The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy reviewed

It’s hard to imagine today’s pop culture landscape without The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. The book by Douglas Adams gave us the answer to the meaning of life, a hilarious and riveting galaxy-spanning story, and some of the most memorable quotes in mainstream and nerd culture alike. The simple phrase “Don’t panic” and the number 42 are only some examples of the book’s impact.

While Douglas Adams showcased his vast literary talent through titles like Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency, he would unleash his full power as a writer in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

While Douglas Adams passed away in 2001, his sharp humor and world-building skills live on in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – a favorite book of sci-fi lovers worldwide.

What is The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy about?

The book’s wild journey begins with our hero, Arthur Dent, desperately trying to prevent the demolition of his house. The house is scheduled for bulldozing to free up space for a bypass, and Arthur can’t do anything about it.

Arthur’s protest is cut short by the arrival of his friend, Ford Prefect, who whisks our protagonist away for a drink and some sobering news: Ford is, in fact, an alien researcher gathering data for a knowledge repository called The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. He has discovered that, much like Arthur’s house, Earth is to be destroyed due to hyperspace construction work.

Soon after, a fleet sent by the Vogons – a bureaucratic galactic civilization – arrives and announces their plan. Without much ceremony, they then destroy Planet Earth in a matter of seconds. But while the planetwide catastrophe would be a spoiler in another fiction book, here, it’s only the beginning of the adventure.

Arthur and Ford hitch a ride on the Vogon ship, get thrown out into space shortly thereafter, and miraculously get picked up in the vacuum by a different spaceship.

The vessel in question is the Heart of Gold, which houses a most unusual crew. The ship’s owner is Zaphod Beeblebrox, the current President of the Galaxy; Trillian, an earthling woman who Arthur knows from before; and Marvin, a depressed robot and all-time fan-favorite.

More importantly, the Heart of Gold is powered by the Improbability Drive, which allows for near-instantaneous travel to any point in the universe. Of course, even first-time readers understand that introducing the drive means the crew will go on a galaxy-wide adventure.

Throughout the book, Arthur and others encounter oddities like the Babel Fish, meet Slartibartfast, a galactic engineer, and survive the horrors of Vogon poetry. The group also learns about the true purpose of Earth and tries to discover the ultimate answer to life, the universe, and everything.

Accolades for The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy has received several accolades:

• Sunday Times number-one bestseller
• The Golden Pan award for Adams for one million sold copies
• Number 24 on the Waterstone’s Books/Channel Four One Hundred Greatest Books of the Century list
• Number four on BBC’s Big Read list

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – A book review

Besides being an exceedingly fun space odyssey, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy presents many profound ideas and commentaries on society and the human condition as a whole.

For instance, the Vogons, who serve as the book’s main antagonists, aren’t truly evil. They are simply a bureaucratic bunch that does its job without paying much attention to those affected along the way. Even without the obvious parallels between Vogon’s destruction of Earth and the demolition of Arthur’s house, the comparison to real-life bureaucracy is quite evident.

The book also has a satirical view of scientific materialism, religion, and philosophy. However, the satire isn’t presented overtly, as Adams chooses a more subtle approach. Finally, the novel offers a profound yet light-hearted critique of humanity with tongue-in-cheek jabs at our common shortcomings.

This pivotal novel also marked the beginning of a successful book series. Adams wrote four subsequent titles:

• The Restaurant at the End of the Universe
• Life, the Universe and Everything
• So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish
• Mostly Harmless

A collection of Adams’ unpublished works called The Salmon of Doubt includes an unfinished novel from the series.

The sixth book in the series, And Another Thing…, was written by Eoin Colfer, the famed Highfire and Artemis Fowl author. All of the novels, including the original bestseller, were adapted into a radio series for BBC 4, and BBC 2 produced a TV show based on the books.

The TV series and radio show were successful in bringing Adams’ unique British humor to wider audiences. Still, in the long run, the adaptations didn’t surpass the popularity of the novels, particularly the first book. Today, all titles are still sold in high numbers through international retail services like Amazon.

To conclude this review: The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy offers hilarious and insightful humor. If read carefully, the book reveals an astounding assessment of what it means to be human.

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If you love Douglas Adams’ work, you’ll likely want to find other sci-fi titles that can offer the same sense of adventure and fun, such as Adam’s Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency. Fortunately, Speechify Audiobooks allows you to do just that while listening to books instead of reading.

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FAQ

At what age should I read The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy?

Most readers and individual reviewers agree that the earliest age for reading this book would be 11-12.

What grade level is The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy?

The reading level for the book is 8.3, which means it’s suitable for eighth-graders.

Is The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy book better than the movie?

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is one of the rare examples where the movie is pretty much on par with the book. However, some readers consider the book better due to the narrator’s perspective, which the movie can’t adapt as efficiently.

Who starred in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy movie?

The movie had a stellar cast, including Martin Freeman, Sam Rockwell, Zooey Deschanel, Bill Nighy, Warwick Davis, Alan Rickman, Helen Mirren, John Malkovich, and Stephen Fry of Monty Python fame.