Robin, May Book Club Recap
Robin is a biography covering Robin Williams’ childhood, young adult life, young acting career, and his life as a TV, movie and comedy star. The book is filled with stories from people within his life including family, friends, people he worked with, his agents, other stars, and many others. There is no short supply of people who have been impacted by his life and work. He has left his mark on all things entertainment, gaining praise for roles in movies spanning 4 decades, being a host or co-host of some of the biggest shows in the world, created generational comedy albums, and so much more. While the biography covers all of his accomplishments, what is more interesting is the story of his life, the struggles he faced, and the lessons we can take away from someone who seemingly had “it made”.
On the outside, Robin Williams is a happy, energetic person who is always having fun and making jokes, but much like all of us, he had his own struggles with his inner voice, confidence, self worth, and had his own bad habits to deal with. As mentioned in the book, when you gain the fame and the money to have your every impulse fulfilled, it can make it hard to remain human in a way. As a child, Robin moved around a lot, changed schools, cities, and states. He was unable to grasp a community and as an adult, when he finally was stable in LA, he felt he needed to do what everybody else was doing to stay a part of the community. That led to late nights, parties, and drugs, all while having a wife at home who was not always around for the fast paced part of the lifestyle. It wasn’t that Robin was a bad person, it was that he was searching for something he always wanted without knowing exactly how to find it or maybe even what it was.
The biography is a peek into the life of someone very famous, rich, and in some ways powerful. Although we cannot all relate to that side of his life, I think we can relate to the sides that wanted to chase a dream, be a part of a community, be accepted and liked, have our talents recognized, be seen and heard, be understood, give and help people in need, and have control over the life you live. We can learn from the good and bad along Robin’s path to greatness whether that be finding some kind of balance, handling opportunities and attention, handling family, etc.
Reading this book reminded me of so many of the movies Robin Williams has played in that I loved as a kid including Ms. Doubtfire that I have probably seen a thousand times. It has also introduced me to many of his other movies and work that I am really looking forward to exploring.
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