Tre Wingle

Amanda Watson
English 11
10/21/2019
336 pages read out of 336 total
Book Report Quarter One

The Salmon of Doubt ​is a collection of writings from the laptop of author Douglas Adams

gathered after his unfortunate death at the hands of a heart attack in 2001. It contains all the

bits and bobs of writing he did for various articles over the years, transcripts of interviews, and

even a peak into an unfinished novel Born in cambridge in 1952, the beloved author took the

world by storm with his clever wordplay and winding worldviews in the brilliant radioplay, and

​ ater in his life, he would go on to write more

later book, ​The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. L

bestseller novels, travel the world for a book on endangered animals, and advocate for the

removal of “little dongly things” from computers. (Adams, 2002)

One of my favorite bits in the book was where Adams convinced a magazine to ship him

out to Australia to ride a manta ray. It might sound silly, but don’t worry, because it was all in the

name of science. He wanted to test it against a sub-bug to see which one was better. In the

end, it turns out it’s illegal to ride manta rays, but he ended up declaring them the winner

anyway due to their self-maintenance, eco-friendliness, and overwhelming beauty. In the end, it

was really all to have a bit of fun, and it made for a great story. I’d suggest anyone reading to go

ahead and read it yourself; my writing is in no way qualified to convey the slyness woven into

each of Adam’s words.

The genre of the book varies depending on which part you’re basing it off of.

Considering the meat of the book are the personal articles, I’d consider it more a biography than
 science fiction. In the end though, it was a fantastic read. It was clever and witty. Adams has

this incredible knack with writing that makes it seem like the words are flowing directly from his

brain. It’s refreshing, like meeting an old friend. Though the background on the book may be

tragic, I left feeling happy having even gotten a chance to peak inside the mind of someone like

Douglas Adams.

Adams, Douglas. ​The Salmon of Doubt: Hitchiking the Galaxy One Last Time.​ Pan Books, 2003.