A Trio of Audiobooks: Amy Poehler, Tina Fey, and Mindy Kaling.

When I started going back to the gym in April, I resigned up for Audible in hopes that audiobooks would make the gym a bit more bearable. And, in my line of thinking, if I was listening to a really good book, I would want to go back to the gym to listen further.

That theory has worked well for the most part (well, until August hit and my regular gym routine went out the window). Listening to audiobooks has been a great way to spend my time at the gym, and while I do switch it up for music, most of my cardio time is spent listening to a book.

I should mention that I'm incredibly picky about audiobooks. I used to listen to them all the time when I had a 2 and a half hour round trip commute (my first teaching job). During my drive to and from work, I listened to all the Harry Potter books and a slew of others. I like books that keep my attention and I actually like "rereading" books through audio. But, I branched out and the first set of books I listened to at the gym were a bit outside of my comfort zone.

Enter the hilarious trio of Amy Poehler, Tina Fey, and Mindy Kaling. Here are my thoughts on each:

Yes Please was the first of the three that I read (listened to?). Poehler has long been a favorite of mine on SNL and in movies, so I had a feeling I would love her memoir/random compilation of thoughts and stories (And I should say now that I love her MORE than Tina Fey, even though my love for Fey is strong).

And I was right. Poehler's narration was hilarious, and I found myself chuckling quite a few times while walking on the treadmill. I loved her guest narrators (Seth Myers-yes.....) and their insights and tidbits.

But what I really loved was the raw honesty in her stories. While she didn't spend too much time discussing the years spent on SNL, she spent enough time on big life moments to offer some advice and wisdom.

More than anything, this was a pretty motivational listen. Poehler's a smart woman and there were a few points about self-acceptance and such that truly resonated with me at this point in my life.

If you've skipped over this one, do yourself a favor and give it a listen. It's worth it.

Next up was Tina Fey's Bossypants, which has been everywhere-I felt like I was the last person on earth to read it. Like Poehler's book, Fey takes her readers through her life, recalling funny moments and the story of how she got to where she is.

As I was listening, I gained a ton of respect and awe for Fey. She's a fabulous woman-smart, witty, and in control of what she wants to accomplish. And like Poehler, she also got across the message of accepting yourself and what you do.

She devoted quite a bit of time to when she was asked to impersonate Sarah Palin on SNL (the audio also includes the recording of some of those skits, which was awesome). It was an interesting story, as she wrestled with her own political views and impersonating Palin the same day she came to appear on SNL. As someone who has long-watched SNL, it was interesting to see behind the scenes a bit.

Overall, the book thrums with her humor and it made me laugh often and loudly. But it left me with a firm impression of Fey's strength and prowess as a comedian. She's a fabulous performer and we also have her to thank for Mean Girls, one of my favorite high school movies-it speaks a lot of truth.

My last comedic book, Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?, written by Mindy Kaling, happened to be my favorite of the three. Truthfully, I only know Kaling from The Office (which I love), so I wasn't sure what to expect.

I found I related to a lot of Kaling's stories and thoughts-particularly her concerns about weight and appearance. As many of you know, I'm in a weight loss lifestyle change (I won't use the d-word), and many of Kaling's struggles with weight really spoke to me. It was very...fresh and honest.

Kaling is also quite hysterical, and I love her quirky sense of humor and self-degradation. I love when people can poke at their own thoughts and have it come across as sincere, and I got that in listening to her stories.

Overall, it was a great memoir with lots of tidbits and gems about her early life, landing her job at The Office, and realizing it's okay to be neurotic in your own head-we all do it, so who cares.

In all, these 3 titles kept me great company. And truthfully, I'm not sure if I would have enjoyed them had I not listened to them. All 3 of these women are definitely performers, so if you haven't read these, I strongly suggest the audiobooks. They're fabulous.