A Reader’s Guide to the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

  Penny Lai

  If you are a fan of fiction and British humor, then The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy would definitely be your kind of book. Douglas Adams composed five books for this wonderful novel series. He filled the series with massive creativity and sarcastic British humor.

  The protagonist, Arthur Dent, wakes up on a perfectly normal morning only to find out the council workmen is about to demolish his house to build a bypass. As if the morning were not rough enough, Arthur’s best friend, Ford, shows up, telling him that the world is going to end, and Ford is actually an alien. He thus went on a galactic  adventure in his robe along with Ford, Zaphod (Ford’s cousin, the president of the galaxy), and Trillian (a girl rescued by Zaphod). On this trip, they discover this one true answer to life, universe, and everything; they find out who is actually in control of the earth before it gets destroyed by the Vogons in order to build a bypass for an intergalactic highway; and, much more bizarre matters await them.

Although the story seems preposterous, but it makes fun of things people desire to know the most, i.e. the so-called “deep philosophy.” What is the answer to life, universe, and everything? What is the meaning behind it all? Human existence is just meant to be born, work, reproduce, and die? We try so hard to figure out the ultimate answer, but will we be satisfied after we find it? Maybe there is no answer at all, and that’s the way it is? Or, maybe it is too complicated for human beings to understand for we are not yet equipped with an intellectual capacity to comprehend the way the universe works? Douglas Adams creates his own version of the ultimate answer in the book, and it helps readers think about philosophical issues in a humorous perspective.

  In Part One of “the Trilogy of Five Parts” (According to the humorous author, it would take five books to complete the series, but he only wants to write three.), readers can have a taste of Douglas Adams’ crazy, limitless mind. Moreover, the book cleverly brings up the question everyone has in mind in a lighthearted mood and a tongue-in-cheek tone. If you are into fiction and philosophy and you’re curious to see the combination of the two wrought with a dash of sarcastic undertone, this is a book you don’t want to miss. And remember, always bring your towel with you when you travel, because it’s the most useful thing in the whole universe.