When were science fiction novels largely written? The 90s? Well that’s what most people think. But on the contrary, it was in the late 60s and 70s that this genre boomed. And in the year 1978, a radio show rocked the world of science fiction.

The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 that year, and there was no looking back . The mind blowing comical story of an earthling Arthur Dent and his comrade Ford Prefect was later adapted to other formats and over several years it gradually became an international multimedia phenomenon.

The series, which has five novels were penned by the author Douglas Adams till 1992 also called “the trilogy of five”, namely :

1. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
2. The Restaurant at the End of The Universe
3. Life, the Universe and Everything
4. So long, and Thanks for All the Fish
5. Mostly Harmless

For those who are die-hard sci-fi fanatics, H2G2 or HG2G as it was first abbreviated is probably the first few novels that got them on a high. For those who are new to the genre, it would be a little hard to read, but jut a little persistence, and I guarantee you won’t regret it. What I’m giving you all is a book preview, rather than a review.

So here’s how it all begins: One fine day, Arthur Dent, a middle aged guy from London lies down in front of a bulldozer to prevent his house from being run down and then comes along the eccentric Ford Prefect from Southford. They head to the bar where Ford tells him that the Earth is going to be demolished by aliens, and that he is an alien himself and a researcher for the revised guide. The guide is an electronic device which contains anything and everything anyone would need to know about the Universe, an encyclopedia of sorts.

It’s called ‘The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy’ and has the words ‘Don’t Panic’ inscribed on it.

Everyone on the planet hears an announcement (from every single radio and electronic device. In unison :O) that the Hyperspace Planning Council has decided to demolish Earth to make space for the construction of an Intergalactic Freeway. How ironic for Arthur.

Seconds before the demolition Ford and Arthur hitch a ride on the very spaceship which came to destroy Earth. Thousands of light years farther, on the planet Damogran, Zaphod Beeblebrox, President of the Imperial Galactic Government steals the spaceship he was supposed to inaugurate, The Heart Of Gold- the most powerful ship ever built with an Infinite Improbability Drive(it sounds gregarious, but the crux of it is fairly simple, believe me).

Zaphod escapes the planet, along with his girlfriend, Trillian. Four of these beings along with the perpetually miserable robot Marvin race around the Galaxy finding legendary planets, escaping from the police and discovering an actually believable theory of who rules whom. All of this sounds really, well.. WOW, to find out about all this and more, go grab a paperback of H2G2 and give your heart and brain a treat. The perfect cocktail of science and comedy, this novel is sure to keep your nerves tingling and your brain cells sharp.

At the end of everything, it compels the reader to do something in the true spirit of science-be curious. Question what you don’t know, try to learn new things and NEVER settle for the answer, “That can’t be explained” or ” You won’t understand”. Always be thirsty for knowledge, who knows, your thirst might be quenched at The Restaurant at the End of The Universe!

Happy reading