Review: So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish by Douglas Adams

Title: So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish
 Author: Douglas Adams
Publisher/Publication Date: Del Rey Books, April 30, 2002 (First published in 1984)
Genre: Science Fiction
Source/Format: Purchased, Paperback Omnibus Edition

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

Back on Earth with nothing more to show for his long, strange trip through time and space than a ratty towel and a plastic shopping bag, Arthur Dent is ready to believe that the past eight years were all just a figment of his stressed-out imagination. But a gift-wrapped fishbowl with a cryptic inscription, the mysterious disappearance of Earth's dolphins, and the discovery of his battered copy of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy all conspire to give Arthur the sneaking suspicion that something otherworldly is indeed going on. . . .

God only knows what it all means. And fortunately, He left behind a Final Message of explanation. But since it's light-years away from Earth, on a star surrounded by souvenir booths, finding out what it is will mean hitching a ride to the far reaches of space aboard a UFO with a giant robot. But what else is new?

My Thoughts:

So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish was a lot mellower than the previous novels, but it was also a slightly refreshing break from the general random—often life threatening—shenanigans found in the Universe of Douglas Adams Hitchhiker’s Guide trilogy (which, by the way, is far beyond a trilogy by now, but again, more books. So I’m a happy camper).

As I stated above, this book was more down to Earth, literally. The earth has evidently come back from the seemingly permanent destruction it suffered back in book one, but of course something was still amiss. The dolphins have gone missing. Not one, not two, but all of them.

Arthur Dent was slightly less ordinary in this one, despite being back in his old life before his adventure to the far reaches of the galaxy, to odd planets, and even to end of the universe and back again. He also picked up a few interesting skills that defied the laws of physics. Many familiar characters were absent except for a few that still weren’t present for the majority of the book—the others were just mentioned.

The story, for the most part, was firmly grounded on one planet. So, there isn’t much to mention about the setting. Still, So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish was interesting and I really enjoyed it.

My Thoughts about Young Zaphod Plays It Safe...

Young Zaphod Plays It Safe was an interesting story, and takes place before the beginning of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy—ironically enough, it was placed after the end of So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish in the omnibus edition of the books by Douglas Adams. It follows Zaphod, earlier in his life, when he was working as a salvage ship operator. The story is basically about Zaphod during this time, while he was out on an assignment for a couple of people. Their evasive behavior was suspicious but interesting.

There isn’t much more to say on this one, but I did like it despite its incredibly short length. It was nice to learn a little bit more about Zaphod’s life before he became president of the universe, and his ensuing adventures aboard the Heart of Gold.

Rating 4/5

Review: Life, the Universe and Everything by Douglas Adams

Title: Life, the Universe and Everything
Author: Douglas Adams
Publisher/Publication Date: Del Rey Books, April 30, 2002 (First published in 1982)
Genre: Science Fiction
Source/Format: Purchased, Paperback Omnibus Edition

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

The unhappy inhabitants of planet Krikkit are sick of looking at the night sky above their heads–so they plan to destroy it. The universe, that is. Now only five individuals stand between the killer robots of Krikkit and their goal of total annihilation. They are Arthur Dent, a mild-mannered space and time traveler who tries to learn how to fly by throwing himself at the ground and missing; Ford Prefect, his best friend, who decides to go insane to see if he likes it; Slartibartfast, the indomitable vice president of the Campaign for Real Time, who travels in a ship powered by irrational behavior; Zaphod Beeblebrox, the two-headed, three-armed ex-president of the galazy; and Trillian, the sexy space cadet who is torn between a persistent Thunder God and a very depressed Beeblebrox. How will it all end? Will it end? Only this stalwart crew knows as they try to avert “universal” Armageddon and save life as we know it–and don’t know it!

My Thoughts:

I’m steadily working my way through the omnibus edition of this series, and so far, I really like it. Adam Douglas’ style is interesting—classic science fiction elements mixed with humor and outrageous methods of going about life in the universe.

Life, the Universe and Everything picks up where The Restaurant at the End of the Universe left off. Arthur Dent and Ford Prefect are still living under the forced confines of their latest predicament. But they, of course, manage to get out of it in the most hilarious and random way possible. From there, the story delves into new issues that involved messing around with time—and the potential consequences—the impending destruction of the entire universe and the usual variety of problems that always seem to plague Arthur.

Life, the Universe and Everything was a fantastic book, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. The settings were fantastic as always and fit perfectly with the world already established by the previous books. All the old characters were back. Many of them dealing with the events that happened in The Restaurant at the End of the Universe in their own ways. But trouble was afoot, and it was interesting to see how the characters dealt with it. A lot of unexpected things happened in this book, which made it interesting.

I will read on, because I’m curious to know what the next books have in-store for Arthur Dent, Trillion, Ford Prefect, Marvin, and Zaphod Beeblebox. 

Rating 5/5

Review: The Restaurant at the End of the Universe by Douglas Adams

Title:The Restaurant at the End of the Universe
Author: Douglas Adams
Publisher/Publication Date: Del Rey Books, April 30, 2002 (First published in 1980)
Genre: Science Fiction
Source/Format: Purchased, Paperback Omnibus Edition

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

Facing annihilation at the hands of the warlike Vogons is a curious time to have a craving for tea. It could only happen to the cosmically displaced Arthur Dent and his curious comrades in arms as they hurtle across space powered by pure improbability--and desperately in search of a place to eat. Among Arthur's motley shipmates are Ford Prefect, a longtime friend and expert contributor to the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy; Zaphod Beeblebrox, the three-armed, two-headed ex-president of the galaxy; Tricia McMillan, a fellow Earth refugee who's gone native (her name is Trillian now); and Marvin, the moody android who suffers nothing and no one very gladly. Their destination? The ultimate hot spot for an evening of apocalyptic entertainment and fine dining, where the food (literally) speaks for itself. Will they make it? The answer: hard to say. But bear in mind that the Hitchhiker's Guide deleted the term "Future Perfect" from its pages, since it was discovered not to be!

My Thoughts:

“There is a theory which states that if ever anyone discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable…”

One thing I really like about the Hitchhiker’s books, are the titles. They’re fun, but that’s beside the point. The Restaurant at the End of the Universe is the second book of the misnamed series. Really, it’s not a trilogy. But, who cares? More books, right? Anyway, this book picks up shortly after the end of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Arthur Dent is still aboard the Heart of Gold, as he, Ford Prefect, Zaphod, Trillian, and Marvin search for a place to eat. But this is the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Universe series, and the most simplistic task always has the chance of going seriously wrong. And this time it involves an ill-timed request for a very ordinary cup of tea.

I enjoyed The Restaurant at the End of the Universe as much as I did the first book. It was a great story—serious at times, but also maintaining a sense of humor. The Universe in the novel is, of course, an outrageous place—and one of the many aspects that, so far, I’ve enjoyed about the books. The setting and the characters were fantastic. The different planets were very interesting, and it was nice to see how the characters reacted to the rapidly changing environments. Marvin was his usual self, and so was Ford Prefect and Trillian. Arthur was present, but a good portion of The Restaurant at the End of the Universe was dedicated to Zaphod.

I’m also glad that some of the unresolved mysteries from The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Universe were addressed in this book. It all tied together so that was great. But, once again, the ending left me with more questions. So, I will definitely read Life, the Universe and Everything.

One more favorite quote:

“The story so far: In the beginning the Universe was created. This has made a lot of people very angry and been widely regarded as a bad move.”

Rating 5/5

Review: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

Title:The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Author: Douglas Adams
Publisher/Publication Date: Del Rey Books, April 30, 2002 (First published in 1979)
Genre: Science Fiction
Source/Format: Purchased, Paperback Omnibus Edition

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

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...

My Thoughts:

Before I get on with this review, I just have a quick clarification to make. I have the omnibus edition but I plan on reviewing the books separately. So, for today, I’m going to stick with my thoughts for The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

And now, I’ll be moving on.

With this one, I ran into a small dilemma. When I first decided I wanted to read the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy—and this was after staying up late one night, when the movie was on—I discovered that I didn’t actually have the first book in the series. I had the sixth, And Another Thing by Eion Colfer. Fast forward a week or so, and I’ve gotten my copy of The Ultimate Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. I read the first book.

Did I like it?

Yes.

The story follows Arthur Dent, who is the unfortunate recipient of a decidedly bad day. His house is about to be demolished to make way for a bypass. And on top of that, the earth is about to be demolished to make room for a galactic highway that could have really gone around it—but then, there wouldn’t be a story.

I could describe Arthur as a character who had previously lived under very ordinary circumstances. However, his problems began to add up all at once. It was interesting to see his reactions to everything that happened around him. The other characters were interesting too—Ford Prefect, Zaphod Beeblebrox, Trillian, and even Marvin—there interactions were highly entertaining, and a joy to read. The Guide itself offered up interesting facts about the universe as the book presents it.

The settings were very interesting—from Vogon ships to strange planets and an even stranger ship called the Heart of Gold with its Improbability Drive.

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy was a very entertaining read that was sometimes serious and sometimes a little silly with the much needed humor of outrageous situations.

Rating 5/5