The Salmon of Doubt

The Salmon of Doubt – Douglas Adams

This posthumous collection of essays, articles, interviews, and sundry quips and excerpts is a sampling of Douglas Adams’ work from across his lifetime. In fact, it starts out with what is believed to be his first published piece of writing: a letter to the editor expressing anticipation and gratitude for his favorite magazine when he was 12 years old. Many pieces in the collection are articles or columns propagating his absurd yet astute philosophy and observations on how the world works. Others are essays or quick little thoughts, calling attention to the irritations of technology or the slight but significant difference between things like “fried eggs” and “Fridays.” My personal favorite is an ode to Bach’s Fifth Brandenburg Concerto, in which he eloquently attempts to describe the sheer inadequacy of words to capture the essence and art of music. Brilliant and beautiful, this is undoubtedly Adams at his finest, funniest, and most insightful.

 “The Salmon of Doubt” by Douglas Adams is a little tricky to review because the pieces included in the book are so varied, so instead I will just tell you why you should read it. Adams has long been one of my favorite authors because he is sarcastic without being cynical, and his jokes are incredibly clever. I was reading this book over a lunch break and although there were other people in the room, I was almost constantly chuckling with occasional bursts of outright laughter. His writing is characterized by his intelligent, bizarre, and profound observations that always manage to draw attention to things most often taken for granted (especially gravity). His ideas are so far out of the box that the box probably doesn’t even exist in another universe, which makes his stories and characters unique in every way. Have I convinced you yet that you need to read everything he has ever written? Because you need to.