The Restaurant at the End of the Universe
(Libby/OverDrive eAudiobook)

Warning! This second volume in the "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" series is definitely not a standalone book. Enjoying, or even understanding, the continuing adventures of Earthling Arthur Dent, his strange pal Ford Prefect, and the very, very odd Zaphod Beeblebrox requires previous study and preparation. Confusion and possible insanity awaits the poor soul who tries to figure out the second title without having read the first. Arthur and Ford, having survived the destruction of Earth by surreptitiously hitching a ride on a Vogon constructor ship, have been kicked off that ship by its commander. Now they find themselves aboard a stolen Improbability Drive ship commanded by Beeblebrox, ex-president of the Imperial Galactic Government and full-time thief. Narrated by Adams, this production is a treat for fans of the late author and others who enjoy British comedy. Be sure to buy all five parts of the "Hitchhiker" series or your patrons will storm your office. One caveat: this audiobook will need to be repackaged for library circulation.-Barbara Rhodes, Northeast Texas Lib. Syst., Garland (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

A sequel to The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy--and again the sf parody here is deranged, deadpan, satirical, hyperbolic, wildly erratic. . . but with rather less of a British accent than its predecessor. The heroes--meek Arthur Dent and sexy Trillian of Earth (demolished by a Vogon fleet to make way for a hyperspace bypass); cool Ford Prefect of Betelgeuse; Zaphod Beeblebrox, the two-headed, three-armed ex-President of the Galaxy; Marvin the Paranoid Android--are still in pursuit of the answer to ""the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe and Everything."" (The answer is forty-two--but what's the question?) And their encounters include: Milliways, the restaurant at the end of the universe (where dinner walks up to introduce itself, and the entertainment is, literally, doomsday); Hotblack Desiato, leader of the galaxy's loudest rock band (he's spending a year dead for tax purposes); a colony of joggers, hairdressers, and PR men (they'd like to invent the wheel, but can't decide what color it should be); and the man who rules the Universe (he's not at all sure that he or the universe really exists). Sometimes lame, limp, or just plain silly--but, at its best, very funny indeed. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.