The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

The Ultimate Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy has all five stories in one (plus an extra short).  Starting with the classic "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy", then moving on to "The Restaurant At The End of the Universe", then to "Life, the Universe and Everything", "So Long and Thanks for all the Fish", the short "Young Zaphod Plays It Safe", and finally "Mostly Harmless."  I enjoyed all of these books to varying degrees, but there is definitely enough humour in here to entertain anyone.

My favorite is the original, ,"The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy".  Fast moving, it follows Arthur Dent, a human who is trying to get his house to not be knocked down, only to discover that the Earth is going to be destroyed so the house really doesn't matter.  With his friend, they escape narrowly in time and start traveling the Galaxy, leaping from one wild adventure to another.  From Zaphod, the President who is more renegade than public leader, Ford Prefect, a writer for the Hitchhiker's Guide, and Trillian, another human caught up in the space adventure, there are plenty of beings to keep the book moving.

For the rest of the books within this gigantic compilation, Arthur goes on many more adventures, as does his companions.  I can't say I cared for the adventures quite as much, although they certainly had gems of humor in them and weren't terrible to read by any stretch of the imagination. You just tend to lose connection with some of the characters at times (except for Marvin, he is always consistent).  I will say that I enjoyed So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish quite a bit as well.  I liked Arthur's girlfriend and their discoveries while on Earth and with each other.  I was sad that that particular part of the story was so short.

Overall the books followed a great theme.  Traversing space with a book and a trusty towel and trying to survive.  There were antagonists, sure, but they weren't the main focus of the book(s).  The book was more about the journey.  The style of writing is pretty clear, although very detailed.  It definitely has some satire and there are other types of humor hidden all over.  I can't say that I understood every joke, but that may be because a lot were in reference to politics in other countries.  I did understand enough to be amused though.

A very interesting series of books.  You don't have to be a science fiction lover to appreciate these works by Douglas Adams.

The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Copyright 1992
815 pages

Stones into Schools by Greg Mortenson

I enjoyed the first book, Three Cups of Tea, much more than I enjoyed this one.  This one just seemed a little too self-congratulatory for my taste.  Sure, promote yourself, but don't do it in a way that comes across as bragging, which is kind of what this one did.  That being said, it did offer some interesting insights into the way foreign government is run and the hazards and tribulations that charities can run into.

After Three Cups of Tea, Stones Into Schools takes up the story of where Mortenson left off building schools with his newly formed charity Central Asia Institute.  He expands into Afghanistan and still maintains services in Pakistan, building schools in the most remote areas of the countries.  The book covers how he worked with locals, officials, and got all of these projects off the ground.  It also talked about the small staff he hired and their job duties.

Greg is very much in favor of himself.  And he has done some wonderful things, he has a reason to be.  But the way he narrated it in this book was off-putting and show-boaty, ,and it didn't really leave you liking him for those reasons.  It could just be my personal take on it, but I felt like he was almost exaggerating when he described the different experiences he had and how he handled them.  He was fair to everyone else though and you could tell he appreciated the people he was helping.  And he also liked his staff and thought they had wonderful skills.  So he redeems himself in that way.

You learn a lot about local politics in the regions in this book.  The paperwork, the troubles, the bribing that needs to happen to get things done.  It's a little mind boggling actually.  And then there's how cheap it is to build a school.  Often it isn't as much as a wing would be on a school here in the United States.  They just want so much to learn, they'll study anywhere, including an old public toilet (according to the book).   There is a nice section of pictures in the middle of the book, in case you want to see some of the people/places that Mortenson talks about.

Overall it was ok, but I could have preferred less grand-standing.  Three Cups of Tea is definitely the book to read if you're going to read any of his books.

Stones into Schools
Copyright 2009
420 pages

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

You don't have to like Card to recognize that this is a superb piece of writing.  Reading this book has always been powerful to me.  You get hooked in from the first page and it's hard to put it down after that.  And it's great that it could be read as a standalone, but is part of a series in case you want to continue Ender's story.

Ender is a brilliant child.  So much so in fact that he was specifically bred to take part in a program designed for gifted kids.  You see, families aren't allowed to have more than two children on future Earth, but Ender's family was given special permission to have him.  When at first they remove his monitor though, he think he's flunked out.  But time shows that he is about to be groomed to become a commander of the fleet.  The buggers are a constant threat in humanity's eyes and the school Ender is sent to, floating in space, is specifically designed to train to neutralize that threat.

Ender is a fantastic character.  He is relatable even though he is a substantial amount smarter than your average person.  And he has so much going against him and so much expected of him.  You're right there with him with his pressures, frustrations, and triumphs.  All of the other characters pale beside him, yet they are still complete because they serve a purpose in a way.  Especially his brother and sister, who enter into politics and discussion and play their own games.  He also has several interesting classmates that play the games with him and they too are incredibly smart.  Although some of them can be quite vicious.

From my description you'd probably think this is an action book.  But that's just because I can't fully explain the themes and details in such a short time, you'd really need to read the book to get the full experience.  It does have action.  But it also has political commentary, social morality and lessons about making hard choices in life and the consequences of them.  There are gritty details and violence.  It's not a pleasant book at all.  But it's one that will make you think.  And it's so well written that the pace, characters and setting draw you in and don't let you go. 

One of my favorite books that I've read and one that I could read over and over.  If you've never read the book, or if you've only seen the movie, make sure that you read it, it's well worth it.

Enders Game
Copyright 1985
368 pages