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Summary: GREATEST EVER SCI-FI HUMOR!
Review: Douglas Adams did a stunning job writing a sci-fi humor for radio production. I recommend buying the individual paperbacks instead of the compendiums for a variety of reasons. Basically, Adams is a humorist best savored in small chunks - watered down with a pan-galactic gargle blaster. I also recommend you obtain the audio version as played on BBC.
Rating: 
Summary: Dissappointing, considering the hype
Review: What a huge dissappointment! I found the book extremely boring. Maybe I've been spoiled by the recent fantasy/sf I've been reading, but I found the plot very slow moving, and generally uninteresting and uninvolving. I also disliked the extreme amount of humor and satire in this book. I prefer my novels to be more realistic. I like adult situations (complex relationships, betrayal, violence, etc), and I couldn't find any here. It felt as if I was watching one LONG episode of Futurama. There were good things, however. The book was extremely short. I got through it in one sitting (about three hours), and I don't think I've ever done that before. Also, I found the book slightly humorous in parts, which served to barely keep my interest for that 3-hour reading stretch.
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Summary: A Zany and Unlikely Adventure
Review: When I was in elementary school, this was a common series read by the male nerds and geeks in my school. After reading it, I can now see how much it shaped their speech patterns and writing styles. I found myself smiling as clouds of nostalgia unexpectedly overtook me while reading the series. I was also surprised to find phrases original to this series that have worked their way into the American culture. For example, in order to understand people who speak other languages, the characters in this series simply put a "Babelfish" in their ear. In real life, Babel Fish is a language translation program available on the internet. Since the book it appears in was published in 1979, there's no question of which came first. THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY
We find out that the earth was actually created as an organic supercomputer with the sole purpose of determining the answer to life, the universe and everything. Arthur Dent finds himself whisked away from the earth only moments before the earth is destroyed to make way for a intergalactic bypass highway. Unfortunately, this is right before the earth was to have computed the answer to the question. He and Ford (an alien that has been marooned on earth) hitch a ride on the unsuspecting spacecraft that has just caused the destruction of the earth. They continue their hitchhiking journey throughout the galaxy to a ship called the Heart of Gold (which is actually a stolen vehicle). There, they meet with a series of unlikely coincidences thanks to the ship's Infinite Improbability Drive. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy ends as the Heart of Gold heads for a bite to eat at the Restaurant at the End of the Universe. This series is bizarre comic sarcasm at its best. A smile automatically paints itself on your face as you begin to read. The series reads like a highly improbable dream sequence. I sort of wonder if the author had any conclusion in mind when he wrote it or if he just let the story write itself (not unlike a dream).
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Summary: Best Book in the World
Review: If you are going to a desert island, this has GOT to be in your bag! Re-reading it is always a giggle. One of the best books ever written.
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Summary: Mostly coherent incoherencies
Review: At any given point during reading, I've been either 1) wondering how the author would clear-up the complicated situation he had created in the preceding chapter, or 2) laughing out loud on some seemingly logical, mostly innocuous, but totally nonsense sentences. Dull moments were rare, and fickle as human brains are, even in those moments I found myself cooking up some nonsensical variation on Adams' play-of-words. My only regret is re. the depressed robot Marvin. Though it was initially delightful to imagine a sentient, melancholy machine, in my view Marvin's level of conversation never reached those of the other main characters (Arthur, Ford, Zaphod, Trillian). Marvin kept on wearing the same depressed mold over and over and remained annoying, whereas the other characters remained maddeningly annoying!
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Summary: The best book ever
Review: this is the best book ever. it is very funny. I have and have read all the books. they are very good, as all of douglas adam's books are.
Rating: 
Summary: not so good as its reputation
Review: not a bad book to read for once. but strongly overestimated by media and fans.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Hilariously Wonderfully Awsome
Review: This is definately one of my most favortie books. Like a good movie, you can read it again and again and find something new to love about it every time. Be careful reading this in public. People might think you're a little strange as you keep laughing out loud every minute or two. If you've never read this book, make sure you give it a try. I'm sure you'll love it too.
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Summary: A Satire With Far too Much Comedic Hype
Review: Before reading The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy I was informed that it was a laugh-out-loud funny book, which would be impossible to put down. Some of those who recommended it to me said this book was the funniest piece of literature that they ever read. With a report such as this, how could I resist reading The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy when opportunity stuck. And I was disappointed after opening the first page. The book just was not as incredibly funny as I had heard, and could not draw a chuckle. Now, I am not saying that it was not a good book, the satirical elements, while once again, not laugh out loud funny, did portray the ups and downs of human life with impeccable accuracy.
The satirical portion of this book made me enjoy it as a discussion of the human condition. In the beginning of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, the earth is destroyed to make room for a galactic highway, just as our the protagonist's house on earth is destroyed to make room for a terrestrial highway. After the protagonist leaves earth with a n extra-terrestrial friend, the reader discovers that the universe is a micro, well, macro-chasm for their planet. and thus the satire takes off. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy serves to ridicule everything from the political system on the earth, to natural history, monetary exchange, and the intellectual supremacy of humans in its short two-hundred sixteen pages, while the main characters zip around the galaxy in a starship powered by an "infinite probabilities drive." And the action really takes off when our heroes land on the richest planet in the universe, a planet so rich that it would make planets out of pure gold and silver for clients who were wealthy enough. But don't expect me to tell you what happens therecyou'll have to read this book yourself!
Rating: 
Summary: The Loser's Guide to the Galaxy
Review: Douglas Adams clearly let his imagination get the better of him when writing The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. The general idea of this book is bizzar; mice are running the planet earth, aliens that can write poetry, and spaceships that commit suicide. I don't know where to begin. Well first, structurally the book is terrible. Adams jumps from character to character and finally by page 215 (out of 216 pages) it becomes apparent that this book is just going to end abruptly. (This may actually be the only good thing about the book, is that it is short, and a long ending that makes some sense would simply be tedious to read). Adams obviously wrote these 216 pages to make 5 jokes maybe 2 of which are truly funny. However, to hear these jokes are not worth sacrificing your time to read all the trash encompassing the random stabs at humor. In order to completely "understand" the complex world which Adams has created, you must read page long "history lessons" to get the background of different types of aliens, planets, and spaceships.
I must admit I was misled from the beginning, I thought that this book was actually "The Guide to the Galaxy." However, I was disappointed to find that Adams's book is only referring to a made up book that explains useless knowledge to ficticious characters. Therefore making this book even more useless!
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