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https://www.economist.com/prospero/2020/03/06/the-hitchhikers-guide-to-the-galaxy-turns-42
EVERY YEAR the world celebrates the anniversaries of masterworks and maestros. In 2020 there will be a host of events and publications commemorating the lives of Ludwig van Beethoven, Raphael, Charles Dickens, Anne Brontë and William Wordsworth. Such milestones usually come in neat multiples of 50. The 42nd anniversary of anything is rarely observed.
Yet on March 8th fans of "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" ("HHGTTG") will pay tribute to the comedy science-fiction series, which had its radio premiere on that day in 1978 and was subsequently adapted into novels, TV series, video games and a film. To mark the occasion, Pan Macmillan has reprinted the scripts and novels in colourful new editions ("HHGTTG" was the first book published under their "Pan Original" imprint to sell more than 1m copies). The British Library will host a day of "celebrations, conversation and performance". BBC Radio 4 has aired the original episodes; Radio 4 Extra will put on a "five-hour Hitchhiker's spectacular" including archival material and specially commissioned programmes. Such is the enduring interest in Douglas Adams's story that it is due to be adapted into a new television series by Hulu, a streaming service.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday March 09 2020, @07:28PM
First two books are kinda related, and you can tell both came out of the original radio play.
The third book is adapted from the Doctor Who script that wasn't chosen for filming, so the plot is rather different from the first two. You can see the "save the universe" angle a la Dr. Who, very different from the first two books.
Fourth book, too, is rather different, not the least because of the romance angle. And it reads unfinished/less polished than the earlier books. But I do like the ending.
Fifth book - my least favorite of the series, rather drab and depressing. The Elvis bit was a nice touch, though.