Note: Richard Melo will be presenting his book at Powell's City of Books on Tuesday, June 25, at 7:30 p.m. Her name was "Waterloo Sunset," and she...
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Meg Chapple, January 22, 2012 (view all comments by Meg Chapple)
I was a latecomer to the Hitchhiker's series, but was instantly a fan. Douglas Adams' humor is simply genius. The premise and characters are delightful and the plot is a ton of fun, but the real treasures are in Adams' absolutely hilarious anecdotes about the other inhabitants of the universe. It is easy to see how these books are classics in humorous literature, and are a must read for anyone capable of enjoying a book. They are fortunately appropriate for readers of all ages and backgrounds and the humor is extremely accessible. I hadn't imagined literature could be slapstick, but Adams is even able to pull that off and make it look easy. If you know someone who hasn't read them, they also make a great gift--guaranteed to delight. And while Adams' other books are also wonderful, this is his work at his best. I have not completed the series yet, but the several books in it that I have read are as wonderful to read as the first.
amwager, April 5, 2008 (view all comments by amwager)
This is the greatest book ever!!! Its only fault is that its over before you know it. Read this book, and when you're done, read it again!
Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No (2 of 3 readers found this comment helpful)
Forty-two. Now read this classic to see what we're talking about. Sort of. It's pretty complicated — you better read the book. Bring a towel.
by the Sci-Fi and Fantasy Team
"Review"
by The Boston Globe,
"Irresistable!"
"Review"
by Publishers Weekly,
"A whimsical odyssey...Characters frolic through the galaxy with infectious joy."
"Review"
by Washington Post,
"The feckless protagonist, Arthur Dent, is reminiscent of Vonnegut heroes, and his travels afford a wild satire of present institutions."
"Review"
by Chicago Tribune,
"Very simply, the book is one of the funniest SF spoofs ever written, with hyperbolic ideas folding in on themselves."
"Review"
by School Library Journal,
"As parody, it's marvelous: It contains just about every science fiction cliche you can think of. As humor, it's, well, hysterical."
"Review"
by The Arizona Daily Star,
"Adams is one of those rare treasures: an author who, one senses, has as much fun writing as one has reading."
"Synopsis"
by Random,
"IRRESISTIBLE!"
--The Boston Globe
Seconds before the Earth is demolished to make way for a galactic freeway, Arthur Dent is plucked off the planet by his friend Ford Prefect, a researcher for the revised edition of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy who, for the last fifteen years, has been posing as an out-of-work actor.
Together this dynamic pair begin a journey through space aided by quotes from The Hitchhiker's Guide ("A towel is about the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitchhiker can have") and a galaxy-full of fellow travelers: Zaphod Beeblebrox--the two-headed, three-armed ex-hippie and totally out-to-lunch president of the galaxy; Trillian, Zaphod's girlfriend (formally Tricia McMillan), whom Arthur tried to pick up at a cocktail party once upon a time zone; Marvin, a paranoid, brilliant, and chronically depressed robot; Veet Voojagig, a former graduate student who is obsessed with the disappearance of all the ballpoint pens he bought over the years.
Where are these pens? Why are we born? Why do we die? Why do we spend so much time between wearing digital watches? For all the answers stick your thumb to the stars. And don't forget to bring a towel!
"[A] WHIMSICAL ODYSSEY...Characters frolic through the galaxy with infectious joy."
--Publishers Weekly
"Synopsis"
by Penguin,
Jacob Wonderbar must have hit a time warp on his way home after losing the election for President of the Universe, because fifty years have passed on Earth. What's worse, during that time the entire Astral society has come under threat of destruction, and it's up to Jacob to make things--including time itself--right. So, with the unlikely help of Mick Cracken, Jacob time-hops through the universe with Sarah Daisy and Dexter, encountering dinosaurs, Napoleon, and bad '80s fashion in their search for the one person who can help them--Jacob's father.
Buckle your space-belts, the third book in the Jacob Wonderbar series proves that time travel is all fun and games until someone gets stuck in the wrong century!
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