Challenge Corner discussion

Seconds before the Earth is demolished to make way for a galactic freeway, Arthur Dent is plucked off the planet by his friend Ford Prefect, a researcher for the revised edition of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy who, for the last fifteen years, has been posing as an out-of-work actor.

Together this dynamic pair begin a journey through space aided by quotes from The Hitchhiker's Guide ("A towel is about the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitchhiker can have") and a galaxy-full of fellow travelers: Zaphod Beeblebrox—the two-headed, three-armed ex-hippie and totally out-to-lunch president of the galaxy; Trillian, Zaphod's girlfriend (formally Tricia McMillan), whom Arthur tried to pick up at a cocktail party once upon a time zone; Marvin, a paranoid, brilliant, and chronically depressed robot; Veet Voojagig, a former graduate student who is obsessed with the disappearance of all the ballpoint pens he bought over the years.

@Celia Buell - Hello! Have you started the book yet?

Also, roughly how many chapters would you like to read per day?

Hey, sorry for being slow to respond. I'm about a quarter of the way through the book right now (although maybe further because I'm reading the illustrated edition so it's about twice as long with as many words as the regular version). I kind of read at my own pace but will post my comments under spoilers.

I haven't seen you on here before, is this your first buddy read on this group?

25% (although possibly further in the story using the illustrated version): (view spoiler)[I'm enjoying this so far, although it does start more slowly than I would have hoped. I've heard it's better as an audiobook but it's fun either way. I do want more aliens though, and more of what the book is known for with the ridiculousness and everything. (hide spoiler)]

50% (view spoiler)[I'm hoping I don't have to put this on hiatus but it's kind of a fever dream right now. Trying to download the audiobook and hopefully that would help. (hide spoiler)]

77% (view spoiler)[Okay, so things are just kind of happening and I'm not sure how I feel about a lot of it. There is very little character development, and it still feels like a fever dream. If I continue the series I will definitely read the other books as audiobooks instead of trying to process them through physically reading. (hide spoiler)]

FINISHED (view spoiler)[There's something ultimately gratifying about being able to read something so ridiculous that it takes you in a million different directions and you only sort of have to pay attention to the plot because it's just so out there anyway. I definitely want to continue this series. (hide spoiler)]

Celia Buell wrote: "Hey, sorry for being slow to respond. I'm about a quarter of the way through the book right now (although maybe further because I'm reading the illustrated edition so it's about twice as long with ..."

Hello, Okay that sounds good! I've just begun with the book so will post as I catch up to you.

And yes, this would be my first buddy read on this group.

Arushi wrote: "Celia Buell wrote: ""

One thing about this group is that buddy reads are a lot more relaxed than on other site groups. We just kind of talk about our opinions, and replying is sort of optional although I do attempt to respond to what other people say, but not everyone does.

Would you be interested into turning this into a series buddy read instead of just the single book? There's a lot going on and I feel like reading this as a series will help me be less confused.

Celia Buell wrote: "Arushi wrote: "Celia Buell wrote: ""

One thing about this group is that buddy reads are a lot more relaxed than on other site groups. We just kind of talk about our opinions, and replying is sort ..."

Gotcha!

And yes, I wanted to read the entire series anyway, so would be up for that

Did you switch to the audiobook version then? If yes, did that help?

The one thing that I am enjoying in the writing is the subtle, underlying humor.

Arushi wrote: "Did you switch to the audiobook version then? If yes, did that help?

The one thing that I am enjoying in the writing is the subtle, underlying humor."

No, because there was a waitlist at my library, but I plan to read the audio for the next few books, which do not have a waitlist.

Celia Buell wrote: "Arushi wrote: "Did you switch to the audiobook version then? If yes, did that help?

The one thing that I am enjoying in the writing is the subtle, underlying humor."

No, because there was a waitl..."

Okay nice! I'd read that the series originally began as a radio show, so audiobook kind of takes it back full circle. :)

Yeah, I do agree. It would definitely seem more like the way it's meant to be read/enjoyed.

Like you described, the book does seem like a fever dream, but its crazy to see just how imaginative it is.

(view spoiler)[
For example the working of the Babel fish or the Improbability Drive. And the humor is perfect, the kind of jokes you'd deliver with a straight-face you know?
(hide spoiler)]

Hey! I've finished the book. With so many moving pieces in the story, can't stop being curious about what comes next :)

39% (view spoiler)[It's a little better reading this over audio. Not significantly, though. I'm enjoying this one less than the first one. (hide spoiler)]

64% (view spoiler)[The audio is definitely helpful to relax into the randomness of the whole picture. It's just kind of, well that happened, instead of reading it and having to pause. This actually isn't something you don't have to focus your whole attention on when you read it, and it's kind of better that you don't.

Also, I LOVE the voice for Zaphod. It's so accurate to his character. Marvin as well. (hide spoiler)]

88% (view spoiler)[At this point, I'm just going to roll with it. Also, that uninhabited/inhabited planet where all the "useless" conspiracy theorists were sent is definitely prehistoric Earth.

Also, did they actually leave Marvin to die? Poor robot. I see he's listed in the characters for book three though, so we shall see. (hide spoiler)]

FINISHED (view spoiler)[Okay, I get a little weird with time travel and altering or not altering the course of history, and Adams makes it even weirder by contributing ancient aliens theory into the mix. But overall I actually did enjoy this a lot and I'm looking forward to continuing the series. The characters and the weirdness has grown on me. (hide spoiler)]

Agreed, this one's at times funny too, but definitely not as much fun as the first one!

I did really like this one part though, where they talk about Ursa Minor's publishing house, the one behind The Hitchhiker's Guide and how they claim that, "The Guide is definitive. Reality is frequently inaccurate." :D

So I've finished the book, (view spoiler)[ I did enjoy certain parts of it, like the whole idea of the two restaurants - one at the end of the universe, one at the Big Bang and the representation of the man who leads the whole universe. But all in all, it didn't completely meet the expectations set by the first one. (hide spoiler)]

I'm enjoying this one a lot more now. It's actually really interesting. It's harder for me to pick out favorite lines and parts as an audiobook, but there have been some good ones.

That's good to know!

I'll see if I can get a sample of the audiobook. Now that you mention so, I'm curious to hear the voices of Zaphod/Marvin :D

I'd be interested to see if you think they sound EXACTLY like who you'd expect them to sound like.

Arushi wrote: "I did really like this one part though, where they talk about Ursa Minor's publishing house, the one behind The Hitchhiker's Guide and how they claim that, "The Guide is definitive. Reality is freq..."

That part made me laugh.

Also (view spoiler)[six times nine is NOT 42...? (hide spoiler)]

I assume this was the same in the print edition and not some audio script typo?

Hahaha yes, that's the same in the print version too :P

I wonder what's the deal with that...?

Started book 3 last night.

I guess its intentional, it's not supposed to make sense :P

I also bought the audiobook of the 3rd one today, will start it off soon.

Are you continuing with the audio version for this one too?

Yeah. I had to give in and get an audible subscription for this one, my library didn't have it.

Arushi wrote: "I guess its intentional, it's not supposed to make sense :P"

I'm sure it will have a convoluted nonexplanation later

Celia wrote: "Arushi wrote: "I guess its intentional, it's not supposed to make sense :P"

I'm sure it will have a convoluted nonexplanation later"

Hahaha true, that's quite possible, let's see :D

31% (view spoiler)[Okay, I do keep falling asleep when listening to this one. My main question is, if it's a different timeline, how did Slartbartifast recognize them as having known them previously? (hide spoiler)]

80% (view spoiler)[So I finally got a chance to read a lot of this, not before bedtime and without falling asleep. It's okay but not as good as the second one. What is interesting, though, is the ways this connects to various aspects of the previous books, especially in a minor incident of the first book. Remember the petunias that said, "oh no, not this again"...? yeah (hide spoiler)]

Yep the series is getting less interesting, at least in listening to it. Even though Martin Freeman's narration is great, I'm wondering if I should switch back to reading it.

(view spoiler)[Yeah agreed! That part about Slartibartfast recognizing them doesn't make sense considering he meets them before the Earth gets destroyed. I also went back to read a couple of chapters from the 1st book, back to the part where Slartibartfast is first introduced, but don't see how how this adds up. (hide spoiler)]

Arushi wrote: "Yep the series is getting less interesting, at least in listening to it. Even though Martin Freeman's narration is great, I'm wondering if I should switch back to reading it."

For me the audio is easier because there's so much to unpack with all the tangents and onslaught of random information. It's easier to focus less on the random, unimportant aspects.

But yeah, it has its moments but it's less overall funny. (view spoiler)[I miss the Zaphod side of things, I actually really liked his POV parts in the last book. (hide spoiler)]

Ahh okay, that makes sense. I personally found it easier to focus on reading it. Not completely decided yet, but I may restart it on an ebook version in the next few days.

(view spoiler)[And true, I would've liked to see more of Zaphod too. He's a whimsical, dynamic character and far more interesting than just the duo of Arthur and Ford. (hide spoiler)]

To each her own. I can see how both ways would work well, especially with these books.

Yep true :)

FINISHED (view spoiler)[Once again, this was an installment where the ending does make the story in a way that most of the body does not. It's nice to see Trillian come into her own just a little bit as well. I like that Arthur also has more of a defined personality than he did previously as well. Looking forward to the next installment. (hide spoiler)]

Hi, just finished this book. Sorry took longer than usual this time!

(view spoiler)[ I agree about Trillian! The focus all throughout has been on Arthur, Zaphod and Ford. Trillian's been hardly getting much richness in her own story outside of the context of the overall plot. So was good to see her part in the ending, if only for a short bit. Overall, I did not find the plot interesting this time round, but it was the tidbits of humor and random craziness scattered through the story which kept me entertained.

I had almost raised my hopes in the end that the Ultimate Question would be revealed but alas! (hide spoiler)]

***************************************************************
***************************************************************

RESTARTING AUGUST 15TH 2021

*******************************************************************
*******************************************************************

Started today

25% (view spoiler)[Okay, a bit disappointed that our first character wasn't one of our main adventurers from before, but whatever's going on is definitely interesting. Was the girl mentioned in the beginning of ? I feel like she was, in passing. (hide spoiler)]

50% (view spoiler)[Okay, the dolphin stuff, coming full circle I guess. (hide spoiler)]

75% (view spoiler)[Of course they had sex in midair (hide spoiler)]

FINISHED (view spoiler)[Okay, this book was incredibly disjointed from the rest of the series, AND from itself.

And okay, they killed Marvin off because...? Also, what was he even doing there in the first place? (hide spoiler)]