Wil Wheaton

I rarely read memoirs or autobiographies - in fact, the last one I can remember reading, clearly, was when I was in eighth grade or so. I think this is because, for the most part, I can be amused or sympathetic with the narrator, but in the end, I just can't care about them enough for the actual details of a real life to be compelling to me (I have a different experience with fiction, for some reason). Just A Geek won't convert me to the memoir genre, but it stands out as a marvellous, show more honest, open and passionate book that I thoroughly enjoyed - sometimes actually laughing out loud, and sometimes feeling my eyes prickle.

Wil Wheaton talks about his struggles to understand what is important to him, in his life, and some of the mistakes he makes along the way. He is honest about his mistakes and failings - his own anger and hangups and all the worst parts. He discusses how difficult celebrity at a young age was for him, especially when, post Star Trek, that celebrity didn't carry on in terms of work and exposure the way he hoped it would. He is unflinching in this book, and deeply compelling. Wheaton writes about the people in his life - those he loves, like his family; those he doesn't know well, like many of his blog readers; and those who have treated him poorly, like some "fans" and directors - with empathy, compassion, and, where appropriate, gratitude - and also without hesitating to stick up for himself when he feels he's been treated badly. He clearly cares about being a good human being, a wonderful father and husband, and a creator who can be proud of his works.

Never before have I read a book where I have ended my reading thinking, man, is this guy someone I would very much like to be friends with. Never before, too, have I felt so inspired by someone who strives to be the best person he can be in the context of, at least in many respects, a very normal life. It is hard to feel like you can be a good person, sometimes, if you're not Overcoming Adversity or Saving the World, but by example (never by preaching), Wheaton lives that out, and we can all be inspired by it.

One of the most touching motifs for me is Wheaton's gratitude to his fans and supporters. He writes with an awareness that he is part of a community of people, and that we all need one another for different things - that no man is an island.

I think you will like this book if you are inspired by people growing in spite of themselves and in spite of obstacles; if you appreciate and admire gratitude and effort, and if honesty, humour and affection appeal to you. After finishing the final pages here, I went out and picked up everything else he's written. show less

What is This Book About? This is an annotated memoir of Wil Wheaton’s original memoir, printed in 2004, titled Just a Geek. Wheaton takes the reader on a journey, starting in the early 2000s. He then describes his old career as Wesley Crusher in Star Trek The Next Generation, his acting career outside of Star Trek in the 90s and early 2000s, and his writing career that started with his now popular blog. The reader will get insights into what it’s like being a struggling actor in show more Hollywood, what it’s like to be a Comicon celebrity, and what it was like to be raised by exploitative parents. The original memoir, Just a Geek, originally used Wil Wheaton’s blog posts as a base for the memoir, giving footnotes when necessary. In this newer annotated version, Wil Wheaton comments heavily on some of his amateurish, ignorant, and just plain silly blog posts he wrote in the early 2000s.

My Review: So, I’ve seen Wil Wheaton perform on big hit shows like Star Trek The Next Generation and The Big Bang Theory, but he always seemed to be in the role of the the “supporting character.” Obviously, his memoir is going to cast Wil Wheaton as the lead, but I never realized how truly funny he could be, or just how riveting he is as a storyteller. To be clear, I “read” the audio version of this book, so I got to listen to Wil Wheaton perform a great deal of his life’s story. The majority of his memoir was centered around his life post-Trek. That is, when Wheaton was struggling to make ends meet as a “has-been” actor, not that he is a "has-been." Sure, his very first acting gig was with an Oscar-nominated movie, Stand by Me, and his TV role was with the second, and groundbreaking, iteration of Star Trek, but afterwards, his career seemed to hit a wall. He would audition for movies with a variety of production companies, both big and small, but it was a rare thing for the former child star to land any sort of acting role, despite having a wife and stepchildren to support.

I enjoyed the insider look at Hollywood and how non-celebrity actors have to fight tooth and nail for a chance to land a movie role. I also found a great deal of his personal life stories interesting; a majority of them were actually at the end, outside of the original Just a Geek volume. What I do wish the book touched on a bit more was his abusive relationship with Wheaton’s father. There was generally some mention throughout the book, but it was a little difficult to grasp the gravity of the situation until he started to talk about filming The Curse. Even then, The Curse mentioned his mother more than the father, who didn't seem to be around during filming. But maybe the situation is just too painful to write about or publicize, and I respect that.

By the way, to watch The Curse is to watch two children get abused in real life. The horror movie might be a work of fiction, but the Wheaton children were literally tortured physically and psychologically for the production.

Despite some of the horrifying revelations depicted late in this memoir, the book was, in general, a feast of hilarity and emotions, wrapped around the older footnotes of a mature, albeit witty Wil Wheaton. I definitely recommend reading this book if you are a fan of Star Trek, The Big Bang Theory, gaming, computers, acting careers, or really anything geeky. This book is for you!

Three Words that Describe this Book: hilarious, heart warming, fascinating

Give This A Try if You Like… You’re Never Weird on the Internet, The Big Bang Theory (tv series), Star Trek The Next Generation

Rating: 5/5 show less

Four short autobiographical snippets and a longer one about Star Trek that’s illuminating and very funny. Particularly so Wheaton’s run-ins with WILLIAM FUCKING SHATNER.

“Bill Shatner is an ass”
– Gene Roddenberry

It’s an odd little book. Apparently the whole thing has been done in Open Office running on the Red Hat Linux distro, and it shows. It’s been released under a Creative Commons Licence. Rather an interesting approach.

I don't enjoy memoirs generally, so why the hell so I keep picking them up?

Well, this is an interesting concept, annotating one's published memoir. Brave enough to tell the world embarrassing incidents from your life, but I am particularly impressed by the courage it takes to stand up in front of the world and say you were wrong. Or sexist, or whatever. Because if we're good people we are trying to learn and improve and at least make different errors.

But to point out this thing you wrote show more 20 years ago that makes you cringe now, to acknowledge the cringing you experience, damn, that'shardcore. Where I, to take an example at random, read my former writing on anything other than books and then shred it, burn the shreds, and wash my eyes with bleach at the horror of it all, Wheaton instead offers complete apologies to the world at large. Not those fake "I'm sorry if you were offended" apologies that refuse to acknowledge the insult, let alone offer any sort of recompense or improvement plan; these are full-on
and extensive examinations of fault and harm and humble plans. Good on you, Wheaton! You come across as a truly decent person.

I still don't like memoirs, though.

Library copy show less