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3.72 AVERAGE
3.72 AVERAGE
I don't do a lot of nonfiction but I enjoyed this one.
Less a biography of Leonard Nemoy and more a memoir about the relationship between Nemoy and Shatner, I found it interesting and also sad. The unexplained rift that took place between them not long before Nemoy's death in 2015 was a little confusing and more than a little tragic.
Also, I listened to the audiobook: William Shatner did a great job narrating this memoir, and you could hear the emotion in his voice. My only critique would be his tendency to mumble. It was like the sound engineers didn't want to try rerecording those sections or something.
Also, I listened to the audiobook: William Shatner did a great job narrating this memoir, and you could hear the emotion in his voice. My only critique would be his tendency to mumble. It was like the sound engineers didn't want to try rerecording those sections or something.
It's easy to hear a lot of negative things about William Shatner - from coworkers or fans or whoever - and I have no reason to believe that they are untrue. That said, if there is one thing that has been clear about William Shatner for several years it has been how much he obviously cares about Leonard Nimoy, and genuinely considers him his best friend.
This book is basically a love letter to their friendship. A lot of the information is taken from other sources, such as Nimoy's I Am Spock or interviews people gave, so if you read about these people regularly, not much will be new. Shatner also jumps around chronologically several times - you think you've moved on from the 1960s TV show and suddenly we're back and talking about it. But he also writes with an emotional honesty that is touching.
TL;DR: You probably won't learn much of anything new in this book, but if you enjoy Star Trek, and reading about/from the actors who brought the characters to life, this is definitely a worthy addition to your collection.
This book is basically a love letter to their friendship. A lot of the information is taken from other sources, such as Nimoy's I Am Spock or interviews people gave, so if you read about these people regularly, not much will be new. Shatner also jumps around chronologically several times - you think you've moved on from the 1960s TV show and suddenly we're back and talking about it. But he also writes with an emotional honesty that is touching.
TL;DR: You probably won't learn much of anything new in this book, but if you enjoy Star Trek, and reading about/from the actors who brought the characters to life, this is definitely a worthy addition to your collection.
This was a great perspective on the life of Leonard Nimoy as seen through the eyes of his friend William Shatner. Nimoy was an extremely talented actor with a lot of other interests as well. He was a complicated man. This book does a great job of telling the story of the 50 year friendship between two very interesting men.
I really enjoy listening to this type of book while driving and cooking. (Week 39, book with a form of punctuation in the title)
I finished this book on the bus ride to class this morning.
This is an excellent look at the life of the late Leonard Nimoy, with one caveat that I’ll get into later.
Most people know Leonard Nimoy as the actor who portrayed Mr. Spock on Star Trek; The Original Series, early Star Trek movies and episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation. This book covers that portion of his life, especially the three years of the original TV series, in good detail as related by someone who was right there next to him.
But Nimoy was so much more than that fictional character that captured the hearts and minds of millions. He was an actor who portrayed a multitude of different characters on TV and the stage; a director who helmed successful movies; a photographer who created incredible photos and a philanthropist. He was also an alcoholic, and then a recovering alcoholic, and was obviously a man who was driven to accomplish as much as he could in his lifetime.
Now for that one caveat. I like William Shatner, the author of this book, I really do. But I resent his constant need to compare himself and Nimoy. All the way from their childhoods, through their careers and their final years together. I bought this book to read about Nimoy, not to have Shatner horn in on every part of Nimoy’s life, tooting his own horn either directly, or through self-deprecating humor that still puts the spotlight on Shatner. Rumors through the years of his massive ego and self-centered behavior seem to be true, if this book is any indication.
But if you can get past that, this is a nice stroll through the life, loves, career, and passing of Leonard Nimoy.
This is an excellent look at the life of the late Leonard Nimoy, with one caveat that I’ll get into later.
Most people know Leonard Nimoy as the actor who portrayed Mr. Spock on Star Trek; The Original Series, early Star Trek movies and episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation. This book covers that portion of his life, especially the three years of the original TV series, in good detail as related by someone who was right there next to him.
But Nimoy was so much more than that fictional character that captured the hearts and minds of millions. He was an actor who portrayed a multitude of different characters on TV and the stage; a director who helmed successful movies; a photographer who created incredible photos and a philanthropist. He was also an alcoholic, and then a recovering alcoholic, and was obviously a man who was driven to accomplish as much as he could in his lifetime.
Now for that one caveat. I like William Shatner, the author of this book, I really do. But I resent his constant need to compare himself and Nimoy. All the way from their childhoods, through their careers and their final years together. I bought this book to read about Nimoy, not to have Shatner horn in on every part of Nimoy’s life, tooting his own horn either directly, or through self-deprecating humor that still puts the spotlight on Shatner. Rumors through the years of his massive ego and self-centered behavior seem to be true, if this book is any indication.
But if you can get past that, this is a nice stroll through the life, loves, career, and passing of Leonard Nimoy.
I only read 2 chapters and couldn't get into it so I stopped. Too many books I'm really excited to read.
This book is like 80% Shatner and 20% Leonard... But I guess that shouldn't really surprise me. I do question Shatner's whole assertion they were bffs. Hmm...
Because William Shatner is William Shatner, this book is as much about him as it is about Leonard Nimoy. But, instead of being a Nimoy book about Shatner, it's more a book of Shatner's reflection next to Nimoy. Bill obviously has a great love and respect for Leonard and it comes across. He is straight-forward in most things as he talks about Leonard's life and their shared experiences.
Much of this was new to me, because for all my love of Star Trek, I really haven't followed the careers of the actors or obsessed about the details of their lives. So, I didn't know that Leonard's family were Jewish immigrants from Russia. I loved the family parts and Leonard's obvious respect for his upbringing and heritage and his trip to Russia as an adult, where he was able to return to the village his parents fled and meet family members.
I enjoyed the honesty. That Leonard was a recovering alcoholic and how that affected his life and relationships. The actor's perspective that Shatner brought to the book was effective as he shared Leonard's experiences and compared them to his or to acting in general. This was especially enlightening as he explained their perspective of filming the original series and thinking they were all going their separate ways when it ended. Then their sincere shock at the popularity of the series in syndication, the original fan conventions and the films. They all thought they would escape the Star Trek phenomenon at some point, and then their realization and acceptance that it was forever part of them. It was not only informative, but insightful.
I haven't read any Trek biographies, so I don't know how much of this information is already out there or how much is uniquely William Shatner's knowledge. I really don't care. I thoroughly enjoyed this. I have been a Trekkie all my life and being that I was born the same year the series premiered, I can say that with certainty. I remember watching it with my dad when I was little. And can I just say that I loved how Shatner used the original term of "Trekkie" rather than the term "Trekker", because that is the name I grew up knowing. And, seriously? Who the hell cares? Trekkie sounds geekish and Trekker sounds pretentious, but whatever. You want to refer to yourself as a Trekker? Fine. You want to refer to yourself as a Trekkie? Fine. People who love Star Trek, love Star Trek. The labels just don't matter.
Sorry, rant over.
Interspersed with the recollections and experiences were little nuggets of wisdom and insight. I underlined some parts and reflected on others in this book. But, I came away with a better understanding on the remarkable person that Leonard Nimoy was and the life he led and the lives he touched.
It's incredibly cheesy and cliche, but Kirk's eulogy in The Wrath of Khan really is perfect to describe Leonard Nimoy in so many ways, "Of my friend, I can only say this: of all the souls I have encountered in my travels, his was the most....human."
Leonard Nimoy left an incredible void, not only in the world of Star Trek, but life in general.
Much of this was new to me, because for all my love of Star Trek, I really haven't followed the careers of the actors or obsessed about the details of their lives. So, I didn't know that Leonard's family were Jewish immigrants from Russia. I loved the family parts and Leonard's obvious respect for his upbringing and heritage and his trip to Russia as an adult, where he was able to return to the village his parents fled and meet family members.
I enjoyed the honesty. That Leonard was a recovering alcoholic and how that affected his life and relationships. The actor's perspective that Shatner brought to the book was effective as he shared Leonard's experiences and compared them to his or to acting in general. This was especially enlightening as he explained their perspective of filming the original series and thinking they were all going their separate ways when it ended. Then their sincere shock at the popularity of the series in syndication, the original fan conventions and the films. They all thought they would escape the Star Trek phenomenon at some point, and then their realization and acceptance that it was forever part of them. It was not only informative, but insightful.
I haven't read any Trek biographies, so I don't know how much of this information is already out there or how much is uniquely William Shatner's knowledge. I really don't care. I thoroughly enjoyed this. I have been a Trekkie all my life and being that I was born the same year the series premiered, I can say that with certainty. I remember watching it with my dad when I was little. And can I just say that I loved how Shatner used the original term of "Trekkie" rather than the term "Trekker", because that is the name I grew up knowing. And, seriously? Who the hell cares? Trekkie sounds geekish and Trekker sounds pretentious, but whatever. You want to refer to yourself as a Trekker? Fine. You want to refer to yourself as a Trekkie? Fine. People who love Star Trek, love Star Trek. The labels just don't matter.
Sorry, rant over.
Interspersed with the recollections and experiences were little nuggets of wisdom and insight. I underlined some parts and reflected on others in this book. But, I came away with a better understanding on the remarkable person that Leonard Nimoy was and the life he led and the lives he touched.
It's incredibly cheesy and cliche, but Kirk's eulogy in The Wrath of Khan really is perfect to describe Leonard Nimoy in so many ways, "Of my friend, I can only say this: of all the souls I have encountered in my travels, his was the most....human."
Leonard Nimoy left an incredible void, not only in the world of Star Trek, but life in general.
I think Shatner believes what he's written and Nimoy won't get to have his say.