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4.23 AVERAGE
4.23 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
fast-paced
I enjoyed learning about his personal story and how he has matriculated through life. Some of the talking to the audience narrative choices were a bit annoying but I appreciated getting some insight into how Will thinks and processes. Overall and enjoyable and easy read.
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
Full disclosure: Growing up, I was a huge Will Smith fan. Not so much of his personal life choices, but of his movies and music. I was a little apprehensive to read his memoir as I didn't want to come away with a negative perception of him, but I'm very glad that I decided to read it.
By "read it" I mean "listened to," and I can't recommend that enough. Hearing Will narrate his life story makes the experience so much more enjoyable and intimate. His excitement is infectious, and in describing conversations with friends and other celebrities, he imitates their voices, which is very entertaining. Additionally, whoever directed/produced this audio book did a *phenomenal* job. Any time he mentions something having to do with music, whether it's the sounds of his grandmother's church, hip hop songs of the 80's, or the origins of one of his own hit singles, you hear it playing in the background. It stirred up so much nostalgia and added a layer to the listening experience that's missing from most memoirs/autobiographies.
This book is nothing if not thorough. Will delves deep into his childhood, his career, his romantic relationships, and his successes and failures in each. He approaches each topic with a candor I really appreciated. I was most entertained by the parts of the book that explored his career, but I was most impressed by the parts of the book that describe how he's worked to blend his family (he goes into great detail describing the start and end of his first marriage and his relationship with his eldest son, who has largely stayed out of the public eye).
One thing I was surprised about is that he never mentions Scientology once. It's been rumored that he and his wife, Jada, are/were members of the church. The couple has denied this, and it doesn't really matter, but I was just surprised not to hear anything about it- at all - in the entirety of this book.
Regardless, thoroughly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it to anyone who is even a *kind of* fan of Will and his work. It is well written, and such a fun listen. I came away with a new found respect for someone I already liked very much. As I listened, I made a list of his movies that I haven't yet seen. I'm eager to cross some off of my list during winter break.
By "read it" I mean "listened to," and I can't recommend that enough. Hearing Will narrate his life story makes the experience so much more enjoyable and intimate. His excitement is infectious, and in describing conversations with friends and other celebrities, he imitates their voices, which is very entertaining. Additionally, whoever directed/produced this audio book did a *phenomenal* job. Any time he mentions something having to do with music, whether it's the sounds of his grandmother's church, hip hop songs of the 80's, or the origins of one of his own hit singles, you hear it playing in the background. It stirred up so much nostalgia and added a layer to the listening experience that's missing from most memoirs/autobiographies.
This book is nothing if not thorough. Will delves deep into his childhood, his career, his romantic relationships, and his successes and failures in each. He approaches each topic with a candor I really appreciated. I was most entertained by the parts of the book that explored his career, but I was most impressed by the parts of the book that describe how he's worked to blend his family (he goes into great detail describing the start and end of his first marriage and his relationship with his eldest son, who has largely stayed out of the public eye).
One thing I was surprised about is that he never mentions Scientology once. It's been rumored that he and his wife, Jada, are/were members of the church. The couple has denied this, and it doesn't really matter, but I was just surprised not to hear anything about it- at all - in the entirety of this book.
Regardless, thoroughly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it to anyone who is even a *kind of* fan of Will and his work. It is well written, and such a fun listen. I came away with a new found respect for someone I already liked very much. As I listened, I made a list of his movies that I haven't yet seen. I'm eager to cross some off of my list during winter break.
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
Loved this book!!!!
This is one book where the audio version is going to surpass reading this yourself. Will Smith narrating his own stories makes it feel like you are in the room with him. Hearing him recount stories of hardship, love, laughter and becoming the "It" man in Hollywood.
informative
medium-paced
When I saw that the author was narrating the audiobook, I patiently waited for the audiobook to arrive at my library. It DID NOT disappoint. I was hooked from the start. The book was an interactive experience through music, dialogue, and description. And I learned a few things a long the way.
PS - Jada was right, it wasn’t funny!
PS - Jada was right, it wasn’t funny!
Yes, agree with everyone who said Jada was right: it wasn't funny. Also agree that BIG EGO is on display. I am o.k. with that. Feels justified. It's impressive that an ego that huge had the space for the life introspection and analysis that is woven throughout. Completely LOVE the honest and loving portrayal of Daddio. Thank you, Will, for treating him so respectfully. We are all just dumb human parents, after all.
Interesting biography, sharing hard lessons learned about life and family. I always admired Will Smith for his positive attitude and dedication to his acting life, and this book reinforced my admiration by the amount of work he has dedicated to be a better actor, but also on how he shares that success is not happiness, sharing openly with the reader some of his emotional struggles and deep challenges around family life.
To me, the book starts to get interesting around chapter 16, and while the initial 2/3 of the book were a little boring, they provide fundamental context to some of his decisions around family and spirituality.
To me, the book starts to get interesting around chapter 16, and while the initial 2/3 of the book were a little boring, they provide fundamental context to some of his decisions around family and spirituality.