If you wish you could be a famous actor like Wil Wheaton, after reading this book you might understand that being a famous actor is not all cracked up to be. This is a guy who has had a hit movie and a hit TV show. Not many actors can claim one of each, and yet, he suffers the life of a “has been” and doesn’t enjoy the riches we all think famous actors of hit stuff enjoy for a lifetime.

Wow. This guy has impressed me with his brutally honest autobiography. I don’t have the chutzpah to say half the things I would love to say and the things on my mind are about people you never heard of. Not for Wheaton. The people and industry he speaks of are the people you and I are likely to have heard of. It’s the kind of stuff that could get you kicked out of Hollywood for good. If Hollywood turns its back on him, I’ll be standing behind him and I’m no groupie.

Sure, I’ve seen most of the ST:TNG episodes thanks to hubby, the Star Trek show fan. Sure, I admit writing a few fan letters in my lifetime. Heck, I even tried to email Wheaton asking if I could do an interview with him, but he has yet to write back. That’s OK. Many, many don’t respond to my interview queries and I just move to the next person on my list.

Why would anyone want to read an autobio about a guy on a couple of hit shows who is a blogger? I can’t answer that, but I can tell ya it is great reading. The people who would like this book are geeks, bloggers, Star Trek fans, famous people fans, actor wanna-bes, parents with step-kids, and Shatner haters.

Despite his being celebrity, he’s a guy who faces problems many of us do. Financial, a difficult ex who is no help with the kids, balancing a career and family, and finding the right job. I have experienced all of these (except the ex factor). Oh yeah, he had a moment when he felt like the invisible person. That happened to me… too many danged times.

His writing style is candid, conversational and comes across like a friend who is talking to you. Since he and I are parents, must mention that he uses a few cuss words. If you like his blog writings, you’ll like this book – without question. However, if you’ve read every blog entry he has done, you’ve read most of this book. Furthermore, if you’ve read Dancing Barefoot, you’ve caught about a chapter’s worth of this book.

Trek fans, don’t expect an entire book on his life as Wesley. Wheaton, the actor fans, don’t expect an entire book about acting although it covers a bit. WWdN, you’re getting exactly what you see in his blog.

Reading this book was a quick and wonderful read. I happened to be hospitalized (twice) for part of it and it helped me smile when it was difficult.

He might be famous and a hotshot blogger, but he has lived through many things you and I have, too. That’s what makes the book a delight. This review may sound like one from a groupie, but my responsibility is to readers not to Wheaton. My only disappointment was “re-reading” the “Saga of Spongebob Vegaspants” since this was already covered in Dancing Barefoot.

Title: Just a Geek
Author: Wil Wheaton
Publisher: O’Reilly
ISBN: 059600768X
Date: June 2004
Format: Paperback
Pages: 296
Cover Price (of course, it’s marked down): USD$24.95
CDN: 36.95
UK: 15.95

WWDN was fearless in writing Dancing Barefoot, so I returned the favor in the book review.

Yes, I saw Stand by Me. Yes, I watched “Star Trek: The Next Generation” (STNG), which premiered the season I started dating my husband then boyfriend, a fan of the old series who liked “Deep Space Nine” better. He introduced me to the show and it was responsible for one date every week except during reruns and summer break. Heck, I caught Wil Wheaton’s appearance on “Jeopardy!” wearing a tacky mudflap girl sweater.

Knowing he was a step-father to two young boys, I wondered what kind of impression he made if he wore such a sweater on an intelligent TV show. Not my business, but call it strike one. I started blogging before Wheaton came onto the scene, so it was tough to miss him when he hit it big in blogworld… strike two. The book deal with O’Reilly threw the curveball to make strike three.

No, I was not a member of the “I hate Wesley Crusher” crew. Rather, I liked the character. For once, a smart kid who didn’t wear five pound thick glasses with pimply skin. Instead, he was a teen heart throb.

As of this writing, the book ranked 540 in sales on Amazon plus it received five stars from 40 reviews. Why did I review it when it needs no help and I couldn’t find bad things to say about it? Determined not to like him, he undermined my efforts with his writing and sense of humor. He won me over.

Those interested in Star Trek and famous people will want to go straight to the last and largest chapter in the book, “The Saga of SpongeBob VegasPants.” With 110 pages of material, only about 35 of it is devoted to the other four stories and an enjoyable read they were.

Aunt Val, his aunt, sounded like the aunt we all had or wish we had. His writing about her provided a glimpse of Wil (he would want us to be on a first name basis – after all, I am older by just a notch!) as a nephew who cared about his aunt. He experienced the thoughts and feelings we did when a loved one died.

Ironically, I was sitting outside watching my kids play on a perfect Texas afternoon when reading about his playing Hide-n-Seek with his step-sons. While playing the game, he went back in time remembering different parts of his life. Of course, this led me to do the same in recalling the bike rides in my neighborhood and playing kick-the-can at camp.

The sweet yet simple moment between him and his wife in the rain upped my respect for him. Hollywood marriages failed left and right, faster than a blink. Something about his words said this was real.

The ultimate respect earner… this guy did geeky things like wearing an Atari t-shirt, writing the book on Red Hat Linux with Open Office, and staying up for 72 hours to stuff the ballot on a startrek.com poll to ensure V’ger (Voyager) didn’t beat STNG.

As a kid, I wrote a couple of fan letters and either didn’t hear back or got the templated response. Disappointed, but I was just a kid. Wil got a nasty brush off on the STNG set setting off “office gossip” where everyone knew about it. He humorously cussed his hands off about the famous person (what, me spoil it?). Bold move. Most of us would freak out in fear of the political aftermath.

Were you ever the unlucky fan near the end of the line waiting for an autograph? His perspective of the person sitting in the chair with pen in cramped hand was an eye-opener. Fire fighters, administrative assistants, and teachers have noble jobs, but don’t become famous like actors. Acting is a job and with the job comes admirers who want to be friends or possess something whether it’s an autograph or a worn outfit.

He recollected his days at work just as a friend would over a cup of coffee or in instant messaging. Instead of hearing about days in the world of a corporate office, it took place on a set and at a convention.

Dancing was worth reading. No more jealousy over Wil Wheaton’s online and book authoring successes. He earned it.

VITAL STATISTICS:
TITLE: Dancing Barefoot
AUTHOR: Wil Wheaton
PUBLISHER: O’Reilly & Associates
PUBLICATION DATE: January 2004
ISBN: 0596006748
FORMAT: Paperback
PAGES: 115
PRICE: US$14.95