I wanted to like this book more than I did, though I also didn't dislike it. I've been a Rickman fan since I was a kid--Galaxy Quest was what sealed it for me, and he's one of the few celebrity deaths that genuinely left me distraught.
The excerpts of these diaries that were published were very good, and they were pedaled with the message that he'd written them for publication, so I have been anticipating this book quite eagerly since I first read about a couple of months ago.
But the opening foreword admits that it is not clear if he ever intended for them to be published. The project has the blessing of his widow Rima, but I have really mixed feelings on whether they should have been released without a clearer mandate from him. I have been writing diaries on and off since I was 6 (and seriously since I was 12), and I'd be uncomfortable if someone released mine. Not that anyone wants to read my thoughts compared to Alan Rickman but still. LOL
Overall, their tone is very bitchy. It's a very witty, articulate, well-written, intelligent brand of bitchy--I'd expect nothing less of Rickman. But they're very bitchy all the same. Sometimes that is hilarious--I did genuinely laugh out loud multiple times while reading them--and other times they are quite mean-spirited and acidic. Rickman spends a lot of time sullenly ranting about productions and directors and fellow actors, but many of the details are quite cryptic, so it is often hard to follow what he is mad about, which makes it hard to conclude if he is being reasonable or not. Some of his harshest comments are reserved for seemingly close friends, and I did wonder how they felt about that. He does admit to being difficult in the diaries several times, and the moments he is more self-aware about his rants and his own reputation come off a lot better.
He also is very generous with praise when he thinks it is warranted, which helps even out the harsher aspects of the material, and I liked how often he delved into the mundane aspects of his life. No matter how big of a star you are and how many premieres and fancy parties you attend, you still have to battle home improvement projects and reading your mail, and he often has a sly wit in talking about it.
One highlight for me was his frequent movie reviews. He loved to watch movies and would often sound off with a pithy, insightful 1-2 sentence review. He also enjoyed reading and often mentions titles, though he has much less to say about the books he reads. Rickman was also an avid traveler, with a second home in Italy, and his descriptions of the various places he traveled are especially evocative and well done. Per some of the photos in the book, in the originals, Rickman--who had a background in graphic design--often sketched accompanying images with his entries, and I really wish the publisher had tried to reproduce this aspect.
Overall, I think the diaries would have benefitted from more editorial intervention. The editor does occasionally clarify who or what Rickman is referencing, but it is not consistent and there are large swaths of passages that are almost impossible to follow because Rickman is so inscrutable in his references. Intriguingly, there is an appendix with excerpts from Rickman's earlier diaries in the 70s and 80s when he was a less frequent writer, and I honestly would have preferred reading more of them. He tended to be more open, reflective, and analytical in them than he was once he became a more regular writer.
In any event, these are an uneven, interesting, intriguing behind-the-scenes look at a very talented but cryptic man. The final months of the diary, after Rickman is diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, are genuinely heartbreaking. He still tries to maintain his privacy and normal social calendar--even attending a play a couple of hours after receiving the diagnosis and not notifying others of his prognosis for several weeks--and continues to be circumspect in recording the details of his illness in his own personal diary, but the trailing off in his energy is quite palpable and really hard to read.