DON’T PANIC!There are many books that have been turned into movies, but I know of only 3 books that were something else before they were written: 2001: A Space Odyssey, Star Wars (both movies) and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (a BBC radio program first, later a movie). Isn't it odd that they’re all science fiction?
Of the three, the Guide (a Trilogy in Five Parts) is definitely the best as a book. Douglas Adams, who left us much too early in 2001 at the age of 49 from a heart attack, was the genius behind the Guide. While being a fan of the totally ridiculous helps, how can you not laugh at a robot that is depressed because it is smarter than anything else in the universe? Or the fact that we know the ‘answer’ (to life, the universe and everything) is 42, but that we don’t know the question?
The books are certainly not great literature but they are totally amusing and the imagination required to invent the worlds and characters in the series is on the order of J.K. Rowling or C.S. Lewis. And while Star Wars was definitely the great movie franchise, HHGG has become a multi-media phenomenon with reincarnations as a television series, a computer game and a stage show.
The computer game (which can be found at the BBC site below) is one of those interactive text-based adventure games that starts out like the books but quickly goes down its own road. The writing for the game is almost as funny as the books - wait until you've died the first time. And if you can figure out how to get to the pub without being killed by a flying brick, please let me know.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/hitchhikers/game.shtml
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hitchhikers_Guide_to_the_Galaxy
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