The Autobiography of James T. Kirk

Star Trek Autobiographies

by David A. Goodman, Russell Walks (Illustrator)

The Autobiography of James T. Kirk chronicles the greatest Starfleet captain's life (2233–2371), in his own words. From his birth on the U.S.S. Kelvin, his youth spent on Tarsus IV, his time in the Starfleet Academy, his meteoric raise through the ranks of Starfleet, and his illustrious career at the helm of the Enterprise, this in-world memoir uncovers Captain Kirk in a way Star Trek fans have never seen. Kirk's singular voice rings throughout the text, giving insight into his convictions, his bravery, and his commitment to the life—in all forms—throughout this Galaxy and beyond. Excerpts from his personal correspondence, captain's logs, and more give Kirk's personal narrative further depth.

Genres: Star Trek, Science Fiction, Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy, Space, Ebooks, Fantasy

298 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 2015

About the author

David A. Goodman is an American writer, producer, and president of the Writers Guild of America West. He has been a writer for several television series, such as The Golden Girls, Futurama, where he was also a co-executive producer and wrote the notable Star Trek parody episode "Where No Fan Has Gone Before", and Star Trek: Enterprise.

Reviews

[Alejandro · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant book! James Kirk in his own words!


RECTIFIED DECISION

I was wrong.

I didn’t rush to read this brilliant book since I was kinda disappointed that it wasn’t written by William Shatner himself, taking in account that he is an author who had already not only published several awesome Star Trek novels but also creator of TekWar book series.

Maybe I wouldn’t be worry about that little detail if the book wouldn’t be title “Autobiography…”. It was just a biography BUT an autobiography! And while I wouldn’t expected that Patrick Stewart would write the autobiography of Jean-Luc Picard, as I pointed out before, since William Shatner was indeed an author, I just thought that it wasn’t anything that I would be in any hurry to read.

I was wrong.

Also, I didn’t know who the actual writer of the book was, David A. Goodman was producer of several TV series but also scriptwriter in many popular TV series that I liked a lot just like The Golden Girls, Wings, Futurama, Family Guy and Star Trek: Enterprise. He knows his stuff.

Happily, since I found out that The Autobiography of Captain Jean-Luc Picard will come out this year (2017) (by the way, truly glad that it’s written by the same author, David A. Goodman), so I thought that it was about time to read Kirk’s…

…but I wasn’t expecting any good reading.

I was wrong.

It is one of the best Star Trek books that I ever read (and I have read a lot of them!)
David A. Goodman isn’t William Shatner. William Shatner was James T. Kirk. However, you can trust me that David A. Goodman’s writing will give you, without a single doubt, the inner thoughts of James T. Kirk and you’ll believe that it’s the Captain of The Enterprise who is writing this book that…

…it’s indeed an autobiography.


THE ULTIMATE AUTOBIOGRAPHY

With the advantage of the publication date (2016), this autobiography not only is able to cover the whole life of James Tiberius Kirk in the 23rd Century, BUT also, priceless references making tribute to the whole Star Trek franchise (so far): TNG, DS9, VOY, ENT and even the Abramsverse (it’s still the original Star Trek universe, but while keeping the original timeline, you have ingenious ways to have elements developed in the recent new movies).

David A. Goodman, the author, not only portraited the key moments of Kirk’s life, before, during and after Starfleet, that you may be aware through the original TV series and the motion pictures, but also, he added “never-before-known” extra scenes in classic episodes and movies, what happened after the TV episodes ended, what happened between the movies, deepening the experience of popular stories focused on Kirk, so you can indeed...

...boldly reading what no Trekker has read before about Kirk!

Moreover, the author had freedom to incorporate brilliant totally new anecdotes to make even better and richer the life experiences of Jim Kirk with a exclusive front seat for the reader, having an unique point-of-view and direct access to Kirk’s thoughts of memorable moments that not only defined Kirk’s career but also they were crucial for the safety of the galaxy.

Maybe the only disappointment was that it wasn’t used the Animated Series, that I understand its canon status is a blurry zone, but it could be nice to have some of it mentioned here.

But…

…as a reward for not having the Animated Series years, you’ll get a priceless chapter, giving a tip of the hat to Star Trek V: The Final Frontier that it was indeed taking out of the canon by Roddenberry himself, but since it was a movie (with many troubles, yes) but directed and written by William Shatner, well, it couldn’t be complete an autobiography of Captain James T. Kirk without some ingenious twist to include a reference to it.


KIRK’S INSPIRATION

It was thought that George Kirk (James Kirk’s dad) was the key influence for James Kirk to become what he decided to be, and while George may have some weight on his life decision…

…here, in this autobiography you’ll read with an astonishing detail, the great moment when Jim Kirk was impressed with an image that convinced him that…

…he wanted to help people, he wanted to save lives, he wanted to be a Starfleet officer.

The author’s description of that moment is so striking that that image not only stuck in Jim Kirk’s memory…

…but in mine as well.


KIRK’S SHIPS

Obviously, you’ll read about Kirk’s years commanding the original Enterprise (before and after refit) and the Enterprise-A, and you may know about Kirk’s time onboard of the Republic, but in this kickin’ butts autobiography you’ll discover new ships where Kirk served and even commanded, clearing up quite a bit, the extended universe’s mentioned vessels in Kirk’s career.

And reading between the lines, you’ll figure out how a 29-years-old officer got the rank of captain in Starfleet and was also giving the command of the Enterprise.


KIRK’S WOMEN

In my experience the only thing that competes with commanding a ship is a woman.

In this awesome autobiography you’ll get to know which women really touch Kirk’s heart, and while he had a “ladies’ man” reputation, you’ll realize that the women that Kirk really REALLY loved were quite a few…

…but all of them truly special…

…all of them make you to smile and to drop a tear…

…and sadly, none of them was a happy ending for Kirk.


KIRK’S FRIENDS AND FOES

And certainly, you’ll read how Kirk met all his closest friends and deadly foes…

…and sometimes, it won’t be easy to know who is who, since life changes people, and Kirk’s life impacted for good or worse the lives of many people…

…and Kirk had to live with the repercusions of his own decisions.

The author is very clever, knowing when and how to introduce each friend and foe in the right moment of Kirk’s life, but not only in the generally known time, but also before and after, to give us the whole picture of each character around James Kirk’s life…

…from his childhood in Iowa, passing through his early young experiences in outer space, his Starfleet Academy years, his long baptism of fire onboard of various Starfleet vessels, his legendary adventures while commanding the USS Enterprise, his triumphs and his failures, until before his attendance to the maiden voyage of the Enterprise-B…

…James T. Kirk’s life in his truly own words!

With a respectful foreword by Dr. Leonard H. McCoy and a priceless afterword by Spock.

You won’t really get to know Kirk’s life until reading this very book!

We needed the next generation to start keeping watch. It was time for me to go.

But don’t worry!

Legends never die!

James Kirk will return !

But…

…that’s another story.

[Jerry (Rebel With a Massive Media Library) · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's interesting to read the events of some of the Trek episodes and movies from Kirk's point-of-view, but this still isn't the franchise as I've come to expect it.

[Magdalena aka A Bookaholic Swede]

A friend bought it for me and sent it to me from the states! Happiness!


The Autobiography of James T. Kirk $0.99 on Amazon

And, I can't buy it. Upset? Not at all...*damn fucking country rules*!


Anyway, here is the link

*************************

[Marlene · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally published at Reading Reality

I bounced off of two fairly serious books, and found myself staring at today with nothing to post. I gave up my attempts at serious for the week and turned to the book that was calling my name, loudly and with 60s theme music. As the 49th anniversary of the debut of a quirky little science fiction TV series called Star Trek occurred this week, it seemed like a fine time to dig The Autobiography of James T. Kirk out of my TBR pile.

Just in case you’re wondering, this is the story of the first James T. Kirk. Or perhaps the “Original Kirk”, in line with the naming convention of referring to the 1966-1969 series as “The Original Series” or TOS.

The framing story that sets up the book is interesting in and of itself. It is purportedly edited from a recording that Kirk made at Memory Alpha just before his “death” on the maiden voyage of the Enterprise-B. Kirk was a ceremonial guest at the launch, but ended up saving the ship and being swallowed by an energy vortex when the ship was attacked. He saved the day (again) and was lost, presumed dead.

Memory Alpha really exists. It is the name of one of the Star Trek wikis. Fans know that Kirk was not killed on the Enterprise-B, but was lost in the Nexus vortex and returned to real space-time to finally die while helping his successor, Jean-Luc Picard, Captain of the Enterprise-D, save the universe from a madman intent on destroying the universe. Again. (This is the plot of the movie Star Trek Generations in a very tiny nutshell.)

Kirk’s last words were, “It was… fun. Oh my…” This Autobiography is a fleshing out of exactly what it was that was so much fun. And sometimes so much tragedy.

While the book is part of the convention of fiction that is written as though its protagonist was a real person, in the same way that the Sherlock Holmes stories are purported to be written by Dr. John Watson about his friend Holmes and merely edited by Conan Doyle, this book can be read as a fleshing out of Kirk’s biographical entry in our version of Memory Alpha.

It takes all of the incidents that are known from the series and movies, and turns them into a complete portrait of a fictional life. Because the story is told from Kirk’s perspective, we see things that we did not see on film. Kirk was so often a “cowboy”; cocky, self-assured, sometimes self-absorbed, and always coming out on top with a smirk or a smile. Through his eyes in this autobiography, we see all the times when that was an act, that the outward confidence often masked an inwards doubt. And sometimes a bit too much hubris.

The other thing that this book does well is put some meat on the bones of the story we heard bits of but didn’t see – both his childhood and the years after his retirement from Starfleet. In the episode Court Martial, there is a recitation of all of Kirk’s many, many medals and awards. In the book, we see how he got those awards, without him talking about them directly. We read about the tragedy that led to Kodos the Executioner (The Conscience of the King), and the insanity of the Axanar peace talks. And there is plenty of information, and plenty of regret, in Kirk’s relationship with the son he virtually abandoned.

While the story does touch on some incidents from the TV episodes, it does not become a catalog of them. Only the incidents that impacted on the life of this fictional person get any mention. So we read his perspective of The Doomsday Machine and Obsession, but not The Trouble With Tribbles. And the inclusions and exclusions feel right.

Escape Rating B+: This is, without a doubt, a book for the fans, especially fans of the original series. For readers like me, who loved that show and remember it with extreme fondness, it is an absolute treat of a book. I read it in one sitting, mostly with a smile on my face. And occasionally with a pang in my heart. Which makes it a difficult book to rate. I loved it and was lost in it, but that has as much to do with my own nostalgia rather than it does the book.

For those who loved this show, even with its many faults, the throw away treatment of the events in the laughably awful movie Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, is guaranteed to bring a chuckle.

On the other hand, this book is no way to introduce anyone to Star Trek: The Original Series. And possibly not for fans of the reboot who are wondering what all the fuss is about. But for those of us who already know what made this show so marvelous, this is a chance to slip back to a universe we all remember with love.

Live long, and prosper.

[Richard Derus · Rating 3 out of 5]

Majorly meh writing, the story is familiar because Kirk, and really only good for someone like me who's battling a nasty cold, can't focus on anything substantive, and spent 99¢ on it.

The afterword by "Spock" was sweet (!) and I really liked the photos. Fans only.

[Reese Copeland · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great book. Having grown up watching the Star Trek re-runs and the movies, I thought that this book added a lot of background to the character. You get a chance to see how the character started out and developed to hold the values that he does. It adds an incredible amount of back story. Any fan of the shows will find this a seriously great read!

[Kandice · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was fun to read, but I wish there had been a bit more substance to it. We did get a few details about his “before Starfleet” life that were welcome, but once he enters Starfleet the book becomes basically a recap of the original series episodes and then the movies. Brief recaps, at that.

I have been in love with James T. Kirk since the age of six and even now in his fat old age, William Shatner is the “Hall Pass” of my marriage, so I always read everything by, or about him that I can get. I’m glad I read this but wish it had contained more new material.

[Viktor · Rating 2 out of 5]

Perfectly OK if you think that Kirk is an anti-religious, self-doubting twat. A starship named "Obama"? Do we all really have to put up with this?

[Les · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a nerd. I have seen all the episodes of Star Trek TOS and all the movies
And I loved this book. It uses the original time line not the one from the Star Trek Reboot.
It is a fun and imaginative book that I never wanted to end...

[Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ovo je jedna od onih knjiga koje mi se i svidjaju i ne pa samim tim ih je teško oceniti. Ka veliki fan serijala Zvezdanih Staza tokom godina sam gledao manje više sve što ima pa sam dobro upoznat sa lorom. Kao takvo ova knjiga predstavlja fin walk down memory lane. Ali ako niste investirani u ceo serijal e onda cela knjiga poprima konfuzne proporcije.

Ova knjiga predstavlja biografiju Džejms T. Kirka i prati njegov ceo život od rane mladosti pa do smrti. Ali to je predstavljenom gomilom mini priča, avanturica, koji su oblikovali njegov život. Većina tih pričica su interesantne ali su suviše šture da bi dali uvid u događaje ili mentalni sklop našeg junaka. Odnosno, jednostavnije rečeno, uzmite najpopularnije epizode originalne serije i prepričajte ih u par pasusa pa dobijate ideje. Ima tu naravno i originalnog materijala ali sam opet malo razočaran.

Sa druge strane svidja me se način na koji su prikazali 5 deo filmova. Nasmejalo me je :)

Sve u svemu nije loše ako ste fan serijala, za druge malo teža preporuka.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I did a glowing review for another David A. Goodman Star Trek book, the wonderful "Federation: The First 150 Years", a couple of years ago, and once again I am going to heap praise on this author. And the reason why I appreciate Mr. Goodman's writing so much is because he understands the difference between a Trekker and a Trekkie.

Follow me along here.

Most people who watch and enjoy Star Trek are "Trekkies". Although some neckbearded Trekkers use this term as a pejorative, there's really nothing wrong with it. I'm a 'Trekkie' for a lot of things myself--Star Wars, in fact, to pull another space opera off the shelf. I've seen all the Star Wars films, I know most of the characters to a certain extent, I even know some facts, like that Han Solo made the Kessel Run in fewer than twelve Parsecs.

But, to me, Star Wars is all just a bit of fun, an entertaining pop culture diversion that I don't think too hard about after stepping outside the theater. Clearly, I would not qualify for the 'Trekker' Star Wars counterpart title, whatever they call it.

Trekkies like the pop culture aspect of Star Trek, the kitschy 1960s style of the Original Series, the fun lines they can quote, reveling in the silly deaths of redshirts, things like that. Ain't nothing wrong with it, really. You might see these folks sporting Spock ears and wearing 'Spock Lives' T-shirts. They glory in the entertainment value of Star Trek, like "Gilligan's Island" fans.

Trekkers, for good and for ill (and I'll acknowledge there's plenty of ill out there), want to live almost as completely within the universe of Star Trek as they can get. Some of them certainly take it too far. It's scary. But David A. Goodman is my kind of Trekker, because he knows how to present the universe of Star Trek as if it's 'A Real Thing'. His previous book, which I named above, is written as if you were a resident of that universe and time instead of this one. It's nearly academic--to his fictional readers, this is their actual history. It's not pop culture kitsch; it's nonfiction.

"The Autobiography of James T. Kirk" is another in that vein of Star Trek. This book isn't presented like a pulp adventure novel, the way most Star Trek books are. The cover doesn't even contain the words 'Star Trek'. This is written and presented the way (as we would see) a retired US Navy admiral would submit his memoirs, with a serious tone and an eye to his legacy. And the author continues this seriousness with the narrative, forcing his retiring Captain Kirk to regard his choices and decisions with a sober viewpoint and the benefit of hindsight. It's substantial, it's interesting, and it's worth reading, whether you're a Trekker or a Trekkie. Or even if you're neither of those things, but just a person who wants to read an interesting story.

And for that, I thank David A. Goodman. Because he gets it.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

From reading The Autobiography of James T. Kirk, it's very clear that David A. Goodman knows his stuff. He captures the unique voice of Kirk in the pages of the book, and his relationships with those around him feel very real. I would have like the book to go more in depth in some of the areas we know less about, but Goodman does a very good job in balancing what we know with new material. There are some very clever choices made in this book that made me grin, but that might make other fans dislike the direction he takes. Unfortunately, you can't please everyone, but I think that Goodman has crafted an entertaining life story for our intrepid captain, and The Autobiography of James T. Kirk will have a place on my bookshelf.

Full review: http://treklit.blogspot.com/2015/10/K...

[artemis · Rating 1 out of 5]

I feel like this would have been more enjoyable for me if I hadn't already watched the show/films, because a lot of it just read like a rehashed version of an episode guide...not sure why I'm surprised at the terrible quality, though, considering it was written by David Goodman.

There were some really racist concepts that I'm glad never made it to screen, e.g. "educating" everyone to get rid of accents isn't science fiction or human advancement. It's called forced assimilation, and it exists in the here and now.

[Clay Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Could be a very fast read if you know all TOS episodes and movies. Would have been nice if the author wrote about time lost his memory, mistaken for a god and married an Indian princess. A better book cover would have been good.

[Mareike · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was so frustrating.
I mostly read it to see how it compares to Una McCormack’s The Autobiography of Kathryn Janeway and I’m afraid that I liked the latter a lot more.
Yes, I know that the book is somewhat fenced in by a show that started in the late 1960s and movies that were made mostly in the 80s, but there were so many cringeworthy moments that I seriously considered dnf-ing it a few times.
I did appreciate that we got some more details on Kirk’s experiences on Tarsus IV and I liked the Afterword “by” Spock, but mostly, this book was a miss for me.

[Camille Maio · Rating 4 out of 5]

I Ike to say that the most long-standing argument in my 21-year marriage is whether Captain Kirk or Captain Picard is better. I’m squarely in the Picard camp. My husband disagrees. However reading the “autobiography” of Kirk was fascinating and entertaining and I will watch future episodes with more interest.

[Autumn Kearney · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Autobiography of James T. Kirk. This is remarkably well written. My favorite text is “The price of liberty,” the American patriot Thomas Jefferson wrote, “is eternal vigilance.” My favorite part at the back is his photograph for the Starfleet Academy’s yearbook.

[Monty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just in time for the 60th Anniversary of the debut of Star Trek on television and American mythology, comes the Autobiography of James T. Kirk. This single volume ties together the Star Trek canon in the only way possible, through the fictional life of Captain Kirk. Editor David A. Goodman manages to craft a narrative weaving ALL of the first season of Star Trek episodes together with the films starring William Shatner in that role. This is only natural, as most of the known Universe gets the image of William Shatner when the name Captain Kirk is mentioned, as they do Leonard Nimoy for Spock, Deforest Kelley for Bones and James Doohan for Scotty. The photo inserts featuring Shatner/Kirk are a nice entertaining addition. Many of the incidents are covered episodically and superficially, but add important threads to the tapestry of the tale. Fans of the original series and subsequent movies will find this nostalgic, joyful, and even reflective as the character Kirk considers the impact of his life on the Federation and the known Universe. This is an excellent choice to ring-in the 60th Anniversary year of Star Trek. (And if there had been no Star Trek, there probably would have been no Star Wars. Every child has a parent or grandparent).

[Mark Muckerman · Rating 2 out of 5]

meh.

A decent effort and I applaud the author's work and success of keeping the prose in the "Jim Kirk style". Overall a solid retelling of the series episodic arc as memories. However I think there's an opportunity missed, which I attribute to the author's lack of time, interest, creativity or knowledge: This book could have been 50% longer, with the creation and addition of more "Jim Kirk backstory" of facts, details and reflections on event that WEREN'T in the episodes.

An admirable effort, but falls short.

[Brian Eshleman · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are patches of five star material as Kirk delves into his motivation and as he describes what it was like to live in the actual Federation. Unfortunately, The rest was a clip-fest. If you LOVE Captain Kirk and The Original Series, and I didn't, his snippets of remembrance will delight you. If not, they will get in the way of what could have been deeper reflection.

[Jeff Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first part was the best as it starts with Kirk's childhood and entrance into Star Fleet. After that it is pretty much a string of plot summaries. Fairly well written, but doesn't really add much to Kirk.

[Doug Albers · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wanted to like this book, but am so glad I got it from the library and didn't have to pay for it.

The first 50ish pages read like fan-boy name dropping fiction. The author tries to add and associate as many non-TOS characters and events to Kirk as he can. It's a big universe, yet everyone and everything seems to run through Captain Kirk. The rest of the book comes off as a recap of what the author sees as key episodes from the series and then a quick recap of the movies. He also tries to pass off the fifth movie (ST V: The Final Frontier) as a movie on a less developed planet. He intersperses these vignettes with rather dry behind the scenes add-ons that serve no real purpose and provide little value. None of it works or provides any interest in the characters or events. James Blish did it better in Star Trek 1-12.

David Goodman seems to have no understanding of how a navy runs and it shows. In modern navies, officers are rotated through as many departments on a ship as possible, to learn how and why things work on a ship, so that when they are put in command,they've been exposed to a wide variety of people and situations and can properly guide and develop all of their subordinates because they have held the same or similar positions. Goodman puts his officers in the same position for their entire careers. I can't see this as doing anything except creating some of the most one dimensional people in the galaxy. Even though he may not like the military (which comes through quite a bit in his writing; most of the officers, except those on the Enterprise, are warmongers trying to start a war with the Klingons), a little study of leadership could go a long way in making this a readable book. Add to the fact that in Goodman's Alice in Wonderland Starfleet, all ship's captain's recruit their own officers for their ships. What better way to build your own little fiefdom and dictatorship than using only handpicked officers. So, did Star Fleet just do awy with Human Resources or Personnel Management? Riddle me this Batman: since the officers all stay on the same ship, doing the same jobs, with the same captain, how exactly are the officers supposed to learn from each other,share experiences, or develop and expand professionally? No one gets new jobs, new experiences, new opportunities. Heavy sigh.

Goodman has made Kirk, a very dynamic, passionate, literate, and interesting character into a boring, navel gazing basket case. None of the passion, eloquence, sense of right or wrong, or any exploration of philosophy or issues that was present in the original series, the follow-on series, or movies comes through in this boring, boring book.

I could go on and on about what is wrong with this book. I spent most of the reading of this book rolling my eyes and groaning. David Goodman lacks the creativity and imagination to make this book enjoyable. If you want to experience Star Trek, I would suggest reading the James Blish short stories and the movie novelizations. They provide a lot more eloquence and background to the characters than Goodman could ever hope to provide.

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book! It helped me get to know the mind and life of a captain I previously didn't know much about other than what I'd seen on screen. Ha, get it? on screen? Anyway, this book helped me get into the mind of an important individual in the Star Trek world and showed me that he wasn't just the overconfident & arrogant lothario that we're led to believe. He had insecurities, self-doubt, pain, and loss that as a captain, he couldn't show. We also saw just how important the individuals he surrounded himself with were to him which is why he kept such a tight circle for so many years. Having watched maybe 85% of the material this book was based around, it helped me gain an insight into his mind at the time. I only hope that books like these are eventually "written by" Captains Picard, Sisko, Janeway, and oh alright, Archer too.

[Steven Wilson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Review pending on my blog, but this was a disappointment. Too short, too poorly researched, and mostly the author's rebuttal of plot points he didn't like in classic Star Trek. This should have been at least half again as long, and written by someone who understood the character. The late A.C. Crispin could have done a much more creditable job.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

if you love the Star Trek series and movies featuring the original cast members, then this is for you. The book takes you from Kirk's childhood through his final retirement reliving all the memories of his career at Starfleet and his crew, friends and love interests. This was a walk down memory lane because I recall all the events mentioned. Highly recommed

.

[Crystal Bensley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wasn't quite sure what to expect with this book but it's a great telling of Kirk's early life through to his death. Really compelling although a few details differ from those in Memory Alpha and Beta.

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

A gift from my daughter, the dauntless eclectic reader! Trekkies will relish this. Expect a good trip down the memory lane of the first three seasons of Star Trek, with a few twists and elaborations on Kirk's antics in outer space.

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazingly fun read

I now need to go see the original series and the movies with the original cast all over again. These characters have been allowed to live once more. Highly recommend.

[Kimberly · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun little book- the perfect introduction as I begin to watch the entire Star Trek series in chronological order. I had some trouble classifying it: fiction, nonfiction? Eventually I checked the fiction & biography boxes.

[H. Givens · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was firstly pleased to discover that this is indeed about TOS Kirk, not movie Kirk. Secondly, that it actually reads like an autobiography, not just a novel that uses the title for rhetorical purposes. The first third or so, before Kirk becomes captain of the Enterprise, is the best. Goodman weaves in every reference we've had to Kirk's early days, but he makes it all make sense. Not in an unexpected way, but in a way that feels right, that clicks into place. Names circulate Starfleet and the Academy in a believable way, so it's not just "the crew in the academy," but different people and different ships that slowly move into what we know. Kirk and Spock don't know each other at all in the Academy, which to me is an excellent decision.

The middle third covers the TOS years, mostly in brief interludes between episodes or at major moments. The last third moves Kirk through the movies. Neither of these was as compelling, for two reasons: One, even though I enjoy that there isn't a plot per se, these sections have no sense of action because the vignettes take place between episodes or movies. Two, because it quickly became apparent that the through-line was Kirk's relationships with important women. And it's done believably, coherently, and this Kirk makes sense... I appreciated how the book treated these relationships, especially at the beginning. People who were important to Kirk, genuinely, but who in the end had no place in his future. That hurts him, but he moves on. Unfortunately as the book progresses, he increasingly chooses to meditate on the home life he could have had. Again, Goodman has created a coherent vision of the character as Kirk gets older, but it's not the only vision and I didn't find it compelling, especially contrasted with the treatment of Spock. I would argue that, whether you ship it or not, Spock was the most important relationship of Kirk's life. Kirk was willing to destroy his career and his starship for Spock. They were shown to be friends, and increasingly intimate as time went on. None of that gets a showing in this book. There's no sense of intimacy or shared experience, Kirk almost seems surprised when McCoy calls Spock Kirk's friend. I knew there wouldn't be a romantic relationship between them, even though in this day and age I wish we could admit that potential, but I didn't expect no relationship at all.

The first third of this book is almost revelatory. The rest has a few high points, and a few mistakes (like confusing Idaho with Iowa at one point?), but is on the whole just a bit boring for me. The first third, and the overall high quality of the writing, pull the whole thing through for me and make it worthwhile.