I am Spock

A disappointingly ordinary memoir by an extraordinary actor. A new book by Nimoy, the originator of the popular character Mr. Spock, promises to be a welcome addition to a Trekker's library. Sadly, while Nimoy the actor rarely gives an uninteresting or tedious performance, Nimoy the author has written a workmanlike but prosaic account that leaves the reader wondering what he might have said had he not been so seemingly eager to avoid both controversy and complexity. In fact, Nimoy apologizes for his more controversial 1975 memoir, I Am Not Spock: "That was just a play of words, ideas. I was just trying to find a way to come to terms and explain . . . us. Our relationship. Did you feel rejected? I'm sorry," Nimoy says to Spock, with whom he has periodic conversations throughout the book. Most of Nimoy's numerous anecdotes here add little to Trek lore. More informative are his chapters describing unrelated projects such as the films Three Men and a Baby and The Good Mother, both of which Nimoy directed. His prose is chatty, banal, and prone to hyperbole. For instance, he describes Trek's writer-producer Gene Coon as "the kind of person who didn't parade his amazing accomplishments - he just simply did the impossible, and did it well." Indeed, every actor, writer, producer, and technician with whom Nimoy worked was "amazing," "brilliant," and "wonderful." He glosses over the bitter feelings and internecine squabbling vividly described in other Trek books, calling into question the exactness of his reminiscences. Unlike William Shatner's writings, with their annoying yet oddly engaging egomania, and George Takei's expression of heartfelt outrage, I Am Spock lacks a sense of Nimoy's personality. It has no oomph. (Kirkus Reviews)