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4.06 AVERAGE
4.06 AVERAGE
I never realized there were so many versions and forms of Hitchhiker's Guide. This was very detailed and informative and in parts very funny, but overall I felt it was too long.
Neil Gaiman has a lot of respect for Douglas Adams' work and quirkiness, and therefore you can feel the endearment just from reading. The book is funny - mostly through footnotes - and I learnt a lot that I wouldn't say is essential to understand Adams, but it planted in me a willingness to read everything again. I even want to listen to the original radio series. This book is worth reading if you enjoy Douglas Adams the man, and not exactly for Hitchhiker's Guide even though it is a big chunk of him.
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy was first broadcast at 22.30 on a Wednesday evening in 1978 where the BBC almost hoped that no one would hear it. Radio programmes in those days almost never got reviews either, so there was a collective dropping of jaws when it turned out that there were two in the papers that weekend praising the show. Word of mouth recommendations meant that this obscure comedy sci-fi series grew to have a cult following very soon and it was to permeate the national culture in ways that Douglas Adams could never have conceived when he had the idea in a field in Innsbruck in 1971.
Don't Panic…
So began a much-loved trilogy that just happened to spread itself across five books. But Douglas Adams created far more things than just this. Born in Cambridge in 1952 he moved to London a little while later and after his parents divorced ended up in Essex. He stood out at school, mostly because he was very tall, 6 foot at the age of 12 and finally reached 6' 5", but was also known for his stories that were published in the school paper. University beckoned and he ended up at Cambridge where he tried and failed to join Footlights. He had written material that Footlights wanted to use, but they still didn't want him in it! Post university, the desire to get into TV or radio as a writer. He was fortunate to have his Revue shown on the BBC and this lead to a brief sketch writing with Graham Chapman of Monty Python fame. Then nothing, so a series of odd jobs ensued; was his brief writing career over before it started? Thankfully no, he kept plugging away and suddenly the thing that he had desired the most was happening. The rest is history; or is it the future.
I love deadlines. I love the whooshing noise they make as they go by.
Neil Gaiman in this fondly written biography of Adams, has written a fitting tribute to the man, who was taken from us far too early. whose work has seeped into the British psyche; even my children knew the answer to everything is 42, but they didn't know where it had originated from. This has been corrected now and a second-hand set of the books was acquired and pointed out to them on the shelf and they were strongly advised to read them. The book is crammed full of facts and details such as the asteroid named in his honour was 2001 DA42. It is enough to warm the transistors in the heart of a depressed robot. A touching tribute to an author with an amazing imagination and has one of the most amusing dedications written that I have read in a while. Great stuff.
Don't Panic…
So began a much-loved trilogy that just happened to spread itself across five books. But Douglas Adams created far more things than just this. Born in Cambridge in 1952 he moved to London a little while later and after his parents divorced ended up in Essex. He stood out at school, mostly because he was very tall, 6 foot at the age of 12 and finally reached 6' 5", but was also known for his stories that were published in the school paper. University beckoned and he ended up at Cambridge where he tried and failed to join Footlights. He had written material that Footlights wanted to use, but they still didn't want him in it! Post university, the desire to get into TV or radio as a writer. He was fortunate to have his Revue shown on the BBC and this lead to a brief sketch writing with Graham Chapman of Monty Python fame. Then nothing, so a series of odd jobs ensued; was his brief writing career over before it started? Thankfully no, he kept plugging away and suddenly the thing that he had desired the most was happening. The rest is history; or is it the future.
I love deadlines. I love the whooshing noise they make as they go by.
Neil Gaiman in this fondly written biography of Adams, has written a fitting tribute to the man, who was taken from us far too early. whose work has seeped into the British psyche; even my children knew the answer to everything is 42, but they didn't know where it had originated from. This has been corrected now and a second-hand set of the books was acquired and pointed out to them on the shelf and they were strongly advised to read them. The book is crammed full of facts and details such as the asteroid named in his honour was 2001 DA42. It is enough to warm the transistors in the heart of a depressed robot. A touching tribute to an author with an amazing imagination and has one of the most amusing dedications written that I have read in a while. Great stuff.
A little too insider for the casual fan. I've read all the Hitchhiker and Dirk Gently books at least once (some many more times) and am a fan of Gaiman so thought this was worth checking out, but there's a significant assumption of how familiar you are with all things Adams. Probably not all that unexpected considering the fan base, but made it a little removed for me.
emotional
funny
informative
lighthearted
medium-paced
funny
informative
lighthearted
medium-paced
Although I loved Hitch-hikers guide when I read it, and still do, I would have never picked-up this book if it had been written by anyone else. I really wouldn't think I'd care about all the trivia about the different versions that have appeared over the years - radio shows, TV, books, film. But I like Gaiman's style. He keeps it interesting.
It turns out that it was somewhat interesting to see the creative process at work. The first two books were better than the next two because it was fresh and exciting to him and because they went through a process of evolution from radio show to book. Parts that didn't work were thrown away or re-done. The next two books were done more for money and did not go through much revision.
I wish Adams had lived longer and written more books. But the special circumstances that were responsible for the first book's brilliance likely never would have happened again.
It turns out that it was somewhat interesting to see the creative process at work. The first two books were better than the next two because it was fresh and exciting to him and because they went through a process of evolution from radio show to book. Parts that didn't work were thrown away or re-done. The next two books were done more for money and did not go through much revision.
I wish Adams had lived longer and written more books. But the special circumstances that were responsible for the first book's brilliance likely never would have happened again.
Writing comes easy. All you have to do is stare at a blank piece of paper until your forehead bleeds.
Neil Gaiman, as usual, has done a masterful job telling the story of Douglas Adams and the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. This book is filled with so much about Adams and the various HHGTTG formats, and even though I knew some of it, I learned so much more. A must-read for any HHGTTG fan.
Neil Gaiman, as usual, has done a masterful job telling the story of Douglas Adams and the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. This book is filled with so much about Adams and the various HHGTTG formats, and even though I knew some of it, I learned so much more. A must-read for any HHGTTG fan.
I'm not a HUGE obsessive Hitchhiker's Guide fan, although I've read all the books and liked them/thought they were funny, but Neil Gaiman writing about Douglas Adams? Sign me up, please. This book was a look at Douglas Adams' life and I frankly would've been a lot more uninterested in the subject matter had it not been for who was writing, but it ended up being a pretty good read. It's essential to have read/at least be a mild fan of H2G2 or Adams' other work, though, obviously.