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Dick Smith’s Autobiography Review by Nicholas Vinen M y Adventurous Life T he saying “truth is stranger than fiction” is a cliché. But say you submitted Dick Smith’s autobiography to an overseas publisher who had never heard of him and claimed it is an adventure novel. I think they would reject it as being too unrealistic! A man who dropped out of high school at 16, became a successful businessman and flew helicopters and planes in record-breaking around-the-world flights? Then he set up a flourishing publishing company with an Australiawide network of shops, plus another business selling food, while giving away a significant chunk of his money to charitable causes? Preposterous! Come back with a more believable story. A life full of such exploits makes for exciting reading, and I found myself wanting to go back for more each time I had to put it down. It helps that the book is well-written and easy to read. It includes two maps of Mr Smith’s adventures and several dozen colour photographs which provide some important context for his words. One of the things that struck me about this book is that Dick Smith’s character really comes through. I can’t pretend to know the man all that well, but he has told me some of the stories in the book and reading the book gives much the same experience. Despite this, he credits three different writers and one editor at the end. It shows how much effort they all put in that the final result maintains so much of his personality. This book is not just for electronics nuts. The story of Dick Smith Electronics (DSE) takes up only a fairly small portion of the book. I would have liked more detail in that area, but I think I would be in the minority of readers. Saving more pages for the adventures is the right move for the book to have general appeal. And I think he has succeeded in that respect. It will be a great read for just about anyone who has heard of Dick Smith, and I reckon that’d be most Australians. I will be passing this copy on to my sister (definitely not an electronics nut, but loves nature) and my father (a doctor; I’m sure he will love the story-telling and historical aspects). I got into electronics by reading the Fun Way Into Electronics books (with Dick’s face emblazoned on the covers). So I was primarily curious about how DSE became so successful and why Dick sold the business to Woolworths, when he was clearly making a lot of money out of it. The book answered my questions, but I ended up enjoying many other aspects I hadn’t anticipated. I knew that he is really into flying and went on some famous adventures, but I didn’t realise the scope of his achievements until I’d finished reading the book. He had some close calls, and you can feel his pride in what he achieved coming through the pages (it doesn’t seem too boastful, although he drops plenty of names). siliconchip.com.au DICK SMITH ‘Part Bear Grylls, part Bill Gates, but 100% Aussie larrikin. Dick is a great innovator, philanthropist and adventurer, who in my eyes can do no wrong.’ PAUL HOGAN I understand now why he has dedicated so much of his autobiography to his adventures. This book is an excellent read for young or old; teenagers and young adults will not only find his adventures fascinating, but I think they will learn a great deal about what Australia was like in the past. It also has some fantastic lessons about how to be successful in life, have strong morals and live life to its fullest. Older readers will no doubt enjoy Dick’s recollections of Australia of the past. It feels like another world, reading about what life in Australia was like in the 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s. It was a pity that I could not write this review in time to make the December issue, as this book would be a great Christmas gift. If someone you know has a birthday coming up and you have no idea what to get them, this book would be a good choice due to its broad appeal and reasonable cost. A quick search finds many shops selling the hardcover version for well under $30. Dick Smith – My Adventurous Life (352 pages) is published by Allen & Unwin and is available from book stores, major retailers and as an ebook online. The hardcover RRP is $39.95, while the ebook has an RRP of $29.08. SC Australia's electronics magazine January 2022  37