Don't Panic; The Official Guide to the Galaxy Companion: The Official Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Companion

Definitely a devotee's book, Don't Panic operates on several levels at once. The book pokes hilarious fun at the tell-all books by cult heroes as well as at the industry that inevitably grows up around phenomenal successes like Douglas Adams's bizarre, witty radio series and ensuing novels. This work is also a spoof of the Hitchhiker books and particularly of the idiosyncratic, teasing style that has made Adams's novels bestsellers in England and the U.S. A London-based freelance journalist and avid Adams fan, Gaiman interviews his hero, revealing the full story of how Hitchhiker came to be, grew and flourished. Readers learn of the misunderstanding between Adams and John Lloyd, the radio producer who almost became Adams's collaborator on the novelization of Hitchhiker. But far more engrossing than the gossip are the sheer mechanics of moving the odd characters populating the world of Hitchhiker from radio drama to the printed page to television. For those who have followed Adams's work with relish, this will be a source of much delightful trivia; non-initiates, however, are quite likely to panic if they enter this book unprepared. (May)