occurred yet. There was no Me Too movement yet, no Donald trump presidency, no national thought on critical race theory, no international pandemic. Some of the sentences in this book kind of rubbed me the wrong way because of this, but I have to remember that Past Amy was not writing through the same lens that Present Amy probably would now, and with that in mind I could move on. Still was uncomfortable by all the love to Louis C.K. throughout the book though.
I don’t necessarily know what I was hoping to get out of this book. It was honest and sarcastic and retrospective and I appreciate all of that and have gained insights by reading (listening) to it (by the way I highly recommend listening to it as you get cameos from people like Seth Meyers and her mom and dad). It’s not at all like Jenna Fischer’s memoir that talks extensively of the industry, or like Michelle Obama’s wholly inspiring rising-up-through-the-ashes memoir. It’s Amy’s memoir of her oopsies and triumphs and apathies and regrets and hopes, and it’s uniquely hers.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Drug use and Pregnancy
pgivan21's review against another edition
emotional
funny
inspiring
relaxing
medium-paced
3.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Drug use