Book

Review – The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henriquez

~ Hanna ~ 2 Comments

Hi,

It’s publication day and I’ve been waiting for over a month to share this review with you. The book I’m talking about is The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henríquez and you are definitely in for a treat. Thank you Canongate for providing me with an ARC and for making it possible to share my enthusiasm with all the people out there!

The Book Of Unknown Americans
Image provided by Canongate¹
Synopsis quoted from Canongate¹:

We had been planning our life here for so long. Filling out papers, hoping, praying, waiting. We had all of our dreams pinned on this place, but the pin was thin and delicate and it was too soon to tell whether it was going to hold much of anything at all.

When Alma Rivera arrives in Newark, Delaware she is brim full of the promise and possibilities of her new American home. Hope that her luminous daughter Maribel will be helped by the specialist education the US can provide, and faith that her husband Arturo will flourish in a country that celebrates the hard-working and the talented.

But the reality of life without status, money, family and friends soon becomes apparent. And when violence casts its shadow, Alma realizes that her biggest mistake was assuming that everything that could go wrong in their lives already had . . .

My Thoughts:

Newark, Delaware is the unspectacular setting of Cristina Henríquez’ novel The Book of Unknown Americans. A small, average, American city that could be just around the corner from where you live. A wonderful choice of setting for a novel full of immigrant tales that stand for so many real immigrant tales out there. Cristina Henríquez knows how to create setting. One of my favorite scenes happens right at the beginning, when the Riveras walk down the main road trying to find a supermarket and finally have to buy groceries at the gas station instead. Within less than a page, Ms Henríquez manages to create the perfect US-American scenery, at least as it appears to strangers.

The Book of Unknown Americans focuses on the story of Maribel and Mayor (a boy from Panama) but it is alternately told from the viewpoints of Mayor and Maribel’s mother Alma. Alma is a very powerful character. She knows and loves her daughter the way only a mother does. In addition to that, Alma is the one who suggested emigrating to the United States and now she gives the reader the chance to live through all her doubts and worries. Interspersed between Mayor and Alma’s accounts, you will find an abundance of secondary characters telling their own stories. These little biographies fit in perfectly and help to understand the secondary characters’ personalities.

Like many other novels dealing with the topic of immigration, The Book of Unknown Americans starts out with the Riveras’ arrival in the United States, but where Ms Henríquez takes it from there is somewhere a little different. This book might not nearly sum up all the varying immigrant biographies out there, but it can give us a taste of what it can be like to come to a new country where most people will be prejudiced against you. The Book of Unknown Americans tells a story full of hopes and dreams and when I think of it, I’m still getting goosebumps. Cristina Henríquez wrote a novel that takes time to digest and you won’t and shouldn’t forget about it all too soon. The Book of Unknown Americans is an important book, a book that, in my opinion, should become an obligatory part of the US American high-school curriculum. Read it!

5beans

¹ http://www.canongate.tv/the-book-of-unknown-americans-trade-paperback.html

Review – Moon Over Soho by Ben Aaronovitch

~ Hanna ~ Leave a comment

Hi,

Right after finishing Rivers of London, I had to continue with book number two in Ben Aaronovitch‘ Peter Grant series, Moon Over Soho. And here is what I think about it.

Moon Over Soho
Image provided by Orion Publishing Group¹
Synopsis quoted from Orion Publishing Group¹:

I was my dad’s vinyl-wallah: I changed his records while he lounged around drinking tea, and that’s how I know my Argo from my Tempo. And it’s why, when Dr Walid called me to the morgue to listen to a corpse, I recognised the tune it was playing. Something violently supernatural had happened to the victim, strong enough to leave its imprint like a wax cylinder recording. Cyrus Wilkinson, part-time jazz saxophonist and full-time accountant, had apparently dropped dead of a heart attack just after finishing a gig in a Soho jazz club. He wasn’t the first.

No one was going to let me exhume corpses to see if they were playing my tune, so it was back to old-fashioned legwork, starting in Soho, the heart of the scene. I didn’t trust the lovely Simone, Cyrus’ ex-lover, professional jazz kitten and as inviting as a Rubens’ portrait, but I needed her help: there were monsters stalking Soho, creatures feeding off that special gift that separates the great musician from someone who can raise a decent tune. What they take is beauty. What they leave behind is sickness, failure and broken lives.

And as I hunted them, my investigation got tangled up in another story: a brilliant trumpet player, Richard ‘Lord’ Grant – my father – who managed to destroy his own career, twice. That’s the thing about policing: most of the time you’re doing it to maintain public order. Occasionally you’re doing it for justice. And maybe once in a career, you’re doing it for revenge.

My Thoughts:

In Moon Over Soho, we’re back in present-day London and author Ben Aaronovitch still helps us to create vivid images of the book’s setting in our minds. However, the history and architecture that impressed me in Rivers of London now fade into the background.

My favorite character shares this fate. In Moon Over Soho, Inspector Nightingale is a secondary character like many others in the book. Most of the time, he stands on the sidelines and doesn’t even watch what’s going on around the main character Peter Grant, who slowly turns into a testosterone-driven guy, unable to think clearly.

The plot of Moon Over Soho is quite engaging with an unhurried pace. The book picks up right where Rivers of London left off and it doesn’t flood you with information that you already have if you’ve read Rivers. If you aren’t that big a fan of Inspector Nightingale and historical facts, I’m sure this book will please you. For me, these two are important elements that make the series worthwhile. Moon Over Soho is a solid read, but cannot live up to Rivers of London.

3beans

¹ https://www.orionbooks.co.uk/books/detail.page?isbn=9780575097629

Review – Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch

~ Hanna ~ Leave a comment

Hello,

Last Saturday, I was finding myself in a post-exam void, so it was the perfect time for me to finally raid my dad’s bookshelf and grab his copy of Ben Aaronovitch‘s Rivers of London. And this is what happened:

I was instantly hooked. After years of reading gazillions of vampire series that had started mixing up in my mind, I had sworn myself not to start another series for at least another year. But then there was my dad reading Ben Aaronovitch, telling me that the Peter Grant series was fun and clever. After my exam I needed something light and so I couldn’t resist any longer.

Rivers of London
Image provided by Orion Publishing Group¹
Synopsis quoted from Orion Publishing Group¹:

My name is Peter Grant and until January I was just probationary constable in that mighty army for justice known to all right-thinking people as the Metropolitan Police Service (and as the Filth to everybody else). My only concerns in life were how to avoid a transfer to the Case Progression Unit – we do paperwork so real coppers don’t have to – and finding a way to climb into the panties of the outrageously perky WPC Leslie May. Then one night, in pursuance of a murder inquiry, I tried to take a witness statement from someone who was dead but disturbingly voluable, and that brought me to the attention of Inspector Nightingale, the last wizard in England.

Now I’m a Detective Constable and a trainee wizard, the first apprentice in fifty years, and my world has become somewhat more complicated: nests of vampires in Purley, negotiating a truce between the warring god and goddess of the Thames, and digging up graves in Covent Garden . . . and there’s something festering at the heart of the city I love, a malicious vengeful spirit that takes ordinary Londoners and twists them into grotesque mannequins to act out its drama of violence and despair.

The spirit of riot and rebellion has awakened in the city, and it’s falling to me to bring order out of chaos – or die trying.

My Thoughts:

Rivers of London is mainly set in present day London but those of us who have a soft spot for dated architecture won’t be disappointed. There’s enough of it in this book to make your heart beat faster. Did I mention that Mr Aaronovitch even gives us a library? An old one. Actually there is more than one, but he describes one of them in enough detail for me to fall in love with it. (Okay I’m a bookaholic and a history student, I might not be a reliable source in those matters.)

Peter Grant, our main character, is an apprentice wizard and police constable. He is a very likable fellow and great to be around. You really want to be friends with him. There is, however, another character in Rivers of London that I felt more drawn to: Inspector Nightingale. Inspector Nightingale, who likes to dress in an old-fashioned way, is clever and mysterious which somehow seems to make him attractive.

Rivers of London takes you on a fast-paced hunt for a mysterious murderer. As a matter of fact, the novel’s pace sometimes gets so fast I had to reread certain passages to make sense of what was happening. Rivers of London combines a great sense of humor with loads of interesting facts about English history and architecture and this is what makes the novel special. If you are interested in history, but you’d like to try urban fantasy for a change, Rivers of London might just be the book for you.

4beans

¹ https://www.orionbooks.co.uk/books/detail.page?isbn=9780575097582

Review – The Shock of the Fall by Nathan Filer

~ Hanna ~ Leave a comment

Hello,

Two weeks ago, I finally got to read Nathan Filer‘s The Shock of the Fall which won the Costa Book Award in 2013. Thank you Nina from Nothing But N9erz for this wonderful novel that has been on my wish list for months.

The Shock of the Fall
Image provided by The Borough Press¹
Synopsis quoted from The Borough Press¹:

‘I’ll tell you what happened because it will be a good way to introduce my brother. His name’s Simon. I think you’re going to like him. I really do. But in a couple of pages he’ll be dead. And he was never the same after that.’

There are books you can’t stop reading, which keep you up all night.
There are books which let us into the hidden parts of life and make them vividly real.
There are books which, because of the sheer skill with which every word is chosen, linger in your mind for days.
The Shock of the Fall is all of these books.
The Shock of the Fall is an extraordinary portrait of one man’s descent into mental illness. It is a brave and groundbreaking novel from one of the most exciting new voices in fiction.

My Thoughts:

Nathan Filer’s The Shock of the Fall is set in contemporary England. The scenes that build the base for Matthew’s (the main character’s) mental illness have a very dark feel to them that makes you anxious to your bones. Most settings in the book make you uncomfortable either because of the people who interact within these settings, the settings’ construction, or because of the memories Matthew connects with these places. This is great, as the settings mirror how Matthew must feel.

Matthew, the novel’s main character, turns from a grieving boy into a young man who isn’t able to cope with his feelings on his own. Mr Filer manages to create a very believable character and in the end, he supports this believability by showing us one of the reasons for Matthew’s problems that most readers, just as Matthew’s parents, probably haven’t noticed all along. And while we’re talking about parents, Matthew’s mother is another character that holds a lot of potential. She lost one of her sons and now she has to protect the one that is left. But just as things start to get interesting, Mrs Homes disappears from the novel’s focus.

The Shock of the Fall gives us insight into the mind of a young man with mental illness who tells us his story. But Matthew doesn’t immediately give away what happened to his brother years ago in that rainy night. This way, Mr Filer is able to maintain a certain level of suspense, although I don’t think the story would have needed it. Matthew’s routines and his thoughts alone are worth the read. If you are interested in coming-of-age stories and books with protagonists that have mental illnesses, this poignant novel is for you.

4beans

¹ http://boroughpress.co.uk/titles/9780007491452/the-shock-of-the-fall

Review – The Quick by Lauren Owen

~ Hanna ~ 8 Comments

Hello,

I’ve been very excited for Lauren Owen’s The Quick to be out since I’ve first heard about it. Naturally, I had to get it as soon as it hit the stores. You probably heard that the novel holds a plot twist that should remain secret under all circumstances. For me, this plot twist was spoiled by comparisons of The Quick to other novels. If something similar happened (or happens) to you, I can still recommend reading this novel, as the plot twist isn’t what should make you read it in the first place. 😉

The Quick
Image provided by Random House UK¹
Synopsis quoted from Random House UK¹:

You are about to discover the secrets of The Quick

But first you must travel to Victorian Yorkshire, and there, on a remote country estate, meet a brother and sister alone in the world and bound by tragedy. In time, you will enter the rooms of London’s mysterious Aegolius Club – a society of some of the richest, most powerful men in fin-de-siecle England. And at some point – we cannot say when – these worlds will collide.

It is then, and only then, that a new world emerges, one of romance, adventure and the most delicious of horrors – and the secrets of The Quick are revealed.

My Thoughts:

In The Quick, Lauren Owen takes us to 19th century England. I particularly like the different moods she creates. The Norburys’ childhood home in Yorkshire has a fairytale-esque touch to it. It’s like seen through a crystal globe. London on the other hand, has its bright and glamorous and its dark, mysterious sides that will become very clear to you.

James and Charlotte Norbury are the main characters of this Gothic novel. James is a well-read young man, but I find Charlotte more interesting than him. Her sweet and caring character develops into a strong-minded and brave woman without losing her original traits.

The Quick is divided in five parts. Each part has its strengths and weaknesses. My favorite part is “Part One”. Something is revealed in this part and could be rather shocking for some of you. What Ms Owen does here is genius. (This isn’t the plot twist I was talking about above). The novel slows down in “Part Two” and only starts to pick up speed during “Part Three” again. Fortunately, the last two parts make up for the dragging middle of the novel. The Quick finishes with an exciting, emotional and fast-paced story. But still, Ms Owen leaves us with some loose ends. One of them is very obvious and I don’t mind it at all, because it’s a good stylistic device. But there is another one concerning a secondary character who did something and whose fate is left unmentioned. It seems like he was forgotten about.

I recommend The Quick to fans of beeep who like to read beeep. Well this doesn’t work. You shouldn’t be thin-skinned for this novel, but don’t be afraid, even someone as easily scared as I am was able to read it. The Quick isn’t a thriller, it isn’t romance either. The Quick is a good novel.

4beans

¹ http://www.randomhouse.co.uk/editions/the-quick/9780224096386

Review – Humans: An A-Z by Professor Andrew Martin edited by Matt Haig

~ Hanna ~ 2 Comments

Hi,

It’s been almost a year since I’ve been thoroughly entertained by Matt Haig‘s The Humans. Now, his main character Professor Andrew Martin takes the stage and presents us with a dictionary that also acts as a survival guide: Humans: An A-Z

Humans: An A-Z
Image provided by Canongate¹
Synopsis provided by Canongate¹:

DO YOU
A) Know a human?
B) Love a human?
C) Have trouble dealing with humans?
IF YOU’VE ANSWERED YES TO ANY OF THE ABOVE, THIS BOOK IS FOR YOU

Whether you are planning a high level of human interaction or just a casual visit to the planet, this user-guide to the human race will help you translate their sayings, understand exotic concepts such as ‘democracy’ and ‘sofas’, and make sense of their habits and bizarre customs.

A phrase book, a dictionary and a survival guide, this book unravels all the oddness, idiosyncrasies and wonder of the species, allowing everyone to make the most of their time on Earth.

My Thoughts:

It is great to finally have someone explain humans to us and it is much better if this someone is Professor Andrew Martin. Only he, not being a human himself, can give us quasi-objective descriptions of certain characteristics unique to this species.

Don’t be afraid, this book isn’t your usual dry, scientific text-book. You will hop from term to term and you probably won’t get enough. Professor Andrew Martin has lived with humans long enough to know what they are like. More than once, you will be nodding in agreement. Sometimes, you will have to laugh out loud. Once in a while, you will ask yourself if this alien has found a way to look inside the human soul.

No matter if you are human or alien, Humans: An A-Z is a must-have companion. After reading, you will know much more about humans than you knew before and it will give you comfort in times of distress.

5beans

¹http://www.canongate.tv/an-a-z-of-the-human-race-ebook.html

Review – Die Seltsamen / The Peculiar by Stefan Bachmann

~ Hanna ~ Leave a comment

Hi,

About two weeks ago, I got to read the German edition of Stefan Bachmann‘s The Peculiar which was originally published by Harper Collins in 2012. It’s called Die Seltsamen and Diogenes publishers provided me with a review copy. Thank you.

What’s worth mentioning, is the effort Diogenes made to promote the upcoming release of the book. Weeks before the release, bloggers all over Germany were sent black feathers and got the message that Bath had vanished. They were encouraged to find out what had happened and were fed more clues at the Magisches Labor (translates to Magical Laboratory) where they were also able to speculate and communicate with each other.

Die Seltsamen Cover
German book cover provided by Diogenes¹
The Peculiar Cover
English book cover provided by Harper Collins²
Synopsis quoted from HarperCollins²:

Don’t get yourself noticed and you won’t get yourself hanged.

In the faery slums of Bath, Bartholomew Kettle and his sister Hettie live by these words. Bartholomew and Hettie are changelings—Peculiars—and neither faeries nor humans want anything to do with them.

One day a mysterious lady in a plum-colored dress comes gliding down Old Crow Alley. Bartholomew watches her through his window. Who is she? What does she want? And when Bartholomew witnesses the lady whisking away, in a whirling ring of feathers, the boy who lives across the alley—Bartholomew forgets the rules and gets himself noticed.

First he’s noticed by the lady in plum herself, then by something darkly magical and mysterious, by Jack Box and the Raggedy Man, by the powerful Mr. Lickerish . . . and by Arthur Jelliby, a young man trying to slip through the world unnoticed, too, and who, against all odds, offers Bartholomew friendship and a way to belong.

My Thoughts:

For The Peculiar, Stefan Bachmann uses a 19th century England backdrop to create an alternate steampunk world. Bachmann’s love for detail is apparent and it is his great talent. I particularly liked how he described the clockwork birds that play an important role in the novel.

Bartholomew Kettle and Arthur Jelliby are the main characters in The Peculiar. This way, Bachmann manages to capture both adult and young adult readers – at least theoretically. Unfortunately, I couldn’t empathize with neither of them. Bartholomew is just a little boy who wants to live a normal life and Arthur Jelliby seems actually quite insecure (sometimes even heartless), no matter his actions. I also always imagined the latter to be a middle-aged man rather than the young man he is said to be.

Most of the time, The Peculiar is a slow-paced book, even though the plot would require the considerably faster pace that it picks up near the end. As I’ve mentioned before, I wasn’t able to empathize with the main characters. This is why, at some point, I stopped caring about the future of Bartholomew, Hettie and Mr Jelliby. I really enjoyed the world Bachmann created, but he just couldn’t hook me with his story that ends with a huge cliffhanger and left me indifferent.

One more thing though: Stefan Bachmann wrote The Peculiar when he was 16 years old! I think he did great for that age. Not many can write a book at 16. Still, my review was not written with his age in mind. It should simply show you what it was like for me to read his novel.

2beans(actually 2.5 magic beans)

¹ http://www.diogenes.ch/leser/katalog/nach_autoren/a-z/b/9783257068887/buch

² http://harpercollins.com/books/The-Peculiar-Stefan-Bachmann/?isbn=9780062195180

Blog Birthday – One Year Of All That Magic

~ Hanna ~ 5 Comments

Hello there,

It’s our birthday today!

A year ago I started this little blog and I had no idea what it would turn out to be. And here it is, ready for toddler’s group 😀

I’m reading a lot more than I used to read which is time well spent I think. I’m also spending way too much time reading tweets. Something I didn’t do before I started blogging. So this is something that I probably shouldn’t do. I’m still not writing as many culinary blog posts as I want to, simply because they are very time-consuming, just like university is right now. (kudos to all those food bloggers out there) So I try to combine things that easily match: Reading and writing for pleasure and reading and writing for university. 😉

birthday balloons

I have two birthday presents for you, my loyal readers!

The first one is the book-related questionnaire down below. (I got tagged by Sandra a couple of weeks ago).

The second present is actually more than one. On World Book Day (April 23), you’ll get the chance to win one of three books. This is part of a huge blogger giveaway called Blogger Schenken Lesefreude (unofficial translation: Bloggers Give Books) and is organized by Christina and Dagmar. But more about that at a later date.

And now, let’s be merry 😀 I hope you enjoy this little tag. I won’t tag anyone. If you, however, insist to be tagged, I can do that. Just drop me a line.

Either – Or
Slim book or weighty tome?

I love books with lots of pages to get lost in. 🙂

Second-hand or new?

That depends. Of course, who doesn’t love a new book, fresh out of the press? I do! But I don’t mind a clean second-hand copy if I know I’ll just read it once and bring it back to the open book exchange.

Historical fiction or fantasy?

Can I please have a mix of both genres?

Hardback or paperback?

Paperbacks are so convenient if you have a low-budget (like I do) and if you want to take them with you everywhere you go! I love them. But I also don’t say no to beautiful and special hardcover editions of great books I’ve read.

Funny or sad?

I love drama. I love to read books that hurt. So if I have to choose, I’ll choose sad. Nevertheless, books with the right amount of humor are great!

Summer or winter reader?

I think I read as much in winter as I read in summer. I don’t have any preferences concerning the right reading temperature or weather. Imagine that: “Oh it’s way too hot outside. I don’t read when it’s hot,” or “Did you hear the news? They issued a storm warning. You can’t read during a storm!”

Classics or contemporary fiction?

It all depends on how you define classics…

Self-help books or novels?

If I’m in a situation that requires a self-help book, I’ll go for that. They can come in very handy sometimes! Other than that, I prefer novels.

Crime fiction or thrillers?

Neither! I’m easily scared.

Ebook or print book?

Same answer as for paperbacks vs hardbacks.

Hoarding or throwing out?

Hoarding. I admit it. I’m a book hoarder. And so is my dad. There is no denying who I got that from. Although he started putting some of his read books into the open book exchange.

Online bookshops or traditional bookstores?

I love to browse traditional bookstores. Unfortunately, over here many of them have hardly any English books for sale. Forget browsing. And the few books they have are irrationally expensive. This is why I have to buy most of the books I read from online stores.

Bestseller or shelf warmer?

I read what I like. No matter if it’s a bestseller or not.

Cook book or baking book?

As many cook books include baking recipes, I’ll choose the cook book. Clever, eh?

 
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Review – Dead Ever After by Charlaine Harris

~ Hanna ~ Leave a comment

Hello there,

It’s me again! I had to get this out of my system. Last night, I finished Dead Ever After by Charlaine Harris. The last instalment in the Southern Vampire Mysteries also called Sookie Stackhouse Novels. I’m not very happy about it. But read for yourself. First, here’s a list of all the books in the series:

  1. Dead Until Dark
  2. Living Dead in Dallas
  3. Club Dead
  4. Dead to the World
  5. Dead as a Doornail
  6. Definitely Dead
  7. All Together Dead
  8. From Dead to Worse
  9. Dead and Gone
  10. Dead in the Family
  11. Dead Reckoning
  12. Deadlocked
  13. Dead Ever After
Dead Ever After
Image provided by Penguin USA¹
Synopsis quoted from Penguin USA¹:

There are secrets in the town of Bon Temps, ones that threaten those closest to Sookie—and could destroy her heart….
Sookie Stackhouse finds it easy to turn down the request of former barmaid Arlene when she wants her job back at Merlotte’s. After all, Arlene tried to have Sookie killed. But her relationship with Eric Northman is not so clearcut. He and his vampires are keeping their distance…and a cold silence. And when Sookie learns the reason why, she is devastated.
Then a shocking murder rocks Bon Temps, and Sookie is arrested for the crime.
But the evidence against Sookie is weak, and she makes bail. Investigating the killing, she’ll learn that what passes for truth in Bon Temps is only a convenient lie. What passes for justice is more spilled blood. And what passes for love is never enough…

My Thoughts:

We’re back in Bon Temps and not much has changed setting-wise. Only Sookie’s garden is much greener now and the description of it read wonderfully.

While the setting didn’t change all that much, some characters have. One of them is Eric. We don’t get to see him a lot but his decisions speak volumes. Sam is also acting very strange and it isn’t possible to warm up to him like in the previous books. At least we can count on Sookie, the main character in the series. She’s still the same, tanning in the sun and serving the customers at Merlotte’s.

Dead Ever After is the last book in the Southern Vampire Mysteries and unfortunately, it doesn’t do them justice. As expected, there are many goodbyes. There is a murder that is not solved completely, as the one person responsible for the murder is not even looked for. I was so surprised to see the novel end and everyone off the murder case. If you are looking for emotions other than heartbreak, look elsewhere. Charlaine Harris gave her series a reasonable ending. But do readers of paranormal romance really want to read about reasonable and boring situations, or do they read these novels because they are full of thrill, adventure and emotions?

2beans

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Review – The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy by Douglas Adams

~ Hanna ~ 4 Comments

Hi,

I’ve been planning to read The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams for years now. I finally managed to do so. I have to thank my Summer Santa for this lovely edition 🙂

The Hitchhiker's Guide To Galaxy
Image provided by Pan Macmillan¹
Synopsis quoted from Pan Macmillan¹:

It’s an ordinary Thursday lunchtime for Arthur Dent until his house gets demolished. The Earth follows shortly afterwards to make way for a new hyperspace bypass and his best friend has just announced that he’s an alien. At this moment, they’re hurtling through space with nothing but their towels and an innocuous-looking book inscribed with the big, friendly words: DON’T PANIC.

The weekend has only just begun…

Volume one in the trilogy of five

My Thoughts:

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is a 1979 science fiction novel by English author Douglas Adams. I own a paperback edition published in 2009 by Pan Books. It comes with various stickers to customize the cover.

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is mainly set on spaceships and strange planets. I like how Douglas Adams describes the different spacecraft. They are easy to orient yourself on. What I particularly like, is the setting he created on the last planet in the book. It feels very realistic and a bit scary at first.

The main character, Arthur Dent, is easy to empathize with, as he is human. The reader also sympathizes with him because he lost his planet. All the other characters are aliens, although you wouldn’t notice that if it weren’t for their looks. If you’d just open the book at a random page and read a random dialogue, you’d never guess that it wasn’t a conversation between humans.

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is an entertaining novel. Many very weird and unthinkable things happen throughout the book. The novel has an open ending which should probably encourage you to buy the next instalment in the series. Unfortunately, this ending is what destroys the experience. It comes too abruptly. I don’t think that The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is laugh-out-loud funny, but it is funny because it is weird and sometimes nonsensical. If you like that kind of stuff, you’re in for a treat. I also think you should be willing to read the other instalments in the series if you are planning on reading the first one.

3beans

¹http://www.panmacmillan.com/book/douglasadams/thehitchhikersguidetothegalaxy?format=978033050853701

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