Please, before anything... DON'T PANIC.


This review is harmless, well mostly harmless.

I think that one of the things that one has to keep in mind while reading this book is that it was written in 1979. Having this important factor in perspective, it's quite astonishing the vision of Douglas Adams, the author, presenting a lot of visionary elements, starting with the very "book inside the book", I mean The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, since it's presented as an electronic book. which now it's a very common way to read a lot of books now. Also, he mentioned stuff like "touch-sensitive screens" that yet again, it's now something introduced in our daily lives. Science-Fiction, the good science fiction is defined by being visionary in the moment to be published and a fact, years later. Just like Verne's work predicting events like space rockets and nuclear submarines.

n  The President of the Universe holds no real power. His sole purpose is to take attention away from where the power truly exists...n

Obviously, beside the mesmering tecnology stuff that he predicted, the signature style here is his remarkable sense of humor, SMART sense of humor. In literature and pop culture in general, there were been unforgettable examples of computers like the cold HAL from 2001: A Space Odyssey and the noble K.I.T.T. from Knight Rider, also robots like the loyal R2-D2 from Star Wars and the logical robots from I, Robot short story collection. However, nothing of that can prepare you to the experience of meeting "Eddie", the Main Computer of the Heart of Gold spaceship or Marvin, the Paranoid Android. This is one of the best traits of Douglas Adams' wit in the development of artificial intelligence. I wasn't surprised since some months ago, I read Shada by Gareth Roberts but based on the Doctor Who's unaired script written by Douglas Adams where you find another priceless example of a computer with a personality that only Adams is able to develop. You laugh and laugh with them BUT not only because they's funny but also they are truly logical as artifical intelligences in their way to react to situations. Adams' impact of how presenting artificial intelligence can be found too in another novel of Doctor Who, Festival of Death by Jonathan Morris, where the author showed how well he learned Adams' lessons.

n  Resistance is useless!n

I believe that Douglas Adams' involvement in the production of the iconic British sci-fi TV series Doctor Who as script editor and writer of three stories, it was fated since I found remarkable similarities on the premises of both works, this novel and the TV series. Both has a peculiar fellow who stole certain machine and along with companions is travelling around. So, it wouldn't a surprise that he got some inspiration since Doctor Who was widely known since 1963 specially on its native country, England. Of course, his participation on another British TV institution like Monty Python's Flying Circus was a relevant point for Adams to explode his humoristic potential.

n  To boldly split infinitives that no man had split before...n

It's possible that people unfamiliar with Adams' work could think that since this is a novel with comedy, they could think that it can't be a "serious" science-fiction book. However, the brilliance of this novel is its capacity of offering smart humor while using scientific concepts like the theory of faster-than-light objects. Even you won't be able to fight against his priceless explanation behind the UFOs' sightings.

Without spoiling anything, I think that my only reason of getting off a star in my rating of this great novel was its lacking a proper closure. I understand that this the first book in a trilogy of five books (yes, you read correctly, it wasn't a mistake) so the adventures and mysteries will continue in the second book The Restaurant at the End of the Universe. However, it was quite unsettling when you are having the time of your life reading it and the book just stopped to have words. I describe it like that since I didn't feel an ending. It was indeed just like the impossibility of not finding more words in the book. What I can give to Adams is that that was quite improbable but in my opinion, quite unlikely way to just "ending" this book.

Certainly I want to read the rest of this great n  TRILOGYn of n  FIVEn books. (Yes, yet again, you read well, and it isn't a mistake)

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy #1), Douglas Adams

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is a comedy science fiction series created by Douglas Adams.

The broad narrative of Hitchhiker follows the misadventures of the last surviving man, Arthur Dent, following the demolition of the planet Earth by a Vogon constructor fleet to make way for a hyperspace bypass.

عنوانهای چاپ شده در ایران: «راهنمای مسافران مجانی کهکشان»؛ «راهنمای کهکشان برای اتواستاپزنها»؛ نویسنده: داگلاس آدامز؛ تاریخ نخستین خوانش: روز نهم ماه سپتامبر سال2016میلادی

عنوان: راهنمای مسافران مجانی کهکشان؛ نویسنده: داگلاس آدامز؛ فرزاد فربد؛ تهران، پنجره، 1386؛ در 207ص؛ شابک 9789647822336؛ موضوع: داستانهای خیال انگیز علمی و خنده دار از نویسندگان بریتانیا - سده 20م

عنوان: راهنمای کهکشان برای اتواستاپزنها؛ نویسنده: داگلاس آدامز؛ آرش سرکوهی؛ تهران، چشمه، 1394؛ در 205ص؛ شابک9786002292902؛

راهنمای کهکشان برای اتواستاپ‌زن‌ها، داستان «آرتور دنت»، مردی از طبقه ی متوسط «انگلیس»، و نقش ناخواسته ی او را، برای دریافتن معنی زندگی، روایت میکند؛ رمان با حادثه‌ ای آغاز می‌شود، که برای ساکنان کره ی زمین رخداده است، اما در رمان آن رخداد، رویدادی فرعی است؛ «وگون‌»ها که یکی از نژادهای کهکشان هستند، سیاره ی زمین را، برای احداث یک بزرگراه بین کهکشانی، نابود می‌کنند؛ کره ی زمین نابود می‌شود، اما «فورد» و «آرتور دنت (دوست فورد)» چند ثانیه پیش از نابودی زمین، به یاری دستگاهی که «فورد» به همراه دارد، خود را به سفینه ی «وگون‌»ها منتقل کرده، و از آن پس با «اتواستاپ» زدن، سفر خود را در کهکشان‌ها ادامه می‌دهند؛ «فورد پریفکت»، از پژوهشگراان مؤسسه‌ ای ست، که کتاب راهنمای کهکشان برای اتواستاپ‌زن‌ها را منتشر می‌کند؛ او سال‌ها پیش از نابودیِ زمین، برای پژوهش میدانی به زمین سفر کرده بود؛ رمان، ماجراهای سفرهای این دو دوست، و نقشِ «آرتور» را، برای دریافتن معنی زندگی، در بافتی جذاب، و با زبانی روان، با واژه می‌آراید؛

گویا روانشاد «داگلاس آدامز»، برای نگارش همین سری شش کتاب در خیال خویش کاشته داشته اند، پنج کتاب، در زمان زنده بودن نویسنده، منتشر شد، عنوان کتاب نخست با عنوان سری یکسان است؛ و چهار کتاب دیگر سری، با عنوان‌های: «رستوران آخر جهان»؛ «زندگی، جهان و همه‌ چیز»؛ «خداحافظ و ممنون از اون همه ماهی»؛ و «بیش‌ترش چیزی خاصی نیست»؛ نامگذاری شده اند؛

روانشاد «داگلاس آدامز» در سال2001میلادی، از درب سرای این دنیا بگذشتند، و پس از درگذشت ایشان؛ «ایون کالفر»، نویسنده ی «ایرلندی»، با اجازه‌ ی بیوه ی «آدامز»، و با بهره‌ گیری از آرشیو یادداشت‌ها، و نوشته‌ های چاپ نشده ی «داگلاس آدامز»؛ جلد ششم و آخرین کتاب از همین مجموعه را نیز، با عنوان: «راستی تا یادم نرفته...» را نوشتند، و در سال 2009میلادی منتشر کردند

تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 24/06/1399هجری خورشیدی؛ 04/06/1400هجری خورشید؛ ا. شربیانی

n  Watch my video review by clicking here.n

3.5 stars rounded up for goodreads. Was fun and silly, but ultimately felt like a poor mans Discworld that I would have enjoyed far more when I was younger.

n  "He felt that his whole life was some kind of dream and he sometimes wondered whose it was and whether they were enjoying it."n

The world has gone mad. No, the entire universe has. And by reading this, we get to laugh about it. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is a little bit of a mad ride, but what a joyous one!



Arthur Dent, a regular, averagely intelligent guy from Earth one day finds himself entangled in a very improbable chain of events that lead him to finding out that his best friend is an alien. Everything goes downhill from there. There is no point in summarizing the story, as it's not the story that makes this book special.

n  "For a moment, nothing happened. Then, after a second or so, nothing continued to happen."n

It's how the story is made up. Everything is reversed and the narrative takes the most surprising and unexpected twists and turns, always resulting in something humorous. It's more than a space opera, however, because in its absurdity it manages to be highly relevant, even over three decades after its publication.



Its puts us into our place. Humans have this tendency to think of themselves as the most developed species, but little did we know that the universe is in fact run by mice. And the aliens in this book are all just as clueless about where they belong and what kind of world they live in. Which is comforting, because isn't this was life is essentially like? Confusing, sometimes seemingly pointless.

The Hitchhiker's Guide is a kind reminder that that's okay, that it is enough to remember that we're just part of something that is so much bigger than the perspective we have on it. And while we never will fully understand what is happening around us, we might as well just try, gathering as much knowledge as we can in order to find our way in a world that is full of chance and coincidence.

This is another instance where it's daunting to write a review because the novel is well-known and loved by millions of people. As a Sci-Fi/Fantasy reader, it's embarrassing that I've only read this once, and I've waited 'till 2016 to read this. I'm glad that I can finally say that I've read this. I've finally read and enjoyed one of the most influential books of the sci-fi genre.

I understand all the buzz regarding this novel. This is the first time in my whole life that I laughed out loud while reading a novel. I've never believed that a novel could be humorous enough to make me elicit more than a giggle or a smile. This novel changed my perception of humor novels in general. I finally have faith in that genre, and an even stronger desire to read more important Sci-Fi novels.

I don't see the need to make a short summary of the novel. You can find other reviews that did that. I'm writing this review to express my feelings toward the novel, and the journey that I had with it. Speaking of journey, it was a damn short one. I honestly hate gigantic novels, but it's always fulfilling to finish one if the book is great. This book I can consider amazing, but too short.

Aside from the humor, I enjoyed the wittiness of the novel and the author himself. The ideas he incorporated in the novel are vital for the readers to understand. It may be a humor novel, but it's more than that as a whole.

The characters are funny and well-developed. The main ones managed to make me laugh. Ford reminds me of Sheldon Cooper from The Big Bang Theory, and Arthur as Leonard Hofstadter. This is like a classic Big Bang theory episode, or maybe The Big Bang theory is a modern Hitchhiker.

The plot is not that complex, but it is interesting. I'm always interested to read about other planets in the galaxy, even if it's just fiction. I like to imagine that there are hundreds or thousands of worlds out there in the galaxy. Funny thing that the Earth blew up in this novel. Funnier that they considered Earth as a funny name in the beginning.

All the ideologies Adams incorporated here are interesting to me. How some animals are superior and manipulated us, or how the Earth was all a project of some aliens. It's funny and vastly interesting. I can't wait to read the other books in the series.

4.5/5 stars. I decided to round it down because while the novel truly entertained me, it still lacked something and made me think twice about the 5-star rating.

See my video review here: https://youtu.be/hfJJDQOroho

This is a book written in 1979 which follows the story of Arthur Dent who is having a bad day because his house is about to be torn down to make way for a highway. However, he has more things to worry about because the Earth is about to be demolished to make way for the galactic highway. Arthur Dent and his friend Ford Perfect are scooped up from Earth just a second before it is wiped out. The two of them travel through the galaxy and encounter many different people along the way including a depressed robot.

The first half of the book was really funny. I was reading this with a family member, and we both were laughing out loud every couple of minutes. The second half of the book was less funny because it was more plot driven. This book won't be for everyone, because some of the humor is a bit dry. I haven't seen the movie yet, but I am not sure if the jokes will really translate that well to the big screen.

Overall, it was a quick read and pretty enjoyable. However, as mentioned earlier, the pacing felt a bit off but keep in mind this book was written in the 1970's before the 8 second attention spans developed by YouTube.

2025 Reading Schedule
JantA Town Like Alice
FebtBirdsong
MartCaptain Corelli's Mandolin - Louis De Berniere
AprtWar and Peace
MaytThe Woman in White
JuntAtonement
JultThe Shadow of the Wind
AugtJude the Obscure
SeptUlysses
OcttVanity Fair
NovtA Fine Balance
DectGerminal

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طنزی پست مدرن و نگاهی غریب به پرسش های اساسی انسان
مدت ها بود اینگونه نخندیده بودم

I don't know how many times I've read this masterpiece of perfectly logical nonsense but there is a reason I try to read it every year for Towel Day (25th May). This year, I've decided to finally read the entire "trilogy" (which is also why I started a bit early).

Today must be a Thursday (funny that it actually is) because Arthur Dent has never gotten the hang of those. As it were, this particular day was when a demolition crew came to demolish his house to make way for a bypass. Shortly after, planet Earth follows its example for a hyperspace bypass. But not to worry, Arthur survives thanks to his friend Ford Prefect, who's actually an alien. They end up hitchhiking through the galaxy with a copy of the titular book, some babel fish and - of course - at least one towel. After all, there is more to the blue marble than meats the eye and it has to do with the answer to the question of Life, the Universe and Everything.

Along the way, we get overenthusiastic spaceship computers, a depressed robot, a Galactic President that would make the current one in the White House look perfectly ordinary, some mice and an award-winning engineer.

This is one of those books that you either love or hate. Not least because humour is a fickle thing. Douglas Adams managed to perfectly capture the silliness, ridiculousness and nonsense behind human existence, bureaucracy and the many questions we tend to philosophize about and wrapped them all up in a space adventure. He managed to put his finger exactly on the stupid stuff and emphasized the things we probably should pay more attention to. Such as gorgeous fjords.

As light and funny as this book seems on the surface, it is a deeper analysis of all of us; an attempt at making sense of a couple of things while not taking anything too seriously because life's too short for that (the author, sadly, proved that).

Definitely a classic that deserves all the different adaptations (it actually started out as a radio drama and was only turned into a novel later). Looking forward to finally finding out how the journey continues.

I fell asleep while listening to this one... twice.



I fell asleep at the beginning of the book, and then at the end of it. I googled the ending because I didn't want to go to sleep again.

Don't get me wrong. I didn't dislike the book. It's just that I didn't like it either. It's not my kind of humor, not my kind of story. But I'm sure to remember to take a towel next time I hitchhike through the galaxy.

Quirk.
Quirk quirk.
Quirk quirk quirk.
Quirk quirk.
Quirk.

Read the above. Read it again. Read it seven more times.

The cute thing about language is that if you see, hear, or say a word enough, it just doesn't seem to make sense anymore. You know it's a word, but suddenly the q just doesn't get along with the u anymore, the r and the k just can't see eye to eye, and the i wants to run away from home.

Read it again.

That's this book.

It's quirky. It's so quirky it's quirks have quirks, and those quirks have little quirks of their own. By the time you finally work you way through the whole quirk family tree, the first quirk doesn't seem quirky anymore.

It seems annoying.

Douglas Adams has force-fed and painfully injected so much quirk into this worthless little novel that it makes your head spin. There is no point to this novel. There is no deeper meaning. The supercomputer chose '42' because I'm convinced that's the highest Adams can count.

Quirk.
Quirk.
QUIRK.

n  n    “I don’t want to die now!” he yelled. “I’ve still got a headache! I don’t want to go to heaven with a headache, I’d be all cross and wouldn’t enjoy it!n  n

I found my love for Sci-Fi comedy when I read The Martian. And this was a good addition to my read shelf in that accord. I loved the moments I spent with this book. Unlike The Martian, this book would also work well for non-Sci-Fi readers. Because there is soo much humour you can't repress your laugh and enjoy this book.

OVERVIEW
Earth is scheduled to demolition for the construction of hyperspace bypass by Vogons, a galactic race. Arthur Dent is saved by his friend, Ford Prefect, who is actually an alien. Ford hitches the lift on Vogons' Spaceship. When Vogons find them in their ship, they throw them in the open space. We can live in space without breathing for 30 seconds. But they are saved in 29 seconds by Heart of Gold, an incredibly fast spaceship which can cover every corner of the universe in fraction of a second. This spaceship is stolen by Zaphod, the president of galaxy. With Heart of Gold, they find a legendary planet named Magrathea. This planet is known to manufacture planets.


RANDOM THOUGHTS
=> I liked every character. Everyone was humorous. Arthur and Ford were my favourites. I also liked Zaphod.

=> Hyper-intelligent race, mice, build a supercomputer, Deep Thought, on Magrathea. It was built to determine the answer to life, universe and everything. After seven million and so years, it calculated the answer 42. But it was confusing. So Deep Thought build another supercomputer to calculate the question to this answer. This supercomputer was Earth which would calculate the question in ten million years. But five minutes before completing its task, it was demolished by Vogons.
WHAT?!

Jedyny element, który mi się podobał to Marvin