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When it comes to humor like that only HHGTTG -- that I (un)fortunately read first -- has been entertaining. Everything after that seemed as if it was trying to
by rognjen 6y ago
When it comes to humor like that only HHGTTG -- that I (un)fortunately read first -- has been entertaining. Everything after that seemed as if it was trying to emulate it.
- samatman 6y agoMy father, sadly for him, read Vonnegut before Douglas Adams, and felt that Hitchhiker's was just trying to emulate him. I didn't inherit this gene, happily for me, and enjoy all three authors a great deal. If anyone wants to recommend something else in this vein, please do; I'll probably like it.
- Nition 6y agoHHGTTG was absolutely trying to emulate The Sirens Of Titan. They're both great though.
- loriverkutya 6y agoDouglas Adams disagrees with you: https://scifi.stackexchange.com/a/60015 https://scifi.stackexchange.com/a/60015
- Nition 6y agoAdams doesn't say he wasn't influenced by Vonnegut in those quotes. Also, here's another quote[1]: > "I've read The Sirens of Titan six times now, and it gets better every time. He is an influence, I must own up. Sirens of Titan is just one of those books – you read it through the first time and you think it's very loosely, casually written. You think the fact that everything suddenly makes such good sense at the end is almost accidental. And then you read it a few more times, simultaneously finding out more about writing yourself, and you realise what an absolute tour de force it was, making something as beautifully honed as that appear so casual." [1] https://web.archive.org/web/20070302103312/http://www.darkermatter.com/issue1/douglas_adams.php https://web.archive.org/web/20070302103312/http://www.darker... --- But I suppose there is a difference between "influenced by" and "trying to emulate" isn't there, and I absolutely should have said the former. They are books that have some similarities, each in their own style.
- pcardoso 6y agoI read José Saramago and at times felt his writing similar to Vonnegut. Perhaps you’ll like it. Blindness is a good first read.
- bryanrasmussen 6y agoI find Adams more whimsical than Vonnegut.
- sundarurfriend 6y agoI'm one of the people who's never particularly enjoyed HHGTTG, but very much enjoyed Unsong and Terry Pratchett's Discworld (both of which I read years later). HHGTTG felt like it was being absurd for the sake of absurdity (IMHO of course, I know how much it's loved by others), whereas in Unsong it all fits into a complete and coherent world where the absurdity just arises from the nature of that world.
- lukifer 6y agoWhile I enjoy HHGTTG, I've long been of the opinion that the Dirk Gently books are Adams' best works. HHGTTG originated as a radio show, and while they're fun, they meander, almost a loosely connected series of vignettes rather than novels. The 2 (+1/2) Gently books are more cohesive narratives, complete with themes and motifs and such, and perfectly stick the landing (besides the last one, which was tragically unfinished).
- DoomHotel 6y agoReading Catherynne M. Valente's 'Space Opera' was like going back to those glorious days when I first discovered HHGTTG.