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Summary: So long Douglas and thanks for all the laughs!
Review: I purchased Douglas Adams' posthumous book exactly one year and one day after his extremely untimely passing. I have always thought that there is something inherently wrong about losing one's idols. "Salmon of Doubt" is a prime example of how wrong it truly is. "Salmon of Doubt" is so absolutely and quite wonderfully Douglas. This collection of articles, interviews, random thoughts and unfinished novel is an genuine treat to read. His unmistakable voice shines through on each and every page. For someone who professed to agonize over the whole "writing thing", Douglas did it with a style that is often imitated, yet never will be duplicated. I was delighted to see "Cookies" make its way into this collection. I laughed when he included in the 4th Hitchhiker's novel, and was fortunate enough to hear him retelling this true story. He had everyone at this Chicago hotel bar in absolute hysterics some years ago, reliving the moment. I have never forgotten it. "Maggie and Trudie" also stands out as one of my other favorite entries here. As does "The Private Life of Genghis Khan". The interviews included also give a further glimpse into this marvelously gifted man. There is no doubt in my mind that the ever-so brief "Salmon of Doubt" story/novel itself would have been a joy to read had he been around to finish it. It would have worked perfectly well as the next Dirk Gently (or possible 6th HH) novel. I found myself reading this portion quickly, watching the pages dwindle and knowing it was going to abruptly end. It did. Now I'm left wondering what happened to Dirk and Desmond the rhinoceros. It's going to bug me till the end of time. Which I am sure would thrill Douglas to no end. I'll have to ask Douglas when I see him at the Restaurant at the End of the Universe how it all ends.
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Summary: Adams's best book in years, but SKIP THE INTRODUCTIONS!
Review: I always felt it a little unfair to Adams that all of his books get compared to the "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy." "Hitchhiker's" is one of the best books ever written, and few books can live up to that comparison. Having said that, I think this is Adams's first book since "Life, the Universe and Everything" that does not fall well short of that high mark. My only complaint about the book are the several introductions, all of which were not written by Adams. Each introducer seems interested only in establihing his credentials as a genuine "friend of Douglas", and each is more anxious than the last to give away the punchline or some other crucial point in one or another essay in the book, ruining the experience of getting to that point the way Adams intended. But worst of all, the introductions all set a glum tone for a fun book. The introducers seem convinced that this book is all about how tragic it is that Adams died. But what Salmon of Doubt is really about is how wonderful it is that Adams lived. So, do yourself a huge favor, and read those introductions last, if at all.
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Summary: Just what I needed
Review: I don't know about you, but the day I read that Douglas Adams died, I cried like a little girl. His books have been such a big part of my life, and thinking that there would be nothing more of his that I would ever read... it was depressing, to say the least. Not only did I just truly enjoy reading every page of it, but I cherished it a little bit more than I normally would, I guess, because I knew that NOW, truly, this is the last time I'll read anything original from Douglas Adams. I'll miss you, DNA... so long, and thanks for all the fish. This last collection was what I needed to feel comfortable about you hitchhiking the galaxy w/o the rest of us.
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Summary: A Farewell to Douglas Adams
Review: This book contains letters, essays, a short story, and a few chapters of a Dirk Gently novel. For those who were shocked by Adams' abrupt death, reading the book gives a little bit of closure and allows you to see little slices of his life and the things he was working on just before his death. A must for any true Adams fan.
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Summary: An Absence of Pretence
Review: Do not pick up The Salmon of Doubt expecting a complete novel. Given time Adams' would have converted it into a brilliant final product. Sadly, however, that will never happen. The novel is unfinished, but better to be unfinished than completed by someone else.
The book is more than the uncompleted novel, however. The would-be third Dirk Gently installment occupies fewer than 100 pages at the volume's end. The rest is taken up by an amalgam of tidbits from Adams' life. The book's success is the essays, short stories, letters, interviews, many of them in print for the first time in Salmon. They accomplish what no novel ever could; they portray Adams' as a human being.
Salmon is to Douglas Adams' what I, Asimov is to Isaac Asimov. It's not an autobiography, exactly, but it's as close as print gets to establishing a dialogue between the reader and the author. A great many people admire Adams' for is brilliant wit. This book allows us to admire him for much more. I frequent a message board where a rating of "5" means "Comedy Gold," and that is why I give A Salmon of Doubt five stars. It is hilarious. The essay, "Cookies," used as a plot point in So Long, And Thanks For All The Fish, is a brilliantly narrated anecdote. The reflections on canine behavior in Maggie and Trudie gave me a sleep-preventing giggle fit. The novel portion is jerky in places. An astute reader will spot some filler lines, gaps in continuity, and things that would most likely have been left out of the final version, but no one is pretending that it is whole. Salmon is exactly what it sets out to be; it is a requiem, a tribute to a great man.
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Summary: Interesting for Fans
Review: This is definitely a book for the fans of Douglas Adams. For others, they'll likely find the first 200 pages to be a mixture of material that probably didn't need to appear in a book. However, the Dirk Gently material in the last 90 pages reminds everyone of how fun and compact and unexpected the humor was that DNA put into his books. It has been awhile since I read the Dirk Gently books, but this, I believe, was the beginning of his best effort. It is too bad he never finished it, but it still provides a wonderful and fun reading experience.
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Summary: The Beatles Anthology of Douglas Adams
Review: Raise a properly brewed cup of tea (this book shows you how) or perhaps a Margarita to the late, lamented Douglas Adams. His death last May - while excercising at a health club - reads like the kind of demise the author might well have reserved for a character from one of his own novels. Taken far too soon (he was only 49 for Christ's sake), "Salmon" is the kind of book that only ever gets published posthumously. Were he still alive, "Salmon of Doubt" would have been the title of the third Dirk Gently novel. Or would it? Interviews included here, speculate that Adams may have been thinking of turning "Salmon" into the sixth (and final) "Hitchhiker" novel. Based on what was left behind however - eleven chapters amounting to about eighty pages - it sure reads like a Gently novel save the first chapter, which feels somewhat at odds with the other ten. One could easily imagine it holding the seeds of another Hitchhiker book. Nonetheless, these chapters (which cruelly whet our appetite) are but a beginning to something that will never have an end. As Douglas loved the Beatles (as one quickly discovers in essays like "The Voices of All Our Yesterdays"), it seems appropriate to compare what comprises the rest this book to Adams' own version of the Beatles' Anthology, collecting, as it were, a varied track listing of outtakes, B-sides and bonus tracks in its biographical vignettes, interviews, reviews, letters, essays and remembrances of this very funny and very intelligent man. As Adams hadn't put out a new book in years, I had forgotten how witty and articulate he could be. My favourite piece from these was "Riding the Rays", a recounting of a trip to Australia which would have made a strong case for the author one day trying his hand at a full-length book for the travel writing crowd. "Salmon of Doubt" is a book to be savoured at length, followed by a rereading of everything else. My only criticism is that it should have had a contents page for easy future reference to your favourite bits and an index to all the marvelous people, places and things Adams cites. If you loved Douglas Adams, there's no question that you need to read this book.
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Summary: A Wonderful, Bittersweet Send-Off...
Review: In spite of the book's subtitle: "Hitchhiking the Galaxy One Last Time", what "The Salmon of Doubt" contains, among other things, is the 79 rough-draft pages of what was probably going to be his third Dirk Gently novel. I say probably because he states many times in his various interviews and essays that "The Salmon of Doubt" may have eventually morphed into a Hitchhiker book or, perhaps, an unrelated, stand-alone book. What was included, though (pulled from three different drafts) is definitely Dirk Gently. The rest of the book, though, is mainly interviews, essays and letters that he wrote over the course of his life and career. Ranging from his views on religion (an avid atheist) to his status as an author and a conservationist to his love of music and his memories of school, the book feels more like a conversation with him than a memorial. This seems to be for the best, though, as it gives a very thorough, balanced view of the man - including some of his shortcomings. Of special note is the essay he wrote for P.G. Wodehouse's "Sunset at Blandings" - a discussion of the brilliance of Wodehouse's work and what it takes to read an unfinished book. Many of the passages seem especially poignant when reading the Dirk Gently chapters. Also of note is the lament by Richard Dawkins, longtime fan, friend, biologist and author of "The Blind Watchmaker" and "The Selfish Gene". After reading repeatedly in the first three chapters how Dawkins' books changed Adams' life, it is touching to read how his books had such effect on Dawkins'. Ultimately, this book is worth reading for anyone who was even a casual fan of Adams. It contains all the intelligence, wittiness and passion that makes his works worth reading (or listening to - or watching), but gives the feeling that you are actually getting to know the whole man for once. The tragedy of Adams' death seems most poignant after finishing the book and wishing that you could sit down and discuss his life, his theories or his opinions with him and knowing that the chance is forever past. If his books have ever interested you, read this one, too.
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Summary: Essential, If Only for the Dirk Gently Bits
Review: If you're not an Adams junkie already, go away. Start with the "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" and keep reading until you're good and hooked, then come back for this short but sweet epilogue to a brilliant career. "Salmon of Doubt" is a posthumous odds-n-sods collection of Adams's work. The first 2/3rds of the book contains a wide variety of material, ranging from a fan letter he wrote at age 12 to interviews done shortly before his death in April 2001. To be perfectly honest, a lot of this material is fairly thin, and much of it was previously available at various places on the web. It's nice to have it all in one collection, though, and if you're only familiar with Adams from "Hitchhiker's," you may be surprised to discover the breadth and depth of his interests and passions. To be sure, there are some gems to be mined here -- in particular, a charming essay about some dogs who adopted Adams when he was living in Santa Fe, NM; and an absurd but perfectly Adams-esque quest to test a one-man aquatic sub against a manta ray. For Hitchhiker's fans, the book also contains the short stories "The Private Life of Genghis Khan" and "Young Zaphod Plays It Safe." Both are amusing, if rather pointless. Leave all that aside, though. The REAL reason to purchase this collection lies in the last hundred pages or so -- the first 11 chapters of the much-delayed and finally abandoned third Dirk Gently novel, "A Salmon of Doubt." This is vintage Adams -- bizarre, hilarious, and utterly unpredictable. Unfortunately, this fragment ends just as the narrative is picking up steam, and we'll never know how Adams would have tied together the tantalizing and very improbable plot threads he laid out in these too-brief chapters. Salmon of Doubt, like all of Adams's previous work, is at times frustrating but in the end immensely rewarding. It's a fond farewell from one of the masters, and a sad reminder of what we all lost with his too-soon passing at age 49. Goodbye, Douglas, you are sorely missed.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Book, Well Worth Your Money
Review: This is a great book! I haven't read through Doug's newly published book fully yet, (though I will definitally read it many, many times in the future) but this is definitally going to be good. Then again, everything I've seen Douglas write is good. This book includes, to list a few things, a story about a hike up Mt. Kilimanjaro in a rhino costume, a short story, "Young Zaphod Plays it Safe", feturing a character from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and a piece of writing about the author's nose. To sum this whole article up, read this book!
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