The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is the first book in a trilogy of five. Yes, you read that right. It immediately signals to you what kind of work this is. Well, sort of. It's the story of Arthur Dent (human), who finds out that his friend Ford Prefect is an alien the same day that Earth is destroyed to make room for a new hyperspace route. Ford saves Arthur by getting him onto a spaceship, and this first book is about their journey with two others (they end up on board thanks in part to the workings of an 'improbability drive') to a long-lost planet whose race produces planets. Arthur finds out, in turn, that the Earth itself was a creation of this race, and that it was really a supercomputer calculating the question of our reality (an older computer had determined the answer to be '42,' but that computer didn't know the question). Interesting, no?
How do I even describe this? It's part Dave Barry, part Terry Pratchett, part philosophy, part sci-fi, part just plain ridiculous, and part wonderfully fun. It's short (180 pages), and you'll probably find it amusing, insightful, and silly. Worth the time, overall. The next four parts promise to be good.
I'm told this is based on what was originally a radio broadcast, as an aside.
Rating: A-
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