Monday, December 31, 2012

Book 51: Nerd Do Well by Simon Pegg


I actually got this book for my mother because she loves Simon Pegg.  A lot.  I think she has seen Hot Fuzz more than I have, which is odd considering that this is the woman who wouldn’t let me watch the Simpsons because she thought it was too violent.  Anyway, after she tore through all of his movies, available TV shows, and assorted commentaries, I figured that the only thing left was his autobiography.  Of course I had to read it after she was done…

Pegg doesn’t really want to talk about his personal life.  Anytime that he gets a personal question, he tends to deflect it.  So unlike most autobiographies, there isn’t really much in the book that I would count as over-sharing.  He sticks mostly with his life in terms of his childhood and creative influences.  He also puts intersperses a short story about the superspy version of himself and his much smarter robotic butler.  Apparently some people didn’t like this, but I thought it was pretty funny and seemed about right for him. 

I enjoyed this overall; it was funny and relaxed.  My favorite part has to be his chapter about the disappointment he felt with the Star Wars prequels.  Even though I have never been a huge Star Wars fan, it has been an unintentionally large influence on my life (I have very geeky parents) and I remember the frustration I felt with the prequels.  I am still frustrated to be honest, and Pegg’s little scenario at the book’s appendix to explain some of the stupider decisions made by the characters honestly entertained me more than the last three movies combined.  I hope that in the future Pegg choses to write another book, I’m sure it would be entertaining.

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