Time for another book chat! This time it is The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
Warning: will contain spoilers.
But really - who hasn't read these books or seen the movies.
Oh, right. Me. I am that much of a lame ass.
I have, of course, heard lots and lots of people quote these movies...so I had an idea of what I was getting into. I knew the answer to the universe was 42. I knew the dolphins were always from other planets and were trying to warn the humans the whole time. I knew the general premise. I knew people either really liked or really did not like the movie.
What I did not know was how freaking funny these books are.
Just in case you are like me and live under a rock - let me give you a run-down. Arthur Dent is a normal, kinda loser-ish human, living on earth. His best friend - Ford Prefect- isn't actually an out of work actor like he has led on - but in fact a writer for The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. Ford had hitched a lift to Earth, and was planning on staying for a week but ended up being stranded for 15 years. He is not happy about this.
Ford finds out that earth is about to be destroyed and saves his best friend Arthur. The two of them together then trip along into the middle of a scheme by Zaphod Beeblebrox - who is the crazy President of the Galaxy and happens to be a distant cousin of Ford's. Zaphod has stolen the Heart of Gold - which runs on improbability power - and the discover a lost civilization - which had actually built Earth for the mice to run experiments on humans and to discover the meaning of life, the universe, and everything. The mice know the answer to the question is 42 - but experiment Earth was supposed to tell them what question 42 answered.
Unfortunately, Earth had been destroyed 5 minutes before the 10 million year experiment was completed, the mice do not want to start over - so they want Arthur's brain. The friend's manage to escape - the mice tell everyone the question is "How many roads must a man walk down?" and all is well. The travelers decide to get some food at the restaurant at the end of the universe - and its over.
I do not normally laugh out loud at books - but this book made me giggle - frequently. I love the excerpts from The Hitchhikers Guide. Ford and Arthur trying to compliment the Vogon poetry was hilarious. Marvin, the happy-door hating depressed robot, was awesome.
It was short- and the ending felt...open. I guess that is the right word. I know it is a series and these books were never meant to stand alone so I can look past the weird ending. I also think it needs to be kept short - funny is hard for long books.
I am very excited for The Restaurant at the End of the Universe.
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