This is a wonderful collection of Bill's story, musings, writings and material. However, with all this gold at your fingertips it is hard to bear, as a fan, the ache of disappointment about his early demise. ( )

Being british, most of my favourite comedians are British. This is not some form of racism, but simply that comedy reflects our lives and someone from the same culture knows more about one's lifestyle. There are exceptions to this rule and Bill Hicks is very much an international comedian: his work touches the human soul at its most base level.
This book is, at the same time, an insight into Bill's World and an irritation. The verbatim transcripts of his stage show became annoying for two reasons; firstly, the shows were not designed to be glued together. there is much repetition - no fault in an entertainer travelling around comedy theatres, but a distinct draw back in a book. The second problem is that the material needs Hicks' delivery to come to life. It was not written for the cold formality of a book page. I was not lucky enough to see Bill live but, I imagine that this would have been the best way to consume his act but, failing that, at least upon DVD one feels some link to the man.
Having read the above, one may be questioning the four star rating for the book. This is due to the other material: letters and transcripts of interviews. These do add to my understanding of the genius that was Bill Hicks and are the reason that I would, unhesitatingly, recommend this book. ( )

Bill Hicks was the last of the great social satirists that grew out of comedy clubs. There was Lenny Bruce, Richard Pryor, George Carlin, and then Bill Hicks. Sadly, the Seinfeld era marked the death of comedians who actually had more to say than clever observations. This is a great testament to Hicks work, but sadly a little scattershot in its comprehensiveness. If you want a better sense of his greatness, pick up the comedy CDs. He earned his place at the top with Carlin. ( )

http://home.comcast.net/~tonydal/wise... ( )

Swedish review: http://dagensbok.com/index.asp?id=188... ( )