By his own admission, Douglas Adams was not a great writer. When you list the names of the authors who have advanced the English language, Douglas Adams will not feature in that pantheon, though it must be said that he loved the language more than most. But never mind that, for his place is secure in a far more important list: Greatest Thinkers. In the simplest sense of the word, Adams was a philosopher. Like his friends in Monty Python, he used comedy “as a medium to express intelligence” and to communicate ideas, the way comedy should be used. Although this isn’t the book that he intended to deliver to the world, it has served as the perfect goodbye to an author who died well before his time.

The book is divided into four parts—the first three being Life, the Universe, and Everything, obviously, followed by a fun short story that I’d read before,  Young Zaphod Plays It Safe, and finally, the unfinished sequel to  The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul. In the first three parts, the editor has presented a collection of Adams’ speeches, interviews, website entries, book recommendations, introductions to other books/editions and some unpublished stuff rummaged from his many, many MacBooks. In other words, this is a book for those of us who are already familiar with Adams and were left wanting more, those of us to whom Douglas’ idiosyncratic wit and charm feel like a warm, comforting hug.

In his introduction to this book,  Stephen Fry elaborates on this feeling:

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“Douglas has in common with certain rare artists the ability to make the beholder feel that he is addressing them and them alone: I think this in part explains the immense strength and fervour of his ‘fan base’. [...] When you look at Blake, listen to Bach, read Douglas Adams or watch Eddie Izzard perform, you feel you are perhaps the only person in the world who really gets them. Just about everyone else admires them, of course, but no one really connects with them in the way you do. I advance this as a theory. Douglas’s work is not the high art of Bach or the intense personal cosmos of Blake, it goes without saying, but I believe my view holds nonetheless. It’s like falling in love. When an especially peachy Adams turn of phrase or epithet enters the eye and penetrates the brain you want to tap the shoulder of the nearest stranger and share it. The stranger might laugh and seem to enjoy the writing, but you hug to yourself the thought that they didn’t quite understand its force and quality the way you do—”

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What I love about DNA’s writing is his tendency to flit from topic to topic at supersonic speeds and draw comparisons between apparently unrelated subjects, like Newton and Darwin, for example. It takes a peculiar kind of intelligence to draw such elaborate connections. But Adams has this in common with both Newton and Darwin: a sense of wonder. My Physics professor used to say that to be a physicist, one must first be a philosopher, completely in awe of the universe and everything in it, just as Douglas was until the very end. But members of both professions also refuse to settle for a limited world-view, discontented to be living in ignorance. That same sense of wonder puts them on the quest to seek answers and so, they steer the human race forward. Douglas Adams understood and appreciated this and, in his humour and philosophy, he retained a deep respect for science. His strength lay in the fact that he could convey this reverence without ever sounding arrogant:



The Salmon of Doubt provides extensive insight into Adams’ thoughts and beliefs. As is evident, I particularly enjoyed his commentary on religion and atheism, which he wrote with an uncanny understanding of not only science and religion but also the human psyche. If you think atheists are a tiresome lot, you’ll be blown away by DNA, who had to have been the most affable and amusing atheist in history. Where his good friend  Richard Dawkins incites anger in those who cling to religious beliefs, on reading Adams you can’t help but laugh at your own (il)logical fallacies. (Incidentally, this edition includes an utter tear-jerker of an epilogue by Dawkins.) Such is the power of a good joke, as DNA unfailingly demonstrated:

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“This is rather as if you imagine a puddle waking up one morning and thinking, ‘This is an interesting world I find myself in — an interesting hole I find myself in — fits me rather neatly, doesn’t it? In fact it fits me staggeringly well, must have been made to have me in it!’ This is such a powerful idea that as the sun rises in the sky and the air heats up and as, gradually, the puddle gets smaller and smaller, frantically hanging on to the notion that everything’s going to be alright, because this world was meant to have him in it, was built to have him in it; so the moment he disappears catches him rather by surprise. I think this may be something we need to be on the watch out for.”

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I hope that someday I can acquire his unique skill and ability to discuss heavy subject matter in a light-hearted manner, such that his audience is left with much to ponder over but never overwhelmed. Another joy was to read about his profound love for music. To read his essays on The Beatles and Bach is to see that Adams admired those who dared to do something different, who were imaginative and creative and avant-garde. Rare is such a person who could talk about almost anything under the sun: from subatomic particles to manta rays, technology to Jane Austen, architecture to evolutionary biology. The world suffered an incalculable loss when he passed. The Salmon of Doubt may not have gone where it intended to go, but I think it has ended up where it needed to be. It belongs in the compendium of every DNA fan who adores this writer and wants to know his thoughts on everything from Earl Grey tea to the letter ‘Y’. If you’re not a fan yet, I can’t imagine what you’re waiting for!

So long, DNA, and thanks for all the laughter.

Kipp die Schublade eines Schriftstellers aus, leere seinen Papierkorb, krame in seinen Hosentaschen und mische alles mit den Post-its von seinem Kühlschrank und voila, du hast etwas wie "Lachs im Zweifel".
Auf diese Mischung aus Schwanengesang und Leichenfledderei war ich nicht gefasst und sie gefiel mir auch nicht.
Wie kann ein Verleger annehmen, 30 Seiten "Dirk Gently" rechtfertigen einen kompletten neuen Band. Indem er das lediglich impliziert? Mich hat dieses Buch doch recht frustriert. Ich kann mir nicht vorstellen, dass Douglas Adams diesem Schnipselwerk zugestimmt hätte (siehe seine Anmerkungen zwecks Regie).
Traurig
Traurig

Douglas Adams is so great and I'm so sad he never got to finish this book.
This collection has some really great stuff by him but it also has some that's rather boring. I thought the essays went kinda back and forth, because while I love his writing style, I think its much more appropriate for stories than essay structure. The way he jumps from a topic to an anecdote to a rant makes for an entertaining read but it also loses the focus of an essay sometimes. I thought some of the editing/arrangement of work was questionable but overall it didn't effect the actual content, just the flow/themes in a collection of various kinds of writing.
When it comes down to it Adams is consistently such a special and unique author and his sense of humor is always so spot on.

3.5 Stars

A Final Collection of Douglas Adams. Some of his Colums, Diaries a single Chapter taken out of the "Hitchhiker"-Universe and 9 Chapter of the third Dirk Gently Book.
The Colums are a bit much and a Stretch to read but the third and final part makes the book a fun read and really sad in a way. Would have loved to read what Adams' would have made out of it.

I bought this book as soon as the paperback edition was published and it lay unread for well over a year. Robert Louis Stevenson said that, “to travel hopefully is a better thing than to arrive,” and I felt to have one last Douglas Adams book to look forward to would be better than to actually read it. If you are holding back from reading this book for the same reason then you really are missing out. Every week I wasted by leaving this great book on the shelf unread could have been better spent in anticipation of looking forward to reading it again!

I have read and reread this book now and like all of Douglas’s writing it never fails to make me roar with laughter. Broken down into three sections - inevitably titled Life, The Universe and Everything - by Peter Guzzardi it contains speeches, interviews, magazine articles as well at chapters from the unfinished book that shares the title.

The Salmon of Doubt itself stops abruptly and contains many ideas that had not been fully developed, but there is enough material there to satisfy any fan of Douglas Adams and his work. It is clear that Douglas’s world famous procrastination was not the reason he struggled with this book; but the fact there are at least two books mixed in there. Parts of the text are quite clearly a Dirk Gently novel - not surprising considering the fact he is the main character - and other parts have the feel of Hitchhikers, which Douglas was about to rectify just weeks before his untimely death at the ridiculously young age of 49.

Published upon his death The Salmon of Doubt is Douglas Adams' final work. It is composed of various interviews, speeches, observations, short stories and the beginning of a new Dirk Gently novel. It is a combination of technology, science, fiction and humor. (It is also the title I assumed would be my fiftieth.)

I liked the book, but think I would have liked it more had I heeded the advice on the back cover and not read it straight through. There's not enough continuity to make it that kind of book. (Apparently the fact that it's a compilation of items rather than a story was not a big enough clue for me.)


Favorite Quotes:

"I only knew that the Beatles were the most exciting thing in the universe. It wasn't always an easy view to live with. First you had to fight the Stones fans, which was tricky because they fought dirty and had their knuckles nearer to the ground."

"Obviously the Sub Bug wins some points for being portable up to a point. You can take it on a plane, which you wouldn't do with a manta ray, or at least not with a manta ray you liked, and I think that we probably like all manta rays on principle really, don't we?"

"He moved his horse slowly forward and surveyed the small group of peasant huts that stood huddled together in the centre of the clearing, trying very hard at short notice to look deserted."

"There is a particular disdain with which Siamese cats regard you. Anyone who has accidentally walked in on the Queen cleaning her teeth will be familiar with this feeling."


Overall Opinion:

Unless you're an Adams' fanatic and looking to read everything he ever wrote on any subject then take it slowly. Read something else at the same time and you'll enjoy The Salmon of Doubt more than I did.



Rating:

6

Although mostly a collection of interviews, a speech, and some random odds and ends of Adams' writings, it was very much worth the price of admission in that one gains a far greater understanding of the character of the man and a far greater appreciation for his wit. The tidbits of Dirk Gently and Zaphod Beeblebrox were entertaining as well, short as they may be.

My partner isn't much of a reader, but he has become an avid audiobook listener. Sometimes we'll sit and listen to books together after dinner, doing dishes or playing videogames or putting away laundry. Though Adams' writing isn't typically my cup of tea, this book was a nice listen. I think my fiancé enjoyed this book more than I did; he kept laughing at Adam's short quips and wit. So, for both my partner and I, I rated this book four stars.

Mais ou menos como se pegassem seu computador e publicassem seus arquivos doc e bloco de notas depois que você morresse, já que foi tão repentino que ninguém soube lidar muito bem com aquilo. Contudo, nesse caso, você é uma das pessoas mais genuinamente engraçadas e queridinhas do mundo. O que é ótimo. Mas ainda assim não sei lidar com um trecho inicial de livro expondo um mistério do qual o final nunca saberemos. Volta, Douglas Adams!

Very very fascinating but also very very sad. I think some of Adams' best writing is found within this work. Sadly, the publication of this book meant that there would be no more new Douglas Adams books.

Did not realize that this was the incomplete book Adams was working on at his sudden death. An interesting read - the majority of the book is interviews with Adams, thoughts by his friends and bits and pieces of his writing. The actual Salmon of Doubt part is only about 100 pages. I was glad to have once last glance of Dirk but as is usually the case with unfinished works - wished it was longer...

This is a delightful and maddening book. This collection of essays, columns, speech transcripts and random musings was culled from Adams' computers after his tragic death at the age of 49. The collection offers new insight into one of the world's most gifted humorists, and there is both pleasure and education to be had in reading his thoughts on such diverse topics as music, atheism, evolutionary biology, conservation and computers.

The last section of the book contains the beginning of an unfinished Dirk Gently novel tentatively titled The Salmon of Doubt. Though Adams was an avowed atheist, the frustration I felt at having this tale end so abruptly was enough to make me wish he's wrong about the afterlife and hope some trance channel will track him down in the ethers so we can all find out just who was sending Mr. Gently those wire transfers and what, exactly, the rhinoceros was doing on the highway to Santa Fe.