Reviews

Leonard: My Fifty-Year Friendship with a Remarkable Man by William Shatner

freckleduck's review

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3.0

I liked this book, but it was not written for me. I felt at times it was tedious and not relevant to my life. I thought it was an interesting read though and gave me some insight into Leonard Nimoy and William Shatner.

qu33nofbookz's review

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3.0

An interesting and short look into the life of Leonard Nimoy. The first half of the book is a quick overview of Leonards life before Star Trek and is compared with the life of William Shatner. Then we learn a little of what it was like for the men during the filming of the series. The last bit of the book covers snippets of times the two actors were together, Leonard's career after the series and films and his struggle with the creator and studio as well as his personal struggles at home with his son and his health. A decent book but has a lot of what has been told in other biographies and is only half about Leonard and a small time spent on his friendship with William.

or10n's review

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emotional informative slow-paced

5.0

 I should really reread this book. I read it over quarantine, but I hardly remember anything about it other than it had me weeping like a baby. After reading it, I watched the documentary that Leonard Nimoy's son made, and that had me even more wrecked. I will say, neither the book nor the documentary did a thing to assuage the homoeroticism surrounding both Kirk/Spock and William/Leonard, and for that I am forever grateful. 

esshgee's review

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3.0

3 1/2 stars. I'm still figuring out how I feel about this book. It was very interesting reading about Leonard Nimoy's history and of course by default, Bill Shatner's, but I'm still trying to decipher why he wrote this book? There is a lot of love and honesty in Shatner's writing, and some tales are incredibly heartfelt. But Shatner and Nimoy had not spoken in nearly 4 years before Nimoy's death, and so the friendship had waned. No mention is made as to whether Nimoy's family gave their permission/blessing for the stories to be printed - I suppose most of them are Shatner's stories too, or in public domain, so that doesn't matter legally, but maybe ethically? Was it a way for Shatner to put forward his reasons for not attending Nimoy's funeral? This book posed lots of questions for me, and I found it an enjoyable read.

keeyoh's review against another edition

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emotional funny informative lighthearted reflective medium-paced

5.0


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christajls's review against another edition

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4.0

I'm not crying. You're crying.

LLAP

idrils's review against another edition

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5.0

well-researched, devastatingly honest and full of fun behind-the-scenes anecdotes of star trek you're not likely to find anywhere else. if you love leonard nimoy, spock, or william shatner's self-deprecating stories i recommend this book!!!

filmcritic23's review

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4.0

This was a re-read for me through audiobook since its voiced by William Shatner. I only really listen to audiobooks if they are done by the author. Having his voice narrate the words did help, and parts of it did seem really sincere on Shatner's part. The part I always wrestled with is why they did not remain friends when Leonard was dying, and Shatner does not seem to know either, but hearing him say it seems to suggest he is putting on a front. Like he knows but doesn't want to admit to it. Cause if your friendship was so great, why not talk for about 10 years and not even when Leonard was dying? Seems far fetched. His voice was very low at times which made it difficult to hear, but it was a nice read. I'm giving it 4 stars for the book and 3 for the audiobook.

vint4gegh0st's review against another edition

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emotional reflective medium-paced

3.5

I was missing some clear structure, and some things felt a little repeated or out of place, random of sorts.

malus23's review against another edition

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3.0

I think most people know this going into it, but this is not the type of biographic style book that covers all of the subjects life thoroughly. It's much more a chance for Shatner to collect all the reminiscences about his long time colleague and friend. It gets a little wandering sometimes, but in the same way listening to anyone grieving and telling their favorite stories of what someone meant to them would be. Sweet and sad.