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pqtrick's review against another edition
2.0
Reads like a stand-up where all the jokes are jokes from another comedian. Kudos to Eoin Colfer for trying to keep the Hitchhiker's universe alive, but there's only one Douglas Adams.
angus_mckeogh's review against another edition
2.0
A fair effort and the beginning was fun with the characters and there was a smidgen of mimicry in the start that had me hoping for another Hitchhiker's adventure, but alas I just found Colfer no Adams. Just okay in the end. Nothing amazing. Certainly miss Douglas.
bellatap's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.5
It’s entertaining enough for being a book that often has me confused lol
aceinit's review against another edition
2.0
In theory, this book has everything required to make an excellent Hitchhiker's adventure: Ford, Arthur, everyone's favorite galactic president, Vogons and even Thor of the Aesir. Unfortunately, Colfer's addition to the series is a disappointment.
Though there were moments of genuine humor in the book, Adam's legendary wit is missing, and the prose comes off as dry and unentertaining. I was never drawn into this story the way I was with the original trilogy.
Colfer commits the unforgivable sin or "normalizing" Zaphod (who, in the interest of full disclosure is my favorite character in the series and one of my favorite charaters in all of literature). Gone is the 2-headed renegade President, replaced by a normal one-headed version. His surgically removed second head, suddenly elevated to genius level, has replaced Eddie as the interface for the Heart of Gold. And, given the imagery used to describe Left Brain's environment (Left Brain being the second head), I could not escape the visual of Futurama's head-in-a-jar.
Then there is Random Dent, Trillian and Arthur's teenaged daughter. I will freely admit to not reading the last two Hitchhiker's novels by Adams (I tried, but found them grossly unentertaining), so I will admit to knowing nothing about Random's character before going into this novel other than that she existed.
Random is the second biggest problem in this novel. After creating an alternate reality in which she grew up to become an apparently useful President of the Galaxy (and marrying what is, for all practical purposes, a telepathic hamster), Random emerges from her dream world to find herself a teen again. She then goes on to hold her parents resopnsible for all of their failings in her fictional world, making Trillian's life a living hell and reducing Trillian to an angsty, guilt-laden maternal cliché. Random is insufferable. Take every whiny, self-absorbed teen cliché and multiply it by the universe, and you will get the idea of how insufferable she is. I don't normally advocate violence but, seriously, someone needed to slap some sense into her at least once.
The biggest problem is the Guide itself. whereas Adams worked its information into the narrative flow with seemingly effortless grace, Colfer had chosen to completely (and frequently) halt the narrative to insert his Guide notes. At once point, during the climax, he writes that he will keep this particular interruption brief so as not to interrupt the flow of the story. This, to me, means he knows the interruptions are exactly that, which means he is also aware that they are probably annoying the readers. Not everything in the universe needs Guide entries, though Colfer seems to delight in throwing them at the reader.
The plot itself is adequate, though by no means exceptional, and Wowbagger the Infinitely Prolonged is an interesting addition to the cast. I would have liked to see more development of his relationship with Trillian, and more of him outside of his role as The Guy Who Insults Everyone. I mean, Trillian had to see something in him, right? As it stands, the entire romance is written up to a byproduct of accelerated hyperspace and, after some drama with Thor, everyone flies off into the sunset after an overly-prolonged series of goodbyes.
And Thor. Thor, Thor, Thor. Norse thunder gods shouldn’t be insecure, emo, mopey failed wannabe rockstars, mmm’kay. That’s all I’m gonna say about that. Because every time I think about it, my head starts to hurt just a little more.
Perhaps if the entries weren't quite so interruptive, so lengthy or a little more entertaining they would not have been such a nuisance. As things stand, I was barely skimming them by the second half of the novel, and skipping most of them entirely by the final 1/4.
Adams’s original trilogy is a masterpiece. I will admit that my hopes weren’t high going into this novel, though I was desperately hoping to be pleasantly surprised. I expected nothing more from Colfer than a pale imitation. Which is exactly what I received.
Though there were moments of genuine humor in the book, Adam's legendary wit is missing, and the prose comes off as dry and unentertaining. I was never drawn into this story the way I was with the original trilogy.
Colfer commits the unforgivable sin or "normalizing" Zaphod (who, in the interest of full disclosure is my favorite character in the series and one of my favorite charaters in all of literature). Gone is the 2-headed renegade President, replaced by a normal one-headed version. His surgically removed second head, suddenly elevated to genius level, has replaced Eddie as the interface for the Heart of Gold. And, given the imagery used to describe Left Brain's environment (Left Brain being the second head), I could not escape the visual of Futurama's head-in-a-jar.
Then there is Random Dent, Trillian and Arthur's teenaged daughter. I will freely admit to not reading the last two Hitchhiker's novels by Adams (I tried, but found them grossly unentertaining), so I will admit to knowing nothing about Random's character before going into this novel other than that she existed.
Random is the second biggest problem in this novel. After creating an alternate reality in which she grew up to become an apparently useful President of the Galaxy (and marrying what is, for all practical purposes, a telepathic hamster), Random emerges from her dream world to find herself a teen again. She then goes on to hold her parents resopnsible for all of their failings in her fictional world, making Trillian's life a living hell and reducing Trillian to an angsty, guilt-laden maternal cliché. Random is insufferable. Take every whiny, self-absorbed teen cliché and multiply it by the universe, and you will get the idea of how insufferable she is. I don't normally advocate violence but, seriously, someone needed to slap some sense into her at least once.
The biggest problem is the Guide itself. whereas Adams worked its information into the narrative flow with seemingly effortless grace, Colfer had chosen to completely (and frequently) halt the narrative to insert his Guide notes. At once point, during the climax, he writes that he will keep this particular interruption brief so as not to interrupt the flow of the story. This, to me, means he knows the interruptions are exactly that, which means he is also aware that they are probably annoying the readers. Not everything in the universe needs Guide entries, though Colfer seems to delight in throwing them at the reader.
The plot itself is adequate, though by no means exceptional, and Wowbagger the Infinitely Prolonged is an interesting addition to the cast. I would have liked to see more development of his relationship with Trillian, and more of him outside of his role as The Guy Who Insults Everyone. I mean, Trillian had to see something in him, right? As it stands, the entire romance is written up to a byproduct of accelerated hyperspace and, after some drama with Thor, everyone flies off into the sunset after an overly-prolonged series of goodbyes.
And Thor. Thor, Thor, Thor. Norse thunder gods shouldn’t be insecure, emo, mopey failed wannabe rockstars, mmm’kay. That’s all I’m gonna say about that. Because every time I think about it, my head starts to hurt just a little more.
Perhaps if the entries weren't quite so interruptive, so lengthy or a little more entertaining they would not have been such a nuisance. As things stand, I was barely skimming them by the second half of the novel, and skipping most of them entirely by the final 1/4.
Adams’s original trilogy is a masterpiece. I will admit that my hopes weren’t high going into this novel, though I was desperately hoping to be pleasantly surprised. I expected nothing more from Colfer than a pale imitation. Which is exactly what I received.
aurorabulgaris's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I don't even know what to write!.. Like genuinely, I don't know how many times this book needs reading to get to all the weird-a** details that make it as quirky and special as it is.
At times, I admit the weirdness was a bit much, for I got lost into it and forgot to pay attention to the plot.
It is however very entertaining so I'd recommend (re)reading it, potentially in conjunction with the actual Guide.
At times, I admit the weirdness was a bit much, for I got lost into it and forgot to pay attention to the plot.
It is however very entertaining so I'd recommend (re)reading it, potentially in conjunction with the actual Guide.
emptykatze's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
teokajlibroj's review against another edition
5.0
At first, I didn't like the idea of another authors continuing the Hitchhiker series. However, I changed my mind after reading "Mostly Harmless" and felt the series needed a better ending. Eoin Colfer surprised me with "And Another Thing" which was as good if not better than the originals by Adams.
The book is much tighter and consistent that those written by Adams which often felt like a series of random sketches thrown together haphazard. This time there is a fairly coherent plot with broad use of the guide. It was great to see the old cast reunited and back to their usual tricks and wacky adventures. Colfer handled the balance between referencing old plot lines and introducing new ones very well. There were plenty of nods to the earlier books without simply being a rehash of them.
I was surprised how funny the book was and I'm not sure if I laughed as much when I read some of the originals (though they were much shorter). The interviews of the Gods was a particularly funny Adamseque scene. Overall, a brilliant and hilarious read. Colfer had big boots to fill and he certainly did a fantastic job of them.
The book is much tighter and consistent that those written by Adams which often felt like a series of random sketches thrown together haphazard. This time there is a fairly coherent plot with broad use of the guide. It was great to see the old cast reunited and back to their usual tricks and wacky adventures. Colfer handled the balance between referencing old plot lines and introducing new ones very well. There were plenty of nods to the earlier books without simply being a rehash of them.
I was surprised how funny the book was and I'm not sure if I laughed as much when I read some of the originals (though they were much shorter). The interviews of the Gods was a particularly funny Adamseque scene. Overall, a brilliant and hilarious read. Colfer had big boots to fill and he certainly did a fantastic job of them.
sofiahogstedt's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
gxjira's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
celtic_oracle's review against another edition
2.0
I'm not sure if I would have liked this better if I had read it rather than listened to it. Or maybe if I had re-read the original series first, because after a number of years, there's a lot I don't remember? In any event, I didn't laugh as much with this one as I remember doing with the original series, and I found several characters beyond irritating.
I'm willing to give it another go in paper form, but I won't be actively seeking it out.
I'm willing to give it another go in paper form, but I won't be actively seeking it out.