18: Dave Gorman - Dave Gorman's Googlewhack! Adventure

[bellinghman]

Author: Dave Gorman
Title: Dave Gorman's Googlewhack! Adventure
Genre: Humour/Travel
Published: Ebury Press 2004
Pages: 343
Purchased: Waterstones, Cambridge, 2004-02-26, £10.99
ISBN: 0-091-89196-5

Dave Gorman is a comedian. He's accepted an advance to write a novel, but he's finding all sorts of things to act as displacement activity. And then he discovers Googlewhacking.

A Googlewhack is when you enter two words in to the Google search engine - both valid dictionary words - and one lone single web page comes back. And if you can contact the owner of the web page, well ...

And David Gorman (no relation) bets Dave Gorman he can't build a chain of ten whacks, getting each previous whackee to produce two (and only two) new whacks for Dave to pursue, before his next birthday.

This book covers Gorman's amazing quest, as he zips around the world, getting new whacks, having to back-track when trails peter out, and in general encountering an almost totally random set of people in the process. The book is hilarious, amazing, revealing and just plain wonderful. I heartily recommend it, if only to find out quite why he got a Texas Driver's Licence tattooed on his arm.

BTW - he never did write the novel, but it looks like his agent has forgiven him.

Oh, and I share a birthday with David Gorman (no relation).

Comments

[rmc28]

You keep reviewing books I want to read :) I went to see his show for Googlewhack and was utterly blown away. I have his first book too (Are You Dave Gorman?) which I bought and got signed after the Googlewhack gig.

[bellinghman.livejournal.com]

Oops, sorry.

I'm quite backlogged, you realise.

[rmc28]

No apologies. I'm adding them as memories so I can consider buying and reading them in my Copious Free Time.

[bellinghman.livejournal.com]

Oh no, the responsibilities, the responsibilities!

I've got about 5 waiting for review.

[ottah.livejournal.com]

I have this if you'd like to borrow it.

[rmc28]

I'd love to :)