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3.89 AVERAGE
3.89 AVERAGE
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I first read this in the 1980s and completely loved it.
Reading it 30+ years later and in some ways it shows its age. Answering machines, no cell phones....stuff like that. But it's testament to the genius of Douglas Adams that it still works.
Reading it 30+ years later and in some ways it shows its age. Answering machines, no cell phones....stuff like that. But it's testament to the genius of Douglas Adams that it still works.
So I found this book at a used book shop and the title itself made me buy it! What a title, right? And Douglas Adams is not a bad author so...of course I picked this one up. And it was...not bad? Of course, Adams' prose is always simply fantastic and his humour is (practically) unparalleled and I found myself laughing out loud at multiple points. Just the way he structures sentences and the absurdity that Adams delights in...tickles me so! The story itself though...just was not all there? I mean, technically, there was a plot and there were characters, and things did happen. But...I wasn't really interested or excited by any of it. I was reading purely for the way Adams turns a phrase and the humour sprinkled liberally throughout. Did that make this a worthwhile read? I suppose. Not sure this is going to be a keeper for me though.
I really enjoyed this story and found it to be so much clearer and more understandable than the first Dirk Gently book. I love how all of the loose ends were tied up very neatly at the end, which wasn't the case in the previous book. Once again, not as funny as the Hitchhiker's Guide series but there were still several clever and witty remarks to be found throughout the book.
Not bad, though if you're new to Douglas Adams I would read Hitchhiker's first, or Meaning of Liff. This was pretty funny throughout, particular in the first 50 pages, but Adams' trademark randomness and play with expectation falters at the end, and the book comes to what I found to be a fairly abrupt conclusion.
Though some have remarked that Hitchhiker's had less plot and character development than this, I think that's only true on a surface level (since this book has much more of the feel and structure of a novel). I felt much closer to the characters in Hitchhiker's, and they seemed to have more depth, although Dirk Gently himself is definitely thoroughly amusing.
Though some have remarked that Hitchhiker's had less plot and character development than this, I think that's only true on a surface level (since this book has much more of the feel and structure of a novel). I felt much closer to the characters in Hitchhiker's, and they seemed to have more depth, although Dirk Gently himself is definitely thoroughly amusing.
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
When I was in middle school, I was on a major [a:Douglas Adams|4|Douglas Adams|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1189120061p2/4.jpg] kick. [b:The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy|386162|The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, #1)|Douglas Adams|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1388282444s/386162.jpg|3078186] had rekindled my love of reading and I was trying to find anything he had written. The public library had this book on cassette, abridged, read by Simon Jones (aka Arthur Dent from the HHGttG miniseries). Being me, I copied the cassette and proceeded to listen to the book on a loop all summer long - I can still recite passages.
So sitting down to read the book was a little tricky because I could still hear Jones' voice in my head as I read certain passages but then the abridged lines would catch me off guard. Sadly, that edition is no longer in print, which makes me sad but what can you do.
I think this book is still really funny, definitely better than the first Dirk Gently "mystery" but just as wacky. Perhaps it is Kate, who is a much more likeable character than any one in the first book. Her quest for delivery pizza made me love her immediately. And now that I picture Thor as Chris Hemsworth, my mental image is even better for the incredibly ridiculous moments.
**eagle swoops down and I can't write any more of this review**
So sitting down to read the book was a little tricky because I could still hear Jones' voice in my head as I read certain passages but then the abridged lines would catch me off guard. Sadly, that edition is no longer in print, which makes me sad but what can you do.
I think this book is still really funny, definitely better than the first Dirk Gently "mystery" but just as wacky. Perhaps it is Kate, who is a much more likeable character than any one in the first book. Her quest for delivery pizza made me love her immediately. And now that I picture Thor as Chris Hemsworth, my mental image is even better for the incredibly ridiculous moments.
**eagle swoops down and I can't write any more of this review**
Read this book when it first came out. Great storyline - truly holistic and connected. Dialogue is excellent, and even the minor characters are a blast to read. Only the refrigerator and boy were insufficiently explored, but this is a minor point.
Looking forward to rereading the third book, which I hardly remember. Also planning to check out the BBC television show based on this book soon - it was highly rated. As for the book, the proper rating is 'a suffusion of yellow' - which covers any number larger than 4.
Looking forward to rereading the third book, which I hardly remember. Also planning to check out the BBC television show based on this book soon - it was highly rated. As for the book, the proper rating is 'a suffusion of yellow' - which covers any number larger than 4.
I have absolutely no idea what just happened.
I would give this 1.5 stars. It was in-between "I didn't like it" and "it was ok" for me.
I didn't like ANY of the characters, particularly Dirk. He's just a dirk with a c instead of an r... Other characters were either lack-luster, annoying, or just not at all fleshed out enough to form any kind of opinion.
The plot-line was all over the place, and I had a hard time following all of the things that were going on. And none of them made any sense. Ever.
I suppose that's probably part of the charm for some readers. Usually I'm all for that kind of thing. This just did not work for me. What I will give him is the way he uses words, simile, metaphor, etc.. is brilliant. Everything was alive, at least. And there was some humor.
Maybe I just picked the wrong time to read it. Or maybe my brain just doesn't work like what seems to be the majority here, because I just do not get the hype. It's possible that since I didn't read the first book, I was missing something- but I don't think that's really the case here.
I would give this 1.5 stars. It was in-between "I didn't like it" and "it was ok" for me.
I didn't like ANY of the characters, particularly Dirk. He's just a dirk with a c instead of an r... Other characters were either lack-luster, annoying, or just not at all fleshed out enough to form any kind of opinion.
The plot-line was all over the place, and I had a hard time following all of the things that were going on. And none of them made any sense. Ever.
I suppose that's probably part of the charm for some readers. Usually I'm all for that kind of thing. This just did not work for me. What I will give him is the way he uses words, simile, metaphor, etc.. is brilliant. Everything was alive, at least. And there was some humor.
Maybe I just picked the wrong time to read it. Or maybe my brain just doesn't work like what seems to be the majority here, because I just do not get the hype. It's possible that since I didn't read the first book, I was missing something- but I don't think that's really the case here.
I'm working on the 1,001 books to read before you die and came across this series. I also saw this on something else. I thought the previous Dirk Gently book was okay so I thought I would give this a listen. It wasn't a bad read, but I think there are plenty of inside jokes that I did not get. I thought the use of Thor was interesting and it did make me think of American Gods.
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced