Love Life

Actor Rob Lowe's (Stories I Only Tell My Friends) second memoir deals largely in his more recent past, using the personal essay as a form to reflect on a variety of topics most, notably his television work and life as a husband and father. He provides insight into his acting process, how he held his own in a scene with Dame Maggie Smith, captured the essence of JFK for Killing Kennedy and conceived the character he played in Soderbergh's Behind the Candelabra. He also breaks down some of his post-West Wing failures like NBC's The Lyon's Den plagued by production, writing, and actress problems and CBS's Dr. Vegas, where Lowe found himself ruing his insistence on casting troubled actor Tom Sizemore. When he does travel back to earlier years he seems less invested, but paints a vivid picture of 1970's Malibu, "a bastion of laissez-faire, self-centered, malignant disregard," recalls a visit to the Playboy Mansion at age 19, and being on set for Alec Baldwin's classic speech in Glengarry Glen Ross, "one of the largest beat-downs an actor has ever delivered." On parenting, Lowe shares several amusing anecdotes, the best of which involves a camping trip and a Bigfoot costume, and he reflects on the mix of pride and sadness of sending his son off to college. Lowe's second effort is an interesting insider's perspective on what works in Hollywood and what seems to be irredeemably broken and his advice on life and relationships is well-conceived and intelligent. (Apr.)