Mostly Harmless [Hardcover]

"Douglas Adams is a terrific satirist.... He is anything but harmless".

-- The Washington Post Book World --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

The fifth part of the "Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy" series. 20 years on, the Guide falls into the hands of Arthur Dent's daughter, Random, whose mother, unexpectedly to all concerned, is Trillian. Random journeys to an insignificant planet, whose entry in the Guide reads "mostly harmless".

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy has, in what we laughingly call the past, had a great deal to say on the subject of parallel universes. Very little of this is, however, at all comprehensible to anyone below the level of advanced god and, since it is now well established that all known gods came into existence a good three-millionths of a second after the Universe began rather than, as they usually claimed, the previous week, they already have a great deal of explaining to do as it is, and are therefore not available for comment at this time . . . --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

Douglas Adams created all manifestations of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: radio, novels, TV, computer game, stage adaptations, comic book and bath towel. He worked on the movie screenplay before his sudden death in 2001. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

"One thing The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy does have to say on the subject of parallel universes is that you don't stand the remotest chance of understanding it. You can therefore say 'What?' and 'Eh?' and even go cross-eyed and start to blither if you like without any fear of making a fool of your self.

The first thing to realize about parallel universes, the Guide says, is that they are not parallel.

It is also very important to realize that they are not, strictly speaking, universes either, but it is easiest if you try and realize that a little later, after you've realized that everything you've realized up to the moment is not true.

The reason they are not universes is that any given universe is not actually a thing as such, but is just a way of looking at what is technically known as the WSOGMM, or Whole Sort of General Mish Mash. The Whole Sort of General Mish Mash doesn't actually exist either, but is just the sum total of all the different ways there would be of looking at it if it did.

The reason they are not parallel is the same reason that the sea is not parallel. It doesn't mean anything. You can slice the Whole Sort of General Mish Mash any way you like and you will generally come up with something that someone will call home. Please feel free to blither now." --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.