2011 Reading #82: The Restaurant at the End of the Universe by Douglas Adams
Books 1-10.
Books 11-20.
Books 21-30.
Books 31-40.
Books 41-50.
Books 51-60.
Books 61-70.
Books 71-80.
81. Blindsighted by Karin Slaughter.
82. The Restaurant at the End of the Universe by Douglas Adams (Re-read). I can boil down my present thoughts on this book--which I loved as an adolescent and still love now--to two things. One, there sure are a lot more gags about alcohol than I remembered, and I get them now. (I laughed my ass off when I figured out the Ouisgian Zodaz bit.) Two, some fucking genius decided to Americanize at least part of the text in this edition, so that now, in the scene where Zaphod gets a call from Marvin on the house phone at the eponymous restaurant, Marvin tells him he's in the PARKING LOT, which is ASININE because if there is an American alive who can't figure out that a CAR PARK is the same as a PARKING LOT then they are not reading this book, and oh yeah, it also completely RUINS THE JOKE when Zaphod asks Marvin what he's doing in CAR PARK MOTHERFUCKERS (NOTE: swearing is mine, not Marvin's) and Marvin says "Parking cars, what else does one do in a car park?" well, if it reads "Parking cars, what else does one do in a parking lot?" IT IS SIMPLY NOT FUCKING FUNNY.
GODDAMMIT.
Books 11-20.
Books 21-30.
Books 31-40.
Books 41-50.
Books 51-60.
Books 61-70.
Books 71-80.
81. Blindsighted by Karin Slaughter.
82. The Restaurant at the End of the Universe by Douglas Adams (Re-read). I can boil down my present thoughts on this book--which I loved as an adolescent and still love now--to two things. One, there sure are a lot more gags about alcohol than I remembered, and I get them now. (I laughed my ass off when I figured out the Ouisgian Zodaz bit.) Two, some fucking genius decided to Americanize at least part of the text in this edition, so that now, in the scene where Zaphod gets a call from Marvin on the house phone at the eponymous restaurant, Marvin tells him he's in the PARKING LOT, which is ASININE because if there is an American alive who can't figure out that a CAR PARK is the same as a PARKING LOT then they are not reading this book, and oh yeah, it also completely RUINS THE JOKE when Zaphod asks Marvin what he's doing in CAR PARK MOTHERFUCKERS (NOTE: swearing is mine, not Marvin's) and Marvin says "Parking cars, what else does one do in a car park?" well, if it reads "Parking cars, what else does one do in a parking lot?" IT IS SIMPLY NOT FUCKING FUNNY.
GODDAMMIT.