A Life Between The Numbers: Douglas Noel Adams

I really enjoyed writing my first "Between The Numbers" article, and I loved reading Adams' books. So, I am hoping that I will enjoy writing this as much as you, hopefully, will enjoy reading it.

Douglas Noel Adams is a name that is well known in the science fiction author as practically creating a sub-genre in his early years of life. While his name might not be a household name, it is still one that you would not forget if you had ever read his works. Adams was born on March 11th in 1952 and died on May 11th in 2001. His birth may have been of little consequence to anyone aside from his family, but his death was the end of a great author's writing career. As stated before, Adams redefined a genre through his wit and thoughtful sense of humor. The science fiction world was never the same after he ventured into it. The path of this great man started with his famous "Hitchhiker's" series. To understand why he is such a great author, you, first, have to look at not only what he wrote, but how he wrote it. I will try my best to explain to you all of this in this hub, but it will not do it justice. To truly appreciate it, you have to read the book.

Adams' unique writing style is extremely evident in his book that is able to enthrall you in a mysterious world that makes no sense and complete sense at the same time.This book, of course, is The Hitchhikers Guide to The Universe. It makes a completely illogical world seem plausible through Adam's use of imagery, his unique writing style, and the logic-defying plot he is known for.

“The ships hung in the sky in much the same way that bricks don't.” (Moncur) This quote was taken when Douglas Adams was describing how the space ships flew in his incredible series, The Hitchhiker's Guide to The Universe. This quote gives the you an idea of how perplexing the idea of a spaceship is to the characters in his book. The character in question at the moment is a U.K. citizen who lives the generic life that most people would die of boredom living. His mundane life is clearly represented in the very beginning. Because of the way he sets up the beginning of the book he allows the main character to be the generic of mankind. mundane and as inside-the-box as can possibly be imagined. The main character is thrown out of the box in one simple chance encounter at a bar, and begins a marvelous journey that ends up completely altering the way in which he views every aspect of his life. All of that is accomplished through his varying writing devices, but given meaning through his amazing writing style.The imagery alone allows the reader to get caught in a mysterious world that will be burned into their minds by his intoxicating imagery.

If anyone were to look at one of the of the books that Douglas Adams has written. You would see that he writes in a vague yet charismatic manner that perplexes the mind. He is able to write a sentence that sounds completely logical until you think about what he is trying to say (Web). He invented a fake branch of science just for his books to make sense in a perplexing way. Adams has been put on the same level as Shakespeare with the level of thinking that goes into every line of his writing (McMillan). The writing style he is known for is derived from the original broadcasts of the World at War radio program. Those broadcasts are what he initially drew his inspiration from. The science fiction radio broadcast even inspired him to try and do better than just broadcasting a made up story. He wove a fantasy world of nonsense in a time of practicality (Adams).

If the way Adams described the world in his series or the perplexing way he writes wasn't enough to make you go grab a book, then his plot will surely convince you. The first book of his famous series starts in the present day United Kingdom. While in England, the main characters go through a completely improbable series of events that led them to decimating the earth in it's entirety along with all of it's inhabitants, and being forced to hitchhike across the universe in a random assortment of spaceships (Adams2). The way that he weaves his story is worthy of all of the awards it has won since the first day it was published. The story will draw you in, completely change the way you think from in regards to everything you have ever read, and force you to hunger for more. Once again, the plot is derived from the radio program World at War. The ideas in this program are shown throughout the series, and it is fairly obvious by how “out there” the story line is in contrast to other publications around the same period in time. (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Themes, The).

The Hitchhikers Guide to The Galaxy is a well known book that exhibits an extraordinary use of imagery, a unique writing style, and a logic-defying plot that defines the series. The books thats adams has written are extremely interesting to read, and will keep you on the edge of your seat, scratching your head. Every time you read this book, you will learn something new about the fantastic world Douglas Adam's weaves in his books because it is almost impossible for you to completely grasp everything that this extraordinary mane has woven into this fanatical series based in the vast expanse that is space.

Adams, Douglas. "Biography." douglasadams.com. The Digital Village, 2001. Web. 9 Apr 2012.

Adams, Douglas. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. New York: Oxford University Press,

1998.

McMillan, Eric. "The philosophical jokester." editoreric. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 Apr 2012.

Moncur, Michael. "Douglas Adams Quotes." The Quotations Page. QuotationsPage.com, 2001. Web. 9 Apr 2012. " “Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Style, The." Book Rags. Book Rags, Inc.,

n.d. Web. 9 Apr 2012.

“Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Themes, The." Book Rags. Book Rags, Inc., n.d. Web. 9 Apr

2012.