Thank you Macmillan Audio for the ALC.

I read a lot of memoirs. I love learning about other people, their experiences, how they think, what makes them tick, etc. There have only been a few in my entire reading life that I’ve not enjoyed… but this is one of them, and it really takes the cake. It’s not a memoir — it’s a journal, and a lightly edited one at that. I would not have finished this book if I hadn’t received a free copy of the audiobook from the publisher. I take my responsibility as a reviewer seriously and felt the need to finish it to give it a full and fair review.

More specifically what didn’t work for me:
1. Memoirs need to have a theme, a throughline, a narrative voice. This one sort of has it — it’s about waiting to hear whether a project he’s writing will get off the ground in Hollywood. But there’s so much random, unfunny, agonizingly boring stuff included here that has no purpose other than to show how bored our narrator is. Things like how many birds visited today, how many of them died. This is a journal and a recounting of the day-to-day of the narrator’s average, privileged life.
2. There are a number of off-handed comments the author makes that come off defensive against a charge we don’t see leveled at him… like he’s defending himself against “woke”ness.
3. The tone is overwhelmingly negative and complainy. I get that this the point — waiting is hard — but if I’m going to read a memoir that brings me down, it’s going to be about something more serious and important than a Hollywood writer unsure how Glenn Close and Pete Davidson really feel about his work.
4. This whole book feels like it should have been discussed in a therapy session (or twenty) rather than published. He even acknowledges this at one point… but still makes no mention of going to therapy.

I’m just one reviewer — what doesn’t work for me might be fascinating to someone else. I expect this might speak to fellow Hollywood types or those in the biz who can sympathize with the narrator.

I will add that if you're interested in reading this, audio is a great way to go. It's narrated by the author and he's gives a solid performance that is professional and engaging (even if the content isn't).

Thank you Macmillan Audio for allowing me to read and review They Went Another Way A Hollywood Memoir by Bruce Eric Kaplan on NetGalley.

Published: 10/22/24

Narrator: Bruce Eric Kaplan (Author)

Stars: 3

Three stars is my standard for memoirs that are written for the author. I didn't learn anything. I won't remember the name of the book or the author. I found this to be a telling of his job. The day-to-day tasks and all the waiting that goes along with a Hollywood writer trying to sell or cast his work.

I wasn't interested in the subject matter; however with that said, Kaplan as a writer and narrator held my attention.

In THEY WENT ANOTHER WAY, author Bruce Eric Kaplan manages to spoil an otherwise fairly interesting tale about the entertainment industry by liberally (pun intended!) sprinkling it with virtue signaling. Presented in the form of diary entries spanning the first half of 2022, the story relates the author's day-to-day experiences while trying to pitch a script to Glenn Close. Unfortunately, he is unable to resist interjecting his personal political views that are entirely irrelevant to the narrative. Seeing a "Let's Go Brandon" sign is a reminder of "living in Germany in the 1930s." The man working on a water heater has a "MAGA feeling" about him, as does the local hardware store. The infamous "slap" turns the Oscars into a MAGA rally. He yearns for ways to escape the insanity of this country and notes how "red state people don't bother me as much as they frighten me." Surely, astute editors should remind their authors that gratuitously irritating prospective readers is bad for sales and will cause them to "Go Another Way."