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I ordered a copy of Just a Geek, by Wil Wheaton a few weeks back, and have to say it’s one of the most enjoyable books I’ve read in a while.

Wil Wheaton’s autobiographical piece came to my attention because Wil has become something of a character in the weblogging world. As a weblogger, you do kind of have to be stranded on a desert island with your head in the sand, not to have heard of him. Like many geeks, I had first come across him as a character from Star Trek, The Next Generation. One I’d not particularly liked at that. Unfairly on me (and perhaps in common with many) I’d assumed Wil was much like his character, but as he explains in his FAQ, he was only working with what he was given. I couldn’t have been more wrong in my perceptions (admittedly built when I too was a teenager, pretty much the same age as Wil)

So “Just a geek” is the story of Wil’s journey, from the moment he had a life-changing conversation with a waitress up to recent times. He looks back at his time as a famous child actor in “Stand by Me”, through Star Trek, and on to his current life and situation.

It’s inspiring stuff. Wil’s tackling the challenges that life has thrown at him full on. In doing so, he’s rediscovered a skill for writing that is engrossing, engaging and even endearing. You feel for the guy as he tells of his struggles, as a working-class actor, to land roles in movies and shows; as he struggles to make ends meet. But you also cheer with him when he scores victories, and things come together, either getting back on the Trek circuit, or making the leap to embracing his current situation. He’s a long way away from the loaded actor I suppose I thought he was having had such roles earlier in his career. He really is Just a geek.

So I can report that I’m now a regular reader of Wil’s his weblog, and have his other book Dancing barefoot in my basket at amazon. And like other readers, I’m rather looking forward to his appearance in CSI when it finally airs over here in the UK, probably next year (unless BitTorrent becomes my friend, of course). Definitely a book to look out for, and it comes highly recommended from this geek.