The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

We

”In the beginning the Universe was created.

This had made a lot of people very angry and been widely regarded as a bad move.”

Reading this is like being tucked into a warm bed and feeling absolutely comfortable.

A few favorite lines from this readthrough:

* “However, no one knew quite why it did this because it invariably delivered a cupful of liquid that was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea.”

* ...“the recession came and we decided it would save a lot of bother if we just slept through it.”

* “Ten million years of planning and work gone just like that. Ten million years, Earthman, can you conceive of that kind of time span? A galactic civilization could grow from a single worm five times over in that time. Gone.” He paused. “Well, that's bureaucracy for you.”

* “What does it matter? Science has achieved some wonderful things, of course, but I'd far rather be happy than right any day.“

* “And I write novels!” chimed in the other cop. “Though I haven't had any of them published yet, so I better warn you, I'm in a meeeean mood!”

* “...an acute attack of no curiosity.”

Laugh out loud funny.

another series i need to reread

The best.

I read this too late in life. I think it is one of those books that you need to read when you are the age it is meant for. Just like if you watch the ewoks for the first time after you are too old, this book just doesn't land later in life. Do yourself a favor and read it before you get to that point.

Funny, interesting and totally unlike the nib of a used ball point pen.

I have read this a couple times before but it has been years. I found warm nostalgia for my memories of reading as a teenager. It held up in some cases, but I can't say it had the same appeal as it did for young me. Still a classic must read.

I really didn't like it. I could not get myself to finish it. I don't get the fuzz around it.

Revisited this for the first time since I was a teenager. I was a little worried it wouldn't be the same book I worshipped at time time but it mostly holds up! I have a better appreciation now for the focus on coincidence and probability as a theme and not just a joke delivery system. Also makes the aggressive atheism more interesting, probably.

The only part that lost some shine for me are the characters, and especially Arthur. Why did Ford choose to save him? "Because they're friends." Yes, and why are they friends? I get you need an audience-surrogate everyman but he just seems rather unpleasant. Or maybe he's just extremely English and I can't tell that apart from sarcasm.

so fun ! i struggle to get into sci fi that takes itself seriously because it's so hard to do well but this just goes in the complete opposite direction & leans in to the silliness

So I read up other people's reviews to make sure I was not insane. Nope, not me! The book is insane. This book is such a classic - I had heard of it for so long and was thrilled to start reading it. But a few pages in, the confusion started mounting. I will admit, there were some really good quotable life-quotes and there was some strange humour throughout. But I rank this just slightly above the One Hundred Years of Solitude book. Both books are totally barmy! Both feel like they were written by authors who couldn't fully make up their minds. This one at least has some humour to it and the writing is, in parts, definitely superior; and that's the only reason it ranks above OHYS. 

2.75 stars, this was not my favourite. I wanted to like this one but I was sometimes bored by the story and most of it was pretty ridiculous. I didn't laugh at the funny parts and just wasn't really into it. It was well written but kinda lost on me.

Sorry to all the people who love this book.

It's a lot of fun and a unique story/concept. I just didn't really like the first 50 pages. Once we got to our group of 4 I feel like the story really takes off. I do wish there was more introspective storytelling and commentary. I see why it has such a big fandom though and considered a classic. I may read the sequel.

tobedus kaks astmes kaheksale miljonile astmes miinus lõpmatusele

õnneks nende kõikide suurepäraselt juustuste naljade vahel (ja sees) peitub päriselt väikseid ja suuri elulisi killukesi, mis nii muigama kui ka mõttesse vajuma panevad

ilmselt on vaja see teine raamat ka ette võtta, las ootab riiulil oma hetke

igatahes väga vajalik lugemine peale Dostojevskit
aga nüüd mingit vaheldust jälle vaja
eks näis

Not for me.

I've been reading this series over the course of the past year and then some. I thoroughly enjoyed the first book, but the more I read, the more it dissolved into a fever dream. I treaded on because of the comedic absurdity, but I could not have explained the plot to you (if there even was a plot). I also found it kind of sad that for a book dealing with literal aliens, somehow earthly stereotypes and sexist jokes continued to make an appearance. oh well.

I don't know.. I really, really wanted to like this but it wasn't for me. Lots of good witty quotes in it though.

I will start by saying I am not a huge SF fan, I read it sometimes, usually I like it, but I don't go out of my way to pick up a SF book. I listened to this one because I wanted something in the background while doodling and since I kept seeing the book around and was one of the first to pop up when looking up audiobooks, I said why not.

I read the other reviews on this book and I see that most readers really love it. I am kind of in between, I can't say I loved it, but it wasn't terrible either. For one, I liked reading a book from where I knew some quotes without knowing where they are from, and I must agree there are some great one-liners in the book, but I only laughed once.

Somehow the storytelling read more like a documentary to me and some of the characters seemed to be forgotten sometimes. I keep thinking I might have missed something, but looking up what that might be, I can find nothing. I think I simply should have read this book when I was a pre-teen. That being said, still a nice read.

3.5?????? This book is like the screwiest of screwball comedies, set in space and complete with a robot that has the personality of Eeyore. There really isn???t much plot or character development but the writing is so hilarious and full of little brain tickles that I didn???t really mind.

Liked it didnt love it

Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy isn't just a book - it's a brilliant, mind-bending journey into the absurdity of, well, everything. Imagine the most hilarious existential crisis you could possibly conceive, then multiply that by infinity, and you're somewhere close to the wild, wonderful universe Adams creates.

From the moment Arthur Dent is whisked away from Earth moments before it's demolished to make way for a hyperspace bypass, you know you're in for something completely, wonderfully different. Adams' writing is a perfect cocktail of razor-sharp wit, scientific absurdism, and philosophical comedy that defies every literary convention known to humanity (or any other species).

The characters are nothing short of legendary. Arthur Dent - the quintessential bewildered Englishman thrust into cosmic chaos - is the perfect everyman protagonist. Zaphod Beeblebrox, the two-headed, three-armed President of the Galaxy, is a character so magnificently ridiculous that he feels like he was invented purely to make readers laugh. And Marvin, the chronically depressed robot, might just be the most brilliantly conceived character in science fiction comedy history.

Adams' humor is so unique it's almost a genre unto itself. He has this extraordinary ability to make profound philosophical observations while simultaneously making you laugh out loud. The book is filled with moments of pure comedic genius - from the revelation that the answer to life, the universe, and everything is 42, to the concept of the Babel fish that makes universal translation possible by being “a mind-bogglingly useful little animal.”

The satire is pitch-perfect. Adams takes aim at bureaucracy, technology, human nature, and the entire concept of existence with a wit so sharp it could cut through hyperspace. The book manages to be simultaneously a parody of science fiction and the most brilliant example of the genre.

It's a book that makes you laugh hysterically while also making you think about the fundamental ridiculousness of existence. Who else could turn the destruction of Earth into a comedic event that feels both tragic and hilarious? For anyone who loves science fiction, comedy, or just brilliant writing, this book is an absolute must-read. It's the kind of novel that becomes a part of your mental landscape, changing how you view the universe (and bypass construction) forever.

A cosmic comedic masterpiece that proves that sometimes, the universe is not just stranger than we imagine, but stranger than we CAN imagine. Douglas Adams didn't just write a book - he created a whole new way of looking at, well, everything.

Absolutely, unequivocally brilliant. The kind of book that makes you grateful to be alive in a universe capable of producing such magnificent nonsense.

A very funny and quick read!

I've read the first 90 pages of this book, and I've enjoyed some bits thoroughly, especially the introduction, but is just isn't my cup of tea.