BC Reads!
  • Home
  • Book Reviews
    • Student Reviews
    • Faculty/Staff Contributions
    • Illustrations
    • Sort Reviews... >
      • All
      • Alphabetically by Title
      • Alphabetically by Author
      • Alphabetically by Genre
      • Alphabetically by Reviewer
      • Faculty/Staff Contributions
  • Events
    • Boston Book Events
    • News and Events
  • Get Involved!
    • Become a Member
    • Submit a Review
    • Volunteer >
      • Saint Columbkille Partnership School
    • Donate Used Books
    • Become an Illustrator >
      • Work with a Reviewer
      • Design a Bookmark
      • Work on the Publicity Team
  • Resources
    • Where Can I Find Books For Free?
    • Local Bookstores
    • Useful Websites
    • Other
  • About
    • Executive Board
    • Board of Directors
    • Staff Members
    • Special Contributions
  • Contact
  • Untitled

"The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" by Douglas Adams

11/11/2013

0 Comments

 
Picture
Title: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Author: Douglas Adams
# pages: 224
Date published: 1979
5-star rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Would you recommend it:  Yes

            In The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, homebody Arthur Dent is rescued from the planet Earth seconds before it is demolished by a race of vicious, bureaucratic aliens, in order to make space for an inter-galactic freeway. And so the novel begins, with Earth and almost all of humanity destroyed. The two main characters, Arthur and his alien savior Ford Prefect, are sent into outer space where they end up on a spaceship with an eccentric President of the Galaxy, a human girl Arthur once met at a party and a very depressed robot.

            It would be a shaky, even depressing plot if not for Douglas Adams’s writing style. The surrealist humor Adams employs, with its creativity and witticism, reminded me of Monte Python; although everything is turned upside-down, the humor still works. In these pages you can find everything from an infinitely useful translating fish to the answer to the meaning of life; each is treated in the same, ingenious way. While this work is science fiction, the style of writing and the light content sets it apart from most other literature in the genre. You need not necessarily like science fiction to enjoy this book. It’s also a fairly quick read, though at times the author’s habit of going off on mini-tangents about certain topics in his “universe,” to further the humor, can be a little distracting.

            Overall, though, I definitely recommend The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. It’s a light, humorous, extremely creative read, and definitely a nice change of pace. It’s also the first book in a series, so if you enjoy the first, definitely check out the later books.  


Review by Julia Walker, A&S '16




           


0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Who are the authors?

    These book reviews have been submitted by BC Reads! Staff Writers and other Boston College students.

    Archives

    December 2014
    November 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012

    Categories

    All
    Andrew Ireland
    Anne Donnelly
    Autobiography
    Biography
    Brittany Duncan
    Caitlin Mason
    Caroline Grindrod
    Chris Mclaughlin
    Christie Wentworth
    Christine Degenaars
    Colleen Brady
    Fantasy
    Fiction
    General Fiction
    General Non Fiction
    General Non-fiction
    Hallie Sullivan
    Historical Fiction
    Historical Non Fiction
    Historical Non-Fiction
    Horror
    Humor
    Immigration
    Jennifer Heine
    Julia Walker
    Kayla D'Ambrosio
    Kristie Dickinson
    Laura Baumgartner
    Lauren Bly
    Lauren Schlacks
    Liz Handler
    Maria Peroni
    Memoir
    Michael Solah
    Molly Saint
    Morgan Healy
    Movie Franchise
    Mystery
    Non Fiction
    Non-fiction
    Patrick Hughes
    Pulitzer Prize
    Quick Read
    Romantice Fiction
    Satire
    Science Fiction
    Serena Gibbons
    Short Stories
    Steven Nicholas
    Suspense
    Tashrika Sharma
    Thriller
    William Hwang
    Yande Lombe

    RSS Feed


Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.