Last year, I wrote a post in which I rather aggressively derided memoirs. I mitigated and clarified some of my positions from that post in the comments, but you might still be surprised to see a memoir showing up in my book reviews. In truth, I may not have chosen to read Making It So for myself – I’d seen it announced and did not put it on my reading list – but it was given to me as a gift, so…I read it. Really, if someone gives me a book, it must be exceptionally unappetizing for me to not read it.
The cynical perspective on Making It So is that it is Patrick Stewart capitalizing on his famous role as Captain Picard, and I rather feared/expected a number of forced Star Trek references. There were a few of those, and it did read as something of a vanity project without a lot of significant insight to provide, but it was better written, and less Star Trek focused, than I expected. That’s for the best.
The book is at its most interesting when it discusses Stewart’s path to being a professional actor and the considerations that go into acting and the acting career. It’s not a career with which I’m familiar, as you might expect from someone who wanted to study astronautical engineering since the seventh grade (and before that, I wanted to be a carpenter). Stewart’s childhood also highlights just how much the world has changed since the late 1940s and 50s. This is less noticeable in the US, because the US was still building new infrastructure at the time, but places like Stewart’s hometown, which existed already for hundreds of years, were slower to change and adopt a more modern aspect.
While this is not intended to be a book about acting, and I know that to be the case, I would have found it interesting to gain more insight into how Stewart makes his acting decisions. We get a little of this, mostly pertaining to specific roles and scenes, but no larger examination of his acting methodology. That would have helped elevate the book from a first-order reflection piece to something more substantial, and the snippets of these ideas that he does explore are among the most engaging parts of the memoir.
One of the best parts of the book is how Stewart’s A Christmas Carol reading came to be, covering logistics, revisions, considerations, support, and other background elements that are not usually mentioned, and even the thought process he went through to come up with the voices and the final version that he presented. He restrains himself from belaboring his Star Trek role too much, with just a few reflections and thoughts. I still disagree with his decision to agree to the Picard show, but hey, I don’t have to watch it.
Much of the book also emphasizes Stewart’s various relationships, particularly of the romantic nature. This is, honestly, part of the reason I don’t really read memoirs – I just don’t want to or need to know this kind of information/drama. It doesn’t affect me in any way, and there aren’t lessons that can really be drawn from it. That’s my broader problem with memoirs in general, especially actor ones. I don’t really follow actors, or acting, and what they do in their world is a problem for them, not for me.
After reading it, my conclusion is much the same as my assumptions beforehand. Making It So is well written and has a few, mildly interesting segments, but it overall doesn’t offer much that is unique or freshly insightful in any broader sense. As far as memoirs go, it’s better than many…and still not something I would necessarily seek out to read. But, if it comes your way, it’s not a bad read.
IGC Publishing 