Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy // Douglas Adams {Audiobook}

Why I'm reading
First of all -- uh, hello, Hitchhiker’s Guide and Stephen Fry are a match made in heaven. Second, Hitchhiker was originally created for radio (although this is a reading of the book version) so it should work well in audiobook format.

Where I got the book
Greenwich Library.

Expectations
I’ve read the book several times, so I know what I’m getting into. I’m super excited about Stephen Fry’s narration.

So how was it?

In a nutshell, Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is the story of a regular human guy (Arthur Dent) who is rescued from the demolition of Earth by his -- unbeknownst to him -- alien hitchhiker buddy Ford Perfect. There’s no use summarizing past that, and frankly it would ruin the fun. I LOVE LOVE LOVE the Hitchhiker series, and Fry’s narration totally did it justice. He shares the same kind of British humor as the Guide, and a great command of different English accents.

Recommendation
Every and all sci fi fans, and even those who aren’t. Not for people who need a very structured plot, and definitely not for people who expect super-gritty, super-serious scifi. A great choice for people just getting into audiobooks, since it doesn’t really require a lot of attention.

Feels
...British?

Favorites
I can’t even deal with Fry’s Zaphod voice. Cannot. Even. Deal. It’s perfect.

Least favorites
He only did the first book!

Dead Air // Doctor Who {Audiobook}

Why I'm reading
Doctor Who is awesome! Go watch it!

Where I got the book
Greenwich Library. I’ve been browsing through the Sci Fi audiobook shelf -- which is unfortunately smaller than you’d expect, for such a huge audiobook selection -- and picking whatever seems interesting.

Expectations
A typical doctor who episode.

So how was it?

Aaaaand... it was a typical Doctor Who episode : The Doctor shows up someplace (a pirate radio boat) sometime (the 60’s) and something (a sentient noise monster) is trying to destroy Earth. He’s helped by a twenty-something woman (a bubbly radio DJ) who is sort-of-involved with a normal human guy (crush on another DJ), there’s a hint of angst about Gallifrey (the monster’s creators), and of course the usual noble sulking about his companions (he’s traveling alone).

If I sound like I didn’t like it, that’s not true -- it was a quick bite of sci fi fun, and the characters were good -- but it was definitely in the ranks of the mediocre when it comes to Doctor Who.

Recommendation
Doctor Who fans, sci fi fans. A quick 1-CD episode.

Feels
A little creepy, a little perfunctory. Not enough suspense.

Favorites
David Tennant was a pretty good narrator, with different voices/accents for each character. He didn’t make the female character sound like a drag queen (which is disturbingly common in the audiobooks I’ve listened to so far). In fact he gave her enough character that she actually felt like the kind of quirky, plucky young woman the doctor usually hangs out with.

Least favorites
This could have -- and should have -- gone a lot creepier. This is an audiobook about a noise monster who silences people. Come on. That’s another “are you my mummy?” just waiting to happen, but they didn’t use it very well. There was just some static every once in a while, and an ending cribbed from The Ring. The only thing that got even close to being creepy was the random skipping and glitching the CD did... because it was a scratched up library CD.

So what did I really think?

Click "read more"... massive spoilers ahead!

Ready Player One // Ernest Cline {Audiobook}

I wrote an extremely long and actually fantastic review of Ready Player One, with all sorts of insightful ramblings and meaningful commentary. It was pretty much the greatest review in the world.

This is not that review; this is just a tribute.

In a spectacular show of fail, I managed to lose that review completely. That’ll teach me to write something directly in the Blogger interface… I was lured in by the promise of cloud backup, and clearly forgot the ancient teachings of livejournal.  

Why I'm reading
I’d heard some great things about this book, but also some not-so-great things. It seems like the kind of book that’s fantastic if it’s your thing, and stupidly self-indulgent if it’s not.


Where I got the book
Greenwich library, audiobook format.

Expectations
Your classic YA Marty Stu character -- overpowered, angsty, shallow, and special -- with a nerdy 'uncool but secretly super cool' bent. And for some reason, I think I had a vague impression of Tron leotards, which is strange, since I know very little about Tron. In retrospect, this was not entirely incorrect.

So how was it?

Ready Player One is fairly easy to sum up: it’s almost Willy Wonka, but with 1980s nerd trivia instead of chocolate. A rich gaming guru dies, leaving his fortune -- and control of his massive multiplayer online virtual reality gaming company (OASIS) -- to the winner of a contest. We follow the five young frontrunners as they try to win before the employees of a faceless rival company take over and ruin OASIS for everyone.

This book was a little bit of a roller-coaster for me. The first few chapters were incredibly engaging, and then it took a rambling left turn into Self-Righteous Opinionville, for a chapter, before getting back on its feet, leveling out, ramping up to some pretty fun stuff about two-thirds in, and rolling to a gently satisfying conclusion.

Recommendation
If you like references to video games and 1980s pop culture, you’ll love this book (although you don’t need to understand the references in order to enjoy it). If that sounds irritating, this is really really really not the book for you.

Feels
Exciting, dangerous; cyberpunk post-apocalyptic, but not too gritty.

Favorites
Both side-kick characters were awesome. There’s also a major plot point with the evil rival company, but I don’t want to spoil it.

Least favorites
The book starts out well for the first chapter or so, but -- like I said -- it takes a bad turn for about a chapter. The author more or less hijacks the story to ramble on about some shallow and angry take on ecology, social responsibility, economics, etc. The worst offender is this little plot sinkhole: the economy starts to tank, with resources getting scarce, so people moved into the overcrowded city for the express purpose of finding food and work, because there was nothing to survive on in the rest of the country. You know, nothing but arable farmland.

Writing style
Engaging, with lots of focus on details and textures, which works for a story that takes place in both the real world and a virtual reality construct. I listened to the audiobook, which could not have had a better narrator (Wil Wheaton).

So what did I really think?

Click "read more"... massive spoilers ahead!