Don't Panic

Douglas Adams and the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

By: Neil Gaiman

Narrated by: Simon Jones, Neil Gaiman

Length: 8 hrs and 26 mins

Publisher's summary

Now in audiobook for the first time ever! Read by Simon Jones, the original “Arthur Dent,” and written by number one New York Times best-selling author Neil Gaiman, Don’t Panic is the definitive chronicle of all things Hitchhiker!

First published in 1986 and updated several times since, Don’t Panic is in an in-depth exploration of Douglas Adams’s cultural phenomenon The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy - from its beginnings as a UK radio series, to its expansion into a wildly popular book trilogy, and onto incarnations in various media including stage, records, film, computer games, and even, um, tea towels.

Don’t Panic was the first book by internationally best-selling author Neil Gaiman, written early in his writing career when he worked as a freelance journalist in his native England. Voiced by renowned actor Simon Jones - “Arthur Dent” himself - and with a new introduction written and read by Neil Gaiman, Don’t Panic: Douglas Adams & The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy audio edition is the ultimate version of this beloved work.

Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2020 Neil Gaiman (P)2020 HarperCollins Publishers

great voice talking about a great man

love all things Douglas, learned a bit more about him and laughed out loud by myself a few times

Fantastic book

It was an amazing experience, full of the usual humor and funny explanations by Douglas Adams. Really good audiobook, 10/10 would recommend.

An ideal Hitchhiker’s Companion

Having initially bought this book back in 1988, I’m glad I waited until now to listen to it, to read it, to experience it. Because it was a wonderful love letter to Douglas Adams from his many friends, most especially from this book’s author, Neil Gaiman.

If you love the works of Douglas Adams or don’t know quite as much about them as you think you might, I believe you’ll very much enjoy this “hitchhikers companion,” as it was originally called.

So grab your towel, have a cup of tea, sit back, relax and don’t panic. And maybe have a Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster when you finish, while considering the interconnectedness of everything. Or not. 👍

Fascinating and entertaining

I grew up with THHGttG listening and recording the first transmission of the radio series. It is great to hear the background to the series and the reality of how Douglass Adams created them.

all you needed to know about Douglas and HGTG

beautifully done and great insights into the journey that the "project" of Hitchhiker's Guide.

Laughter and tears

When I was at Highgate Cemetery on my trip to the UK I grabbed the map and one of the first names on it was that of one of my literary heroes, Douglas Adams. I didn’t know he was buried there… I have no idea why I started sobbing uncontrollably. It took a little bit of time but my partner and I eventually found the modest marker with the cup for the pens. Such a gorgeous tribute a welcome to say thank you for the inspiration in such a classy way.
Neil Gaiman’s Don’t Panic is also a fantastic tribute from a writer who no doubt left a pen at Highgate(or I’d like to think he did). I love Neil Gaiman’s work. Sandman, American Gods, Good Omens… His Doctor Who contributions are some of the best stories in moser Who era. This book is a fascinating and very entertaining look at all things Douglas Adams. If you are a fan you will enjoy the fuck out of this! If you are not a fan yet, aquatint yourself with Mr. Adams’s work and check this out! Cheers!

A Definitive Guide to the Hitchhiker's Guide

While I have a general appreciation for The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and I've read most of the books, I wasn't prepared for what a fascinating exploration of its history this book was going to be. This is not to be mistaken as a biography of Douglas Adams. This is a biography of the Hitchhiker's guide in all of its different forms over the years. It's more than just an origin story, but it's also a crazy effort to document how it has evolved over the years every time it is adapted, revived, and re-released because it's just one of those stories.

I did not realize how much there is to know about this franchise and the many hoops Adams his collaborators had to go through in order to keep things going and continually help new audiences get onboard for the ride. It's the kind of book that inspires you to read the books again or go scouring for versions of the radio play and maybe even try to dig up a copy of the old video game?

This series, like the actual Guide itself, has been all over the place and this title is a great effort to document all that and present it all in a voice that works. That's an understatement of course - the main narrator of this version is Simon Jones, who once voice Arthur Dent on radio.

Very good book

Loved it, great info good read and interesting highly recommend it, narration was excellent imo.

Illuminating

Does a nice job of balancing snippets of Adams' works with descriptions of Adams, events and quirks. Fans will love it. Those less committed should still appreciate it. Well written, produced, and performed.

Neil, the Universe and Douglas Adams

And can you believe Simon Jones is narrating? I almost wrote a Vogon sonnet while knocking back a Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster. The original Arthur Dent is narrating. I can't imagine anyone narrating this lovely, funny gem of a book but Simon Jones or perhaps Stephen Fry (who narrated the first novel) or Peter Jones (but, alas, RIP).

If you love Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy in any of its permutations, you'll want to have this book in your library. Neil Gaiman published his history of Douglas Adams and the Hitchhiker's franchise in 1988. So before the third to sixth installments in the radio series came out and before Adams' death in 2001. But Gaiman did provide a preface in 2003 and there have been other updates.

Gaiman opens his history very much in the style of the Hitchhiker's radio series. He perfectly mimics Adams' writing style when he wants to, and it's a great treat for fans. This short history covers a lot of ground: from Adams' own hitchhiking trip to Europe (which gave him the idea for a guide to the galaxy), his Cambridge years and his collaboration with Monty Python's Graham Chapman to the groundbreaking radio series, the novels and the stories for Doctor Who.

There's hardly a wasted word. Gaiman keeps the tone upbeat and light, with no angsty forays into Adams' psychological makeup or personal life, and keeps the focus on Douglas Adams and his journey to creating one of the best-loved series of the 20th century.

All in all, I'd rate this a 42.