As You Do

Adventures With Evel, Oliver, and The Vice-President Of Botswana

By: Richard Hammond

Narrated by: Richard Hammond

The wry, honest and often hilarious chronicles of a very brave and clever TV presenter, Arctic Explorer and general drawer of the Short Straw.

Moving quickly on from the devastating crash that nearly killed him he ranges widely over his life and times: a visit to Glastonbury with James May reminds of him of his early years of playing in a band and how and why he never quite made it as a rock star; the stunts and other perils that come his way like the TopGear North Pole race (why is it Richard who is out in the howling elements in a dog sled whilst the others are in the heated cab of an all-terrain vehicle?), Africa where he falls in love with and repatriates a stray car, and the US (once to be chased by Rednecks in middle America, the other in pursuit of his mad hero Evel Knievel); his passion for cars, what he owns and why and although he loves his wife why it is a toss-up whether he says hello to the wife or the cars first. Balancing home and family with a crazy, peripatetic working life (or not, sometimes), the hamster is well and truly back on the wheel.

©2008 Richard Hammond (P)2008 Orion Publishing Group Ltd

Short, but provides Hammonds trademark humour

Unfortunately this is an abridged version, so it's only 3 hours long. Richard does an excellent job reading and the book provides insight into some of the most famous top gear challenges.

just wish it was a bit longer

great story. I'd like it unabridged however. I reached the end wanting it to continue further. looks like I will just have to download another of my favorite car critics works.

Top Gear in words

If you could sum up As You Do in three words, what would they be?

Audio Top Gear

Who was your favorite character and why?

Author... It's Richard!

What about uncredited’s performance did you like?

All of it

Any additional comments?

This is basically just Richard giving us a more detailed explaination of a few of the shows episodes and recounting how he managed and handled it all. It's an interesting listen.

Really enjoyed it

It was very fun to listen to, having watched all TG specials it was great to hear Hammonds voice telling some details and emotions he felt in these great adventures.

A must for Top Gear fans

The sequel to "On The Edge", his first book after his horrific crash in the rocket car. Hammond's humour is one that we can all relate to. Even after becoming a huge celebrity and a successful family man and surviving a bone-chilling crash that should have killed him, he still writes with the innocence of a cheaky 10-year-old, but with the the intelligence of a graduate. His rants with his co-hosts are always hilarious and the tales of top-fueled craziness never left me wanting. Very well written, very well read. Great book. It was great to get another insight into his amazing life. And I feel like I know him like a friend after reading it. Definitely worth listening to.

A short but enjoyable performance!

Well read by the author, sadly the book is less than 4 hours long but would be good for a roadtrip. The only concern is that there is some swearing.

I only wish it had been unabridged!

Where does As You Do rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

As You Do ranks high on the list. Richard Hammond's self effacing sense of humor makes for a very fun listen

What was one of the most memorable moments of As You Do?

His description of meeting the sled dogs in the arctic race was epic! Not to put in any spoilers, but he literally gets dragged across the ice and through pile after pile of "doggie deposits" while the dogs essentially ignore him (they are very big and powerful) in their quest to reach their owner, whom they really care about.

What about the narrator’s performance did you like?

This was narrated by the author, who does a fantastic job with the pacing and tone.

Any additional comments?

It's short, and full of laughs, I heartily recommend it.

Behind the Scenes with Hammond

What did you love best about As You Do?

A different perspective on the Top Gear episodes I loved!!

Who was your favorite character and why?

Richard Hammond of course!!

Which character – as performed by the narrator – was your favorite?

Himself!!

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

His description of getting home in the floods was gripping!!

Must-listen for Top Gear fans

Hammond relates some of what happened during the production of TG segments like Botswana and the magnetic north pole. Very entertaining, but I just wish it was longer.

missing 1/3 of the book

I loved the book, and Richard's reading of it, but there is a whole third of the book missing from this audio version. Not just an abridged version, it seems they just forgot to include a large portion of the book.