"The Hologram's Handbook" questions

[tmclough]

I haven't watched any episode of VOY yet, but I'm about to start watching it, in order, in the next few weeks. That said, today (Wednesday) at the local bookstore, I picked up, among other things, a $1.50 copy of The Hologram's Handbook, in large part "Because it's there!"

Two questions:

1. How good is it, for those of you who have read it?
2. How soon would you say it is "safe" to read? I'm already aware that the hologram in the title refers to the Doctor on the show, and that it was written by the actor who played him, but other than that I know approximately zilch about the character. Are there any episode spoilers, or would I just have to get used to the character(s)? Is that even a "requirement"?

I also picked up a copy of Distant Shores that I ordered a couple of weeks ago. At least that book tells you when the stories take place relative to the series.

 

[freak]

"the Hologram's Handbook" is by far one of the most hilarious books I've ever read. I picked up a copy in 2001 and read it at work one summer and laughed my ass off. But there ARE spoilers in the book and if you're like me(which I hope you are!) you would want to watch the series to get a general idea BEFORE you even THINK about reading any of the novels. I'm really glad you're giving Voyager a try-it was a great series and even with it's faults and flaws, it was damn good entertainment for me for a good seven years! Even though now I'm not as into Voyager as I used to be, I will always remember the Doctor and how histerical he always was on the show(when you start watching the show, you'll soon understand what I'm talking about!). I was wondering, are you familiar with the plot of Voyager? If not, I'll give you a general idea: It's basically about a ship stranded 70,000 light years from Earth and they team up with a Maquis ship full of rebels to try to find a way home. And through this, they learn to settle their differences and make their crew one united crew-a Starfleet crew.
Basically that's the big ole plot of the show. I'm not gonna tell you anything else about it because you'll have to watch the DVDs for yourself. If you have any questions about the show, don't hesitate to PM me. I love answering questions about Voyager. I may have to re-watch some eps to re-familiarize myself with the series since it's been a long time, but I'll try my hardest to answer any of your questions that you might have.
Good luck watching the show and have fun.

 

[T'Ressa Dax]

Oh yes, it was very hard to stop laughing while reading that.

 

[phrog]

If you can find it, the audiobook presentation performed by Picardo is top notch and very funny as well.

 

[donners22]

Sounds like a book to look out for. I wasn't aware it existed, which is unfortunate since I liked Voyager (and particularly Picardo).

 

[Steve Roby]

It was published back in 2002, so it might be a little hard to track down a copy.

 

[JB2005]

It was nearly impossible for me to find one, in the end I got an ex-library book from amazon...

 

[Daddy Todd]

If you can find it, the audiobook presentation performed by Picardo is top notch and very funny as well.

What was the audio version called? I don't remember that one being in audio -- at least, I don't have a copy, and I collected all the audios I could find.