Tuesday, August 1, 2017

Mulgrew, Kate (Born with Teeth)

As many of you know, I've been in love with Kate Mulgrew since the first time I saw her captain a starship. She was just the kind of tough cookie you want being the first female captain of one of the hugest franchises in history. (And look, they've never done it again. That's a legacy for you.)

So I badgered my local library to get an ebook (well, badgered, I recommended they get it, and then waited until they finally  did). And then I hoovered it up as fast as I could. Mulgrew is a born artist - and that means she actually knows how to write as well. That is, if you can get past a bit of drama as well as a number of incomplete thoughts.

She draws you in because her life has been amazing! Energetic! Crazy! Tragic! And spectacular! It helps that she also has a healthy ego, because it's clear she's never doubted her acting chops, and went for anything she wanted with gusto, both professionally and privately. There is plenty of tragedy that she dishes up, but it's never dishy. Hence... the incomplete thoughts. I think Mulgrew knew that if she wrote about her tragedy in a normal dramatic way it would sound campy and trite and just like every other celebrity autobiography. So, she just fades paragraphs out and leaves you to figure out what happened. It's strange, but also somewhat charming.

If you like Mulgrew, you'll like this book a lot. If you have no patience for old-school actresses in general, you can give it a miss.

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