From: dgross@zeus.calpoly.edu (Dave Gross)
Subject: Review -- "Mostly Harmless" by Douglas Adams
Organization: Manumission:  The Campus Men's Forum
Date: Mon, 07 Sep 1992 23:48:06 GMT

Copyright (c) 1992 Dave Gross
Approx. 530 words

"Mostly Harmless" by Douglas Adams.  Harmony Books ($20)

Ford Prefect, Arthur Dent, Trillian and the Vogons are back, albeit all in
somewhat altered forms.  The Universe is still a strange place, and a towel
still comes in mighty handy.  If these names and concepts are at all familiar
to you, you have probably already had the joy of reading other books in 
Douglas Adams' Hitchhikers Trilogy.

Douglas Adams created and conquered the laugh-out-loud sub-genre of science
fiction literature with the publication of "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the
Galaxy" in 1979.  His latest, "Mostly Harmless," due out in October, is the
fifth book in what the book jacket admits is "the increasingly inaccurately
named Hitchhikers trilogy."

As with the other books in the series, a synopsis would not do it justice.
The story, as wild and inventive as it is, is usually merely a frame on which
to hang Adams' hilarious twists of language and drifting, portentious asides.
Suffice it to say that, within various shifts of space, time, and other
dimensions, Arthur Dent becomes a holy Sandwich Maker on a planet with
Perfectly Normal Beasts and beings who worship Bob, Ford Prefect falls out of
the same building twice and comes away with a sore ankle and an irresponsibly
high credit limit, and Trillian suffers an identity crisis or two while
getting the scoop of her lifetimes.

The familiar elements are there, and the character the reader most identifies
with -- Arthur Dent -- is still trying to reconcile life after his home
planet -- Earth -- was destroyed by a sort of evil interstellar CalTrans.

But there's something amiss here, and not just the imminent re-destruction of
the planets Earth.  The sound of Douglas Adams' normal tapping at the funny
bone has become softer and has been joined by a plucking at the heart
strings.  The resulting melody is fairly pleasant, but the instruments don't
harmonize well.

What I mean to say is this:  Stories about reunions with unknown progeny, and
children trying to relate with their parents or to find their place in this
vast confusing universe -- well, they're nice stories.  But you wouldn't look
to the Three Stooges for insight on the topics, if you know what I mean.

This book, style-wise, resembles Adams' more plot-oriented side-projects like
"Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency" more than it resembles the previous
Hitchhikers books.

Apparently Adams has convinced himself that he has outgrown mere wit and has
matured into "charm."  He hasn't.  His wit is still sharp, but for a change
it doesn't lie in wait to spring on the reader every couple of paragraphs,
but instead prowls at irregular intervals through a forest of plot and
character development.  The jokes hang on the plot this time, instead of vice
versa.  His charm, on the other hand,  is charming, even entertaining, but not
exceptional.

Adams' real talent lies in his clever and hilarious use of language, and some
of this shines through in "Mostly Harmless."  But I fear that for the die-
hard fans who have been anxiously awaiting this latest dispatch about Life,
The Universe and Everything, "Mostly Harmless," though genuinely entertaining,
will come as a bit of a disappointment.
-- 
   Hey Guido, it's all so clear to me now -- I'm the keeper of the cheese,
   and you're the lemon merchant, get it?  And he knows that.  That's why
   he's gonna kill us.  Yeah.  Before he lets loose the MARMOSETS on us!
   Don't worry little missy -- I'll save you!
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