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Sep 15, 2016alexibarra rated this title 2 out of 5 stars
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is the best example I can think of for books that you fall in the "love it or hate it" category. Sadly, for me, it was the latter. I read it for a monthly book club, and I was excited about the choice since I'd hear so much about it. Considering myself as pop-culture savvy, I knew I was lacking not having read this one. And thus, I embarked on it. It is unlike me to take 30 days to read a book, specially a 190-page short novel. Alas, I finished it on the bus ride to the meeting and mainly because I had to. The absurdity of the line to line made it impossible for me to continue reading after a couple of pages. More often than not, I found that I was reading again the same chapter I had read last night; it was so incongruent. There was nothing to grab on, no relatable characters (it's a trip around the galaxy, expect all sorts of life forms), nor plot (actually, they may have been one, but I just couldn't keep track of it under the thick layer of nonsense). Granted, among the absurdity, there was some beautiful prose (like the whale's meditation) and quotable pearls every now and then. I can see this book's relevance to its own time, and its influence on all sorts of recent stories. But to be introduced to it in 2016, I fear our times have made me too much of a cynical to give this one a fair shot. PS: On the book club I learned that this book was originally released as a radio comedy series, and that its author was one of the Monthy Python crew. This explains a lot of the complains I had about the Guide, and to had read it knowing that would probably have changed my perception of it. Still, I don't think I'll give it a second chance.