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jodar's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
informative
medium-paced
4.25
A gem I wasn’t expecting. I am surprised at how engaging, emotionally charged and in places how raw the memoir is. There are numerous laugh-out-loud anecdotes as well.
I had a book gift card burning a hole in my wallet, but the bookshop I had to use it at stocks few of the books I’d be interested in reading in hard copy. I bought this simply because it was in the price range and Jean-Luc Picard is my favourite Star Trek captain. I had no idea of Stewart’s upbringing in a poor Yorkshire family and his decades of struggle as an actor.
I felt particularly moved by Stewart’s descriptions of his earlier life, his friends and family, his hardships and delights. Also the people he didn’t get along with – understandably I doubt Stewart could be quite so forthcoming in his later life, about people who are still alive. Throughout Stewart provides some great insights into the art of acting and a good impression of his life as an actor. Some photographs complement the text well.
I appreciated Stewart’s own humility in his shortcomings and in acknowledging his indebtedness to those who had supported his career – the humility felt genuine to me. Likewise, his admiration for other accomplished and kindly people in his life.
Stewart isn’t perfect (who is?), and there is one part of his personal life in which I think he made a grave mistake. Deep down, despite what struck me as a bit of rationalisation on his part, I suspect he realises this too. That said, I was not particularly fascinated to know about his private life: it’s his professional life, what influenced it and his outlook as an actor that most interested me.
This is a book that I may well read again in a few years time.
I had a book gift card burning a hole in my wallet, but the bookshop I had to use it at stocks few of the books I’d be interested in reading in hard copy. I bought this simply because it was in the price range and Jean-Luc Picard is my favourite Star Trek captain. I had no idea of Stewart’s upbringing in a poor Yorkshire family and his decades of struggle as an actor.
I felt particularly moved by Stewart’s descriptions of his earlier life, his friends and family, his hardships and delights. Also the people he didn’t get along with – understandably I doubt Stewart could be quite so forthcoming in his later life, about people who are still alive. Throughout Stewart provides some great insights into the art of acting and a good impression of his life as an actor. Some photographs complement the text well.
I appreciated Stewart’s own humility in his shortcomings and in acknowledging his indebtedness to those who had supported his career – the humility felt genuine to me. Likewise, his admiration for other accomplished and kindly people in his life.
Stewart isn’t perfect (who is?), and there is one part of his personal life in which I think he made a grave mistake. Deep down, despite what struck me as a bit of rationalisation on his part, I suspect he realises this too. That said, I was not particularly fascinated to know about his private life: it’s his professional life, what influenced it and his outlook as an actor that most interested me.
This is a book that I may well read again in a few years time.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Domestic abuse, and Infidelity
Minor: Alcohol, Death of parent, Suicidal thoughts, and Classism
heather667's review
dark
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Classism, Animal cruelty, Infidelity, Dementia, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Bullying, Death, and Violence
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Grief
Minor: Gun violence, Torture, Gaslighting, Pandemic/Epidemic, Racism, and Suicide
queer_bookwyrm's review
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
5 ⭐ CW: domestic violence, suicide mention, death of family members, animal cruelty/death mention
Making It So: A Memoir by Sir Patrick Stewart is my first read of the New Year! I'm not typically a memoir reader, but I make an exception for Star Trek greats.
Patrick Stewart takes us through his entire life, starting with his love of stage acting and passion for Shakespeare all the way through his time with Star Trek: The Next Generation, the X-Men franchise, and the intricacies of his life. He is so open and honest about every part of his life, not just the successes, but his mistakes and struggles, including his failed marriages and relationships, and his insecurities around being a leading man on the stage and in front of the camera.
Honestly, it was like reading about an old friend. I found myself smiling a lot and even laughing out loud a bunch of times at his storytelling. It's no secret I'm a huge Trekkie, and adore Captain Jean-Luc Picard. I so enjoyed reading this in his voice and learning all the behind the scenes moments of his life. He is brilliant, modest, genuine, and quite funny. I do hope he is able to make the Picard movie he is trying to get.
I definitely recommend this for anyone who cherishes Captain Picard, Professor X, or any iteration of Shakespeare Patrick has been a part of. He kept me engaged (pun definitely intended) the whole time. Thank you, Captain, for Making It So.
Making It So: A Memoir by Sir Patrick Stewart is my first read of the New Year! I'm not typically a memoir reader, but I make an exception for Star Trek greats.
Patrick Stewart takes us through his entire life, starting with his love of stage acting and passion for Shakespeare all the way through his time with Star Trek: The Next Generation, the X-Men franchise, and the intricacies of his life. He is so open and honest about every part of his life, not just the successes, but his mistakes and struggles, including his failed marriages and relationships, and his insecurities around being a leading man on the stage and in front of the camera.
Honestly, it was like reading about an old friend. I found myself smiling a lot and even laughing out loud a bunch of times at his storytelling. It's no secret I'm a huge Trekkie, and adore Captain Jean-Luc Picard. I so enjoyed reading this in his voice and learning all the behind the scenes moments of his life. He is brilliant, modest, genuine, and quite funny. I do hope he is able to make the Picard movie he is trying to get.
I definitely recommend this for anyone who cherishes Captain Picard, Professor X, or any iteration of Shakespeare Patrick has been a part of. He kept me engaged (pun definitely intended) the whole time. Thank you, Captain, for Making It So.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, Animal cruelty, and Animal death
Minor: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide
squinnittowinit's review against another edition
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
slow-paced
4.5
I don't normally enjoy memoirs, but I'm a fan of Sir Patrick Stewart, so I had to see what this book was all about. I definitely recommend the audiobook; listening to it in his own voice is a great experience with how good of an actor he is. He does accents, voices, dramatic timing, and so much more.
While I was interested in his stories overall and hadn't heard any of them, being a very casual fan, there were a few that I wasn't quite sure why he included them. They weren't bad, they just felt like non-sequitors in the grand scheme of the book's narrative.
That being said, I appreciated how Patrick Stewart told these stories from his life with humility and respect for those involved. While he did grow up with a certain amount of prejudice, he tells these stories now as someone who has since grown into a very accepting and progressive-minded individual. Of course, there's always the possibility that something is being omitted or falsified, but even if this were a true work of fiction it would still be a good book to me.
While I was interested in his stories overall and hadn't heard any of them, being a very casual fan, there were a few that I wasn't quite sure why he included them. They weren't bad, they just felt like non-sequitors in the grand scheme of the book's narrative.
That being said, I appreciated how Patrick Stewart told these stories from his life with humility and respect for those involved. While he did grow up with a certain amount of prejudice, he tells these stories now as someone who has since grown into a very accepting and progressive-minded individual. Of course, there's always the possibility that something is being omitted or falsified, but even if this were a true work of fiction it would still be a good book to me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Blood, Death, Physical abuse, Death of parent, Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, and Domestic abuse
Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Grief, Alcohol, Mental illness, Cursing, Infidelity, Sexual content, Addiction, Misogyny, and Racism
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Drug abuse, Homophobia, Murder, War, Dementia, Drug use, Pandemic/Epidemic, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Antisemitism, Cancer, and Car accident
erebus53's review against another edition
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
slow-paced
4.0
Patrick Stewart was born in Yorkshire in 1940, and has led an acting career on stage and screen that won him a knighthood. He's known to most of us in his role as Jean-Luc Picard, Captain of the Enterprise-D in Star Trek: The Next Generation. I was surprised to learn that Sir Patrick was in a one-man stage show of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol.. and narrated an audiobook version for Simon and Schuster.. which is doubly irritating to me as I JUST LISTENED to an audiobook of that, and I didn't know to look for his version. Oh well.
This is the second memoir I have checked out in short succession that tells childhood tales of not having an indoor toilet. Patrick Stewart tells of his childhood trauma, his working class roots and his penchant for train-spotting (what else is there to do in a small town?), and weaves a story of how he got the acting bug. After many lucky breaks, and much hard work, Patrick learns a new accent, embraces the lifestyle of a working actor, and forms a lifelong passion for Shakespeare.
After many crushes on many women he tells of his patchy relationship history. Life with a partner often does not stand up to the rigours of long shooting schedules, and active commitments that span continents... he was a bit of a bounder, which is all well and good to be remorseful of in retrospect, but the accounts he gives are candid and apologetic. Not everyone in his life forgives his transgressions.
As Sir Patrick recalls the layout of one of the places he used to live I am reminded of a house that Dave Grohl talks about in his memoir Storyteller. I was surprised to find that both men talk of spooky hauntings in these houses. I wonder if they are in the same area, or made at around the same time. Just describing the layout of the house gave me a sense memory of having read about it before, so it was extra strange.
This is quite a long book, and quite informative about all sorts of things; If you are not at all into Shakespeare, and English lit like Dickens, it might begin to drag for you. The scope of the narrative shows a change in attitudes toward queer identities and how they are presented in media, right through to how Patrick Stewart chooses to present himself in social media. There is some fanservice of Sir Patrick's short time spent in the company of Vivien Leigh, right through to his work on Star Trek and X-Men. It's been very long career and he doesn't want to quit. I enjoyed the book.
This is the second memoir I have checked out in short succession that tells childhood tales of not having an indoor toilet. Patrick Stewart tells of his childhood trauma, his working class roots and his penchant for train-spotting (what else is there to do in a small town?), and weaves a story of how he got the acting bug. After many lucky breaks, and much hard work, Patrick learns a new accent, embraces the lifestyle of a working actor, and forms a lifelong passion for Shakespeare.
After many crushes on many women he tells of his patchy relationship history. Life with a partner often does not stand up to the rigours of long shooting schedules, and active commitments that span continents... he was a bit of a bounder, which is all well and good to be remorseful of in retrospect, but the accounts he gives are candid and apologetic. Not everyone in his life forgives his transgressions.
As Sir Patrick recalls the layout of one of the places he used to live I am reminded of a house that Dave Grohl talks about in his memoir Storyteller. I was surprised to find that both men talk of spooky hauntings in these houses. I wonder if they are in the same area, or made at around the same time. Just describing the layout of the house gave me a sense memory of having read about it before, so it was extra strange.
This is quite a long book, and quite informative about all sorts of things; If you are not at all into Shakespeare, and English lit like Dickens, it might begin to drag for you. The scope of the narrative shows a change in attitudes toward queer identities and how they are presented in media, right through to how Patrick Stewart chooses to present himself in social media. There is some fanservice of Sir Patrick's short time spent in the company of Vivien Leigh, right through to his work on Star Trek and X-Men. It's been very long career and he doesn't want to quit. I enjoyed the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Pandemic/Epidemic, Death of parent, Suicidal thoughts, Domestic abuse, Violence, Animal death, Blood, and Death
Moderate: Vomit, Torture, Alcoholism, and Alcohol
Minor: Classism
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