The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Ratings2,453
Average rating4.2
A very action-packed book, so much so that it seemed a bit overwhelming at times. I definitely will re-read it some time in the future so I can be able to grasp everything that was going.
The story was very interesting and funny. Douglas Adams's writing was very engaging, filled with humour. Even though the story is set in space, Adams was able to incorporate criticism to every day situations with great sarcasm too. (The appearance of the Philosophers was hilarious! The whole bureaucracy situation and the description of the President of the Universe were very funny too)
It reminded me very much of a Doctor Who episode. There is always a lot going on, quite a lot of space/science jargon, crazy situations as well as crazy creatures with a touch of humour and with a character from Earth that helps the audience keep up with the craziness.
Speaking of characters, I absolutely loved Arthur. He was our eyes and ears and I thought that his reactions were very believable. As regards the aliens, I didn't feel very much attached to Ford but I liked Zaphod a lot. He was such an over the top fellow, quite the opposite to Arthur. I liked the hints of rivalry between them and I hope it develops along the series.
“Yes, an electronic brain,” said Frankie,”a simple one would suffice.”
“A simple one!” wailed Arthur.
“Yeah,” said Zaphod with a sudden evil grin, “you'd just have to program it to say What? and I don't understand and Where's the tea? Who'd know the difference?
This came up in topic the other day, and it occurred to me that it had been a few years, so this is either a 3rd or 4th rereading. Honestly, this is one of the few books I know I can reread and it is still awesome. This book stands the test of time. I still love it.
Very tough to get through. It's a parody of old school sci fi. Both of which are hard to read. There was little plot and far too much description. The funniest moments were few and far between.
Such a fun read! I would recommend this to science fiction fans who are looking for a light read in between series.
The only reason this didn't get 5 out of 5 was that it ended way too soon!
Contains spoilers
I really loved this book when I first read it a long, long time ago. It was fresh, funny and unexpected. The absurdity really did it for me then. This re-read has been fun, but this time I've had to knock a star off (oroginally 1.5 stars, but then I didn't have the heart to go through with such a big downgrade), mostly because I realised there is no plot to speak of, things just happen randomly and for no particular reason. The story never evolves and the characters aren't fleshed out. This is more annoying now as am adult than it was when the world was a crazier place (in my teens).
I guess everything had already been said about this book. Fun, entertaining and fun :P
This was the first book I read that made laugh. The participation of Marvin, the depressed robot, is brief but very amusing. The story is very unconventional with many unpredictable moments. This book gave me many memorable moments that, like the computer built to give the answer of life, or the dolphings leaving the earth, the mice and their unexpected role in mankind.
Pretty absurd and funny. Not usually a fan of sci-fi stuff, but this was good. I laughed a lot.
Funny, irreverent, and totally absurd, this book takes the most taken-for-granted and commonplace assumptions about the Universe and twists them, knocking everything on its heard and spinning a nonsensical tale of immense sense.
This story was first a radio series, which I didn't happen to hear on first broadcast in spring 1978, but I heard it when it was repeated not long afterwards. Then I bought the book in 1980; which is not a transcription of the radio series (the radio scripts were published later), but was based on the radio series and contains some of the same material.
It was very popular at the time. Phrases and scenes from it became part of the mental equipment of many people, and I don't regret having that mental equipment. It's rather shocking to think that I might meet people who wouldn't recognize references to it or quotations from it.
It was an entertaining and pioneering series on the radio. But it wasn't designed as a novel. In fact, the original radio series wasn't designed at all: Douglas Adams said that he wrote each episode as he came to it, with no advance planning.
In book form:
1. It's short. Although it was sold as a novel, it's the length of a modern novella.
2. It's chaotic and rambling and lacks the structure of a well-conceived novel (or novella). It was a comedy series on the radio, and that's basically what it remains despite the transfer to book form.
I like it, I'm glad to have read it, but I don't reread it very often—compared with other books that I reread more often. When I reread it, it seems very familiar, and full of clichés. They weren't clichés in 1980, but they seem clichés now because they've become part of my mental equipment, and they're referenced now and then by other people. It's a punishment for success.
If you haven't read it, I'd encourage you to read it. It's short, it's funny, it's easy to read. But bear in mind that it's basically a radio comedy series; if you expect it to be a great novel, you may find it rather disappointing.
Adams wrote a series of sequels to this book, which you can read if you like this one. But I think this is the best-known of them, the target of the majority of references and quotations.
Rereading this book a second time some ten years later, I did not like it at all.
Dit boek had ik al eens gelezen, maar nu herlas ik het nog eens als audioboek, voorgelezen door de fantastische Stephen Fry. Hierdoor krijgt hij een sterretje meer dan eerder.
Dit boek vind ik wel bijzonder moeilijk te recenseren. De enige beschrijvende woorden die ik accuraat genoeg vind zijn “absurd” en “droog“. Het feit dat dit het eerste deel van een vijfdelige trilogie is, geeft al een aardig idee over de graad van absurditeit. Het is grappig en compleet over the top en is bijzonder citeerbaar. Enkele favorieten:
“You know,” said Arthur, “it's at times like this, when I'm trapped in a Vogon airlock with a man from Betelgeuse, and about to die of asphyxiation in deep space that I really wish I'd listened to what my mother told me when I was young.”
“Why, what did she tell you?”
“I don't know, I didn't listen.”
“The ships hung in the sky in much the same way that bricks don't.”
“Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job.”
Ho sempre amato la fantascienza, è un genere che mi ha appassionato fin da bambino insieme al fantasy, oggi è difficile trovare dei buoni libri di Science Finction, Asimov rimarrà per sempre un maestro insuperato e un po' come il fantasy dopo aver letto Tolkien sembra tutto stantio.
Questo libro però, badate bene, non è solo fantascienza: filosofia, teologia e tantissima comicità mescolate insieme, con un ritmo da grandissimo romanziere. Decisamente...un capolavoro. Personaggi come Zaphod Beeblebrox rimangono scolpiti nella mente per anni e forse non ce ne dimenticheremo mai nella nostra vita da lettore.
Adams riesce, attraverso situazioni paradossali ed assurde, a trattare i grandi temi della scienza e soprattutto della filosofia, con una freschezza ed un umorismo unico nel suo genere; possiamo sicuramente accostargli Pratchett per quello che è il fantasy. Questo è un libro, che attraverso le sue trovate paradossali e demenziali riuscirà a mettere in dubbio perfino la vostra stessa esistenza.
Il linguaggio semplice e scorrevole, leggero e mai banale che non si dilunga in inutili quanto pesanti descrizioni, fanno arrivare i temi affrontati direttamente al lettore in maniera fresca e leggera, nonostante sia filosofia allo stato puro.
Mi ha fatto ridere, mi ha fatto riflettere e anche commuovere, penso che sia il massimo che può dare un libro. Decisamente, stupendo.
After a few Pangalactic Gargleblasters I decided to
to begin the journey along with Arthur Dent and Ford Prefect rather than lie in the mud to save my house from the wrecking crew. Ummm... So long and thanks for all
the fish!
A life-changing book that holds the mysterious power to completely rewire your brain and how it will process language, wit and humour for the entire rest of your existence.
