Star Trek Memories

By: William Shatner

Narrated by: William Shatner

Length: 4 hrs and 21 mins

Publisher's summary

Boldly going where no audio has gone before, Star Trek Memories is William Shatner's own behind-the-scenes look at the legendary '60s television series that continues to spawn movies, books, and series spin-offs 26 years after the last episode aired. Avid Trekkers are sure to be delighted with this first-hand account from Captain Kirk himself.

©1993 William Shatner (P)1993 HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Glimpses of the 20th-century entertainment business that even non-Trekkies will find engaging." (New York Times Book Review)

Great story, great audio, harmed only by abridgment

Disagree with some of the other reviews that the narration isn’t up to par. It isn’t read with overindulgence, true, and Shatner’s delivery is a bit rapid, but it mostly settles in to feel like hanging out with a casual friend shooting the breeze over old stories. I actually quite liked the casual feel of the reading, and for me at least, I appreciated hearing the tale told by the man in the somewhat abrupt pacing he has in other interviews and less formal outings.

What feels MORE rushed is the abridgment, as this audiobook is a relic of the cassette tape days of audiobooks. I genuinely feel Shatner is less to blame for the rushed feel to this than the noticeable skips and jumps in the narrative as it hurtles through its abbreviated runtime to get to the end.

Shatner's 'Star Trek Memories' Hits Warp 9

Star Trek has been an important part of my life since my youth in the 1960's. Naturally, I raced to buy a paperback copy of William Shatner's 'Star Trek Memories' when it was released in July 1994. I truly loved the book for Mr. Shatner's inside stories. But it was his candor and willingness to explore the creative and personal disagreements in creating Star Trek that I found so engaging.

Fast forward to 2022. I've just finished listening to Mr. Shatner share his 'Star Trek Memories' on Audible. It's even more powerful now to hear him share these personal memories and anecdotes than when I first read the book in 94.

Listening to this Audible presentation was like sitting down with William Shatner over a cup of coffee as he shares his experiences on the show. Honest, heartfelt and always interesting... William Shatner's 'Star Trek Memories' is a journey well worth the time for any serious fan of Star Trek.

Great insight

Shatner is a great audio book voice. the book brings in new perspective in the original star trek series. highly recommended!

mostly good

I really enjoyed most of this book. I recommend stopping when you get to the point near the end where he talks about the final cancellation of the show, at the end of the third season. From then to the end it is sad and depressing. Just read up to that point for a really enjoyable bunch of anecdotes of our beloved trek.

good insider view

This was very entertaining, I only wonder what photos I missed from the printed book. I must give credit to Shatner, he included at the end what the cast disliked about him personally, which is not a small part of the story, and that was essential, I think.

A very entertaining read. Some bad language - be warned.

Rushed performance, great details.

What made the experience of listening to Star Trek Memories the most enjoyable?

It is loaded with Trek trivia. Kreski really did a humongous amount of research for this book.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Well, Bill of course.

Have you listened to any of William Shatner’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Yes, I have. This, like his narration of "Star Trek Movie Memories", feels rushed, as if he just wants to get through the reading. His "Up Till Now" was a much more enjoyable listen, and a lot more humorous a book to boot.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Drawling & Drowning in Detail.

Any additional comments?

It's a great source of details about the production of the Original Series, but you have to take it with a hefty grain of salt, because some of the stuff contradicts what Shatner has said or written before/after. For instance, he claims in this book that the controversial interracial kiss in the series never happened, while he's said many times before that it did. He also says that the actors frequently got together for barbecues and stuff off-camera, which is most certainly false. However, if you can look past the occasional fluff and misinformation, there is a great deal of interesting trivia here.

Awesome Awesome Awesome For Trekkies

I'm enjoyed this sooo much. In fact I was really sad when it was over because I wanted MUCH MORE. A great history of how the Star Trek tv series got off the ground. Stories about all the cast plus the crew and creative team. I need more!

Story of the Original Series

William Shatner reads his book about how Star Trek made it to TV. Lots of inside stories. Does finally get to the part where he finds out the second tier actors don’t like him because he was a camera hog in the last 20 minutes.

overall pretty good

loved the story, but William Shatners speed needs work. But was still interesting. I enjoyed it.

Informative.

Though there are more detailed books on the topic of Star Trek this was indeed the first and well done!