Wish You Were Here: The Official Biography of Douglas Adams – Nick Webb

Douglas Adams was an extremely influential author. He wrote the much loved science fiction series The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and followed it up with the more existential Dirk Gently series. The Guide started life as a radio series on BBC radio, became a book and a television series and, more recently, a film. Sadly, though Adams really wanted to see the film made, he died before filming began. I would say that almost everyone born between 1960 and 1990 would have at least read the books.

I was very excited to pick up this biography. The fact that Nick Webb was a good friend to Douglas Adams meant that the book would not be dry and would be filled with interesting anecdotes that would have really rounded out this man. The book tells us, not in chronological order, about his early life, his beginnings in media, the creation of the Guide and it’s incarnations, about his fascination with wildlife and animals on the brink of extinction, about his warmth, generosity, his awkwardness. It takes us along with his questioning of the big things and of the small things and of his friendship with Professor Richard Dawkins. Adams was also influential in the world of technology – he was a very big Apple Mac fan – and of talks he gave in Silicon Valley.

The problem is that this is a very dull book. Every single chapter talks about the dark depression Adams felt – the black dog, as it is known – and how he felt jealous whenever a friend became famous, popular or successful. Despite the author trying to play it down, this comes through very very easily. This is not helped by the seemingly chaotic way the book is organised – rather than by date, it seems organised by topics. Unfortunately this doesn’t work because every chapter has Adams beset by doubt and jealousy – often multiple times per chapter.

I was very disappointed by this book. If you really want a sense of Adams, I suggest skipping this work and reading Don’t Panic by Neil Gaiman. I would also suggest you read Douglas Adams’ books (both fiction and non-fiction) and be glad that, for however brief a time) he shared his vision with us.