126. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Douglas Adams. Illustrated by Chris Riddell. 1979/2021. 289 pages. [Source: Library] [4 stars, speculative fiction, humor, science fiction, audio book]
First sentence: The house stood on a slight rise just on the edge of the
village. It stood on its own and looked out over a broad spread of West
Country farmland. Not a remarkable house by any means – it was about
thirty years old, squattish, squarish, made of brick, and had four
windows set in the front of a size and proportion which more or less
exactly failed to please the eye. The only
person for whom the house was in any way special was Arthur Dent, and
that was only because it happened to be the one he lived in. He had
lived in it for about three years, ever since he had moved out of London
because it made him nervous and irritable. He was about thirty as well,
tall, dark haired and never quite at ease with himself. The thing that
used to worry him most was the fact that people always used to ask him
what he was looking so worried about. He worked in local radio, which he
always used to tell his friends was a lot more interesting than they
probably thought. It was, too – most of his friends worked in
advertising.
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is all about
the journey and NOT the destination. Arthur Dent, one of our heroes, is
one of two survivors of Earth's destruction--the other being a stranded
alien named Ford Prefect. Earth was 'set' to be demolished on the same
day that Arthur Dent's house was set to be demolished... many adventures
or misadventures follow once these two hitch a ride on a spaceship (or
two). The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy follows a dream logic
of sorts. The less you think about it, the more you go with the flow,
you can almost relax into the story and it works. It's silly and
outrageous, but, you're content to go along for the laughs. It helps
that it is quite quotable in places. But like a dream, the ending is
abrupt. You can't help wanting to close your eyes and try to get back
into the dream to see if you can wrap things up. The ending was my least favorite part. The humor was my most favorite part.
Quotes:
I like the cover,’ he said. ‘Don’t Panic. It’s the first helpful or intelligible thing anybody’s said to me all day.’
‘I’ll
show you how it works,’ said Ford. He snatched it from Arthur who was
still holding it as if it was a two-week-dead lark and pulled it out of
its cover.
‘You press this button here, you see, and the screen lights up giving you the index.’
A screen, about three inches by four, lit up and characters began to flicker across the surface.
‘You want to know about Vogons, so I enter that name so.’ His fingers tapped some more keys. ‘And there we are.’
The words Vogon Constructor Fleets flared in green across the screen.
Ford
pressed a large red button at the bottom of the screen and words began
to undulate across it. At the same time, the book began to speak the
entry as well in a still quiet measured voice. This is what the book
said.
‘Vogon Constructor Fleets. Here is what to
do if you want to get a lift from a Vogon: forget it. They are one of
the most unpleasant races in the Galaxy – not actually evil, but
bad-tempered, bureaucratic, officious and callous. They wouldn’t even
lift a finger to save their own grandmothers from the Ravenous Bugblatter
Beast of Traal without orders signed in triplicate, sent in, sent back,
queried, lost, found, subjected to public inquiry, lost again, and
finally buried in soft peat for three months and recycled as firelighters.
The best way to get a drink out of a Vogon is to stick your finger down
his throat, and the best way to irritate him is to feed his grandmother
to the Ravenous Bugblatter Beast of Traal.
‘On no account allow a Vogon to read poetry at you.’
Arthur blinked at it.
‘What a strange book. How did we get a lift, then?’
‘That’s
the point, it’s out of date now,’ said Ford, sliding the book back into
its cover. ‘I’m doing the field research for the new revised edition,
and one of the things I’ll have to do is include a bit about how the
Vogons now employ Dentrassi cooks, which gives us a rather useful little
loophole.’
A pained expression crossed Arthur’s face. ‘But who are the Dentrassi?’ he said. ‘Great
guys,’ said Ford. ‘They’re the best cooks and the best drinks mixers
and they don’t give a wet slap about anything else. And they’ll always
help hitchhikers aboard, partly because they like the company, but
mostly because it annoys the Vogons.
Vogon poetry is of course the third worst in the
Universe. The second worst is that of the Azgoths of Kria. During a
recitation by their Poet Master Grunthos the Flatulent of his poem ‘Ode
To A Small Lump of Green Putty I Found In My Armpit One Midsummer
Morning’ four of his audience died of internal haemorrhaging, and the
President of the Mid-Galactic Arts Nobbling Council survived by gnawing
one of his own legs off. Grunthos is reported to have been
‘disappointed’ by the poem’s reception, and was about to embark on a
reading of his twelve-book epic entitled My Favourite Bathtime Gurgles
when his own major intestine, in a desperate attempt to save life and
civilization, leapt straight up through his neck and throttled his
brain.
The very worst poetry of all perished
along with its creator Paula Nancy Millstone Jennings of Greenbridge,
Essex, England in the destruction of the planet Earth.
All right,’ said Ford, ‘just stop panicking!’
‘Who
said anything about panicking?’ snapped Arthur. ‘This is still just the
culture shock. You wait till I’ve settled down into the situation and
found my bearings. Then I’ll start panicking!’
‘Arthur,
you’re getting hysterical. Shut up!’ Ford tried desperately to think,
but was interrupted by the guard shouting again. ‘Resistance is
useless!’
All right,’ said Deep Thought. ‘The Answer to the Great Question…’
‘Yes…!’
‘Of Life, the Universe and Everything…’ said Deep Thought.
‘Yes…!’
‘Is…’ said Deep Thought, and paused.
‘Yes…!’
‘Is…’
‘Yes …!!! …?’
‘Forty-two,’ said Deep Thought, with infinite majesty and calm.
© 2025 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
This week I read six books.
 123. The Blue Castle. L.M. Montgomery. 1926. 218 pages. [Audio book, Library, 5 Stars]
Read this if...
- You love L.M. Montgomery
- You love classic romance
- You love 'spinsters' finding love and romance
124. Little House in the Big Woods. Laura Ingalls Wilder. 1932. 238
pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, children's classic, j historical,
audio book]
Read this if...
- You love children's classics
- You love Laura Ingalls Wilder
- You love head cheese (iykyk)
125. Peter Pan. J.M. Barrie. 1911/2008. Penguin. 207 pages. [Source:
Library book][mg fantasy, j fantasy, children's classic, 4 stars]
Read this if...
- You love children's classics
- You never want to grow up
- You've only ever seen the movie and want to read the book
110. A Christmas Sonata. Gary Paulsen. Illustrated by Leslie Bowman.
1992. 80 pages. [Source: Library] [3 stars][Christmas, historical,
family drama]
Read this if...
- You are an adult sentimental about Santa
- You enjoy historical fiction
111. The 13th Day of Christmas. Adam Rex. 2025. 48 pages. [Source: Library] [4 stars, picture book, Christmas]
Read this if...
- You enjoy humorous Christmas stories
- You enjoy picture books
 15. New American Standard Bible (1995 text) Large Print Pew Bible. (Lockman Foundation). 1995/2005. 1267 pages. [Source: Bought] [5 stars, this is really the 95 audio on YouVersion, but I wanted page numbers).
Read this if...
- You love the NASB 1995 (New American Standard Bible)
Century of Viewing #51
1980s
- 1985 Brazil. This dystopian film is set during the Christmas holidays. It is bizarre. It is full of twists and turns. It doesn't answer a fraction of questions that it raises. YET it features a great cast. It is odd and weird BUT it isn't a waste of time. Not really.
2000s
- 2005 Batman vs. Dracula. Is this avoid at all costs? Maybe not that drastic. But the most complimentary thing you can say is 'that is a thing that was on' It does justice neither to Batman OR Dracula. The animation style was not my favorite or best. The animation itself wasn't that fabulous. The voice actors...well...they were voices. Nothing about this one was fabulous. But the company I kept while watching it was.
2020s
- 2023 Miracle in Bethlehem, PA. I discovered this Hallmark movie last year and loved it. A woman adopts a baby but car trouble keeps her in Bethlehem, PA, for the holidays where she finds the family she's never known she's always wanted. IT's so good.
- 2023 Biltmore Christmas. TIME TRAVEL. Old Hollywood. SO many reasons to love this Hallmark Christmas movie. A screen writer wants to remake a Christmas classic...but finds herself magically transported to the original filming where she falls head over heels for one of the stars....
- 2024 Best Christmas Pageant Ever. This is the new adaptation of a children's novel from the 1970s. I loved some things about it for sure. I didn't love every single choice they made. But they definitely connected all the dots and made it more emphatic what Christmas is all about. The book is not subtle, mind you, but it lets readers come to some realizations on their own. Anyway, this one was GOOD.
- 2024 VHS Christmas Carols. I've watched it at least three more times since last week. These songs are beyond living rent free in my head. YET I find the music and story SO good and compelling. Since I know that it's likely to be taken down from the TeamStarkid channel soon after Christmas, I'll watch it while I can. If it was up year round, I might give myself a break.
- 2025 Downtown Abbey: The Grand Finale. I enjoyed this one. I did. In many ways it was like a long episode of the show. Nothing 'huge' or 'amazing' happened. Okay, I guess that is relative. It was a happy enough watch. I don't want my time back. I loved, loved, loved the tribute to the past.
© 2025 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
125. Peter Pan. J.M. Barrie. 1911/2008. Penguin. 207 pages. [Source: Library book][mg fantasy, j fantasy, children's classic, 4 stars]
First sentence: All children except one, grow up. They soon know that they will grow
up, and the way Wendy knew was this. One day when she was two years old
she was playing in a garden, and she plucked another flower and ran with
it to her mother. I suppose she must have looked rather delightful, for
Mrs. Darling put her hand to her heart and cried, 'Oh, why can't you
remain like this for ever!' This was all that passed between them on the
subject, but henceforth Wendy knew that she must grow up. You always
know after you are two. Two is the beginning of the end.
ETA: I listened the Tim Curry's narration of Peter Pan. It had been eleven years since I'd last read the novel. It was in many ways like experiencing it for the first time. Sure I remembered the highlights, the best bits that have often made it into adaptations. But there was plenty that hadn't. I enjoyed this on audio.
Peter Pan may be far from perfect when all things are considered, but,
it certainly can prove a delightful reread now and then. Though I
haven't seen the musical in years, I first became familiar with this
story through the musical: the dialogue and the songs. So when I first
read it fifteen years ago (or so), it felt familiar from the start.
Tinker Bell was fierce, a very jealous and very stubborn fairy. Peter
Pan was oh-so-arrogant and a bit obnoxious, quite thoughtless. Wendy and
her brothers, well, I had to admit they were a bit thoughtless as well.
But there was something touching about Wendy. And then there are all
the other inhabitants of Never Never Land: the Lost Boys, the Indians,
and the pirates led by Captain Hook, to name just a few.
The book is dated, very dated, and to modern readers it may not hold up
well. The place is sculpted, in a way, by the dreams and fantasies of
children. Wendy and her two brothers, for example, imagine a lot of
things: playing Indians, playing pirates, visiting with mermaids,
playing with wolves, etc. It is an island, a land, like no other. All
fancy--make believe, if you will. I find it delightful, very delightful
at times. It is not my favorite, favorite children's book by ANY stretch
of the imagination. But I think it's a fun one to know.
Quotes:
Mrs.
Darling loved to have everything just so, and Mr. Darling had a passion
for being exactly like his neighbors; so, of course, they had a nurse.
As they were poor, owing to the amount of milk the children drank, this
nurse was a prim Newfoundland dog, called Nana, who had belonged to no
one in particular until the Darlings engaged her. (4)
Mrs.
Darling first heard of Peter when she was tidying up her children's
minds. It is the nightly custom of every good mother after her children
are asleep to rummage in their minds and put things straight for next
morning, repacking into their proper places the many articles that have
wandered during the day. (6)
Of
all delectable islands the Neverland is the snuggest and most compact;
not large and sprawly, you know, with tedious distances between one
adventure and another, but nicely crammed. When you play at it by day
with the chairs and table-cloth, it is not in the least alarming but in
the two minutes before you go to sleep it becomes very nearly real. That
is why there are night lights. (8)
"Why, what is the matter, father, dear?"
"Matter!"
he yelled; he really yelled. "This tie, it will not tie." He became
dangerously sarcastic. "Not round my neck! Round the bedpost! Oh yes,
twenty times have I made it up round the bedpost, but round my neck, no!
Oh dear no! begs to be excused!'
He
thought Mrs. Darling was not sufficiently impressed, and he went on
sternly, "I warn you of this, mother, that unless this tie is round my
neck we don't go out to dinner tonight, and if I don't go out to dinner
tonight, I never go to the office again, and if I don't go to the office
again, you and I starve, and our children will be flung into the
streets."
Even then Mrs. Darling was placid. (17-8)
"That
is not Nana's unhappy bark," she said, little guessing what was about
to happen; "that is her bark when she smells danger." (24)
It
was a girl called Tinker Bell, exquisitely gowned in a skeleton leaf,
cut low and square, through which her figure could be seen to the best
advantage. She was slightly inclined to embonpoint. (26)
"You
see, Wendy, when the first baby laughed for the first time, its laugh
broke into a thousand pieces, and they all went skipping about, and that
was the beginning of fairies. And so," he went on good naturedly,
"there ought to be one fairy for every boy and girl."
"Ought to be? Isn't there?"
"No.
You see, children know such a lot now, they soon don't believe in
fairies, and every time a child says, "I don't believe in fairies,"
there is a fairy somewhere that falls down dead." (33)
"Second
to the right, and straight on till morning." That, Peter had told
Wendy, was the way to the Neverland; but even birds, carrying maps and
consulting them at windy corners, could not have sighted it with these
instructions. Peter, you see, just said anything that came into his
head. (45)
Tink
was not all bad: or, rather, she was all bad just now, but, on the
other hand, sometimes she was all good. Fairies have to be one thing or
the other, because being so small they unfortunately have room for one
feeling only at a time. They are, however, allowed to change, only it
must be a complete change. At present she was full of jealousy of Wendy.
(57)
The
lost boys were out looking for Peter, the pirates were out looking for
the lost boys, the redskins were out looking for the pirates, and the
beasts were out looking for the redskins. They were going round and
round the island, but they did not meet because all were going at the
same rate. (58)
One
could mention many lovable traits in Smee. For instance, after killing,
it was his spectacles he wiped instead of his weapon. (67)
"Aye,"
the captain answered, "If I was a mother I would pray to have my
children born with this instead of that," and he cast a look of pride
upon his iron hand and one of scorn upon the other. Then again he
frowned.
"Peter flung my arm," he said, wincing, "to a crocodile that happened to be passing by."
"I have often," said Smee, "noticed your strange dread of crocodiles."
"Not
of crocodiles," Hook corrected him, "but of that one crocodile." He
lowered his voice, "It liked my arm so much, Smee, that it has followed
me ever since, from sea to sea and from land to land, licking its lips
for the rest of me."
"In a way," said Smee, "It's a sort of compliment."
"I want no such compliments," Hook barked petulantly. (68)
There
was not a child on board the brig that night who did not already love
him. He had said horrid things to them and hit them with the palm of his
hand, because he could not hit with his fist; but they had only clung
to him the more. Michael had tried on his spectacles. To tell poor Smee
that they thought him lovable! Hook itched to do it, but it seemed too
brutal. (159)
© 2025 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
124. Little House in the Big Woods. Laura Ingalls Wilder. 1932. 238 pages. [Source: Library] [5 stars, children's classic, j historical, audio book]
First sentence: Once upon a time, sixty years ago, a little girl lived in the Big Woods of Wisconsin, in a little gray house made of logs. Premise/plot:
Little House in the Big Woods is the first in an autobiographical
FICTION series by Laura Ingalls Wilder. Laura Ingalls Wilder is sharing
her vivid memories of childhood starting with her Wisconsin years. She
writes of Pa, Ma, Mary, and baby Carrie. She writes of grandparents,
aunts, uncles, and cousins. She writes of chores, chores, and more
chores. She writes of story and song. So many chapters of this one
feature an extra-bonus story. Laura recalling Pa recalling a story from
his own past, a story from his father's past, a story from his
grandfather's past. This one really does capture many of the five
senses--the sights, sounds, smells, tastes, etc. of her childhood. It is
a personal story, though probably not unique. She is writing of "sixty
years ago," a way of life then past, a way of life falling out of
[collective] memory perhaps, a way of life that can only be memorialized
(is that the right word???) in family stories. Every family has
stories. Not all families pass along the stories throughout the
generations. The book is an act of love. My thoughts: The series
is not without controversy. I know that. You know that. We've lived
long enough that Laura Ingalls Wilder--for better or worse--has fallen
out of fashion, out of style. At best she's seen as quaint. At worst,
well, a racist. I do think Little House in the Big Woods may be the
least problematic in the series. The possible offenders being Ma baking a
type of bread called "Rye n' Injun bread" and Pa singing a line in a
song with the word darky. (The bread is made from rye flour and corn
meal.) I appreciated many things about this one. I love all the
snapshots of day-to-day simple life. I love the snapshots of special
memories--like the Christmas chapter, or the one where they go to visit
family and make candy. I love the focus on family, on storytelling, on
tradition. I wouldn't say the book is overly faith-forward or religious,
yet, I think in some ways faith provides the skeleton--the
structure--beneath. I do read it differently the older I get. Here is the last paragraph that hit me right in the heart:
She thought to herself, "This is now."
She
was glad that the cosy house, and Pa and Ma and the firelight and the
music, were now. They could not be forgotten, she thought, because now
is now. It can never be a long time ago.
Very true to life, in my opinion.
© 2025 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
123. The Blue Castle. L.M. Montgomery. 1926. 218 pages. [Audio book, Library, 5 Stars]
First sentence: If it had not rained on a certain May morning Valancy Stirling's
whole life would have been entirely different. She would have gone, with
the rest of her clan, to Aunt Wellington's engagement picnic and Dr.
Trent would have gone to Montreal. But it did rain and you shall hear
what happened because of it.
The Blue Castle is a giddy-making romance by one of my favorite authors,
L.M. Montgomery. I LOVE so many of Montgomery's books, but this one is
one of my favorite favorites. One of those perfectly perfect
books. For readers who don't appreciate old-fashioned, sweet romances,
it may not be exceptional. But for me, it is near perfect!
Valancy Stirling is the heroine. An uncomfortable birthday is
approaching, and she's never been in love, never even come close to
falling in love. She hates the teasing she receives from her family
because of her unmarried status. Hates it not only because it's rude,
but because she longs for love, and aches for a happily ever after. She
hates how everyone takes her for granted, how no one ever shows her any
real consideration.
So one day Valancy decides to go to a doctor--a man who was not the
official family doctor--with her symptoms of heart pain and
palpitations. A family emergency calls the doctor away before he can
share his diagnosis with her, but a letter arrives in the mail a few
days letter, a letter with shocking news. SHE IS DYING. There are two
things Valancy decides: 1) she will never, ever tell her family the news
and 2) she will make all her own decisions and will start LIVING each
day as if it were her very last.
The change in Valancy is oh-so-sudden and oh-so-shocking. The new
Valancy has a voice, a loud voice, and a rebellious spirit. She will do
things her way from now on. One of the first decisions she makes
is that she will nurse a dying relative, Cissy, who is in disgrace with
the family. She will keep house for "Roaring Abel." It is in her new
position that she first meets Barney Snaith. And it is LOVE. The old
Valancy would never have met him, would never have dared talk to him,
but the new Valancy? Well, she has NOTHING to lose! So the two become
friends--good friends. After Cissy's death, Valancy decides to take a
big risk:
"I thought I'd run down and ask if there was anything I could do for you," said Barney.
Valancy took it with a canter.
"Yes, there is something you can do for me," she said, evenly and distinctly. "Will you marry me?"
For a moment Barney was silent. There was no particular expression on his face. Then he gave an odd laugh.
"Come, now! I knew luck was just waiting around the corner for me. All the signs have been pointing that way today."
"Wait."
Valancy lifted her hand. "I'm in earnest--but I want to get my breath
after that question. Of course, with my bringing up, I realize perfectly
well that this is one of the things 'a lady should not do.'"
"But why--why?"
"For
two reasons." Valancy was still a little breathless, but she looked
Barney straight in the eyes while all the dead Stirlings revolved
rapidly in their graves and the living ones did nothing because they did
not know that Valancy was at that moment proposing lawful marriage to
the notorious Barney Snaith. "The first reason is, I--I"--Valancy tried
to say "I love you" but could not. She had to take refuge in a pretended
flippancy. "I'm crazy about you. the second is--this."
She handed him Dr. Trent's letter.
Barney
opened it with the air of a man thankful to find some safe, sane thing
to do. As he read it his face changed. He understood--perhaps more than
Valancy wanted him to.
"Are you sure nothing can be done for you?"
Valancy did not misunderstand the question.
"Yes.
You know Dr. Trent's reputation in regard to heart disease. I haven't
long to live--perhaps only a few months--a few weeks. I want to live
them. I can't go back to Deerwood--you know what my life was like there.
And"--she managed it this time--"I love you. I want to spend the rest
of my life with you. That's all." (127, 128)
Will Barney say yes?! Will Valancy have her one happy year of real living, of JOY?
I adore this book! I love the romance. I love the characterization. I love the descriptive writing!
Favorite quotes:
Valancy never persisted. She was afraid to.
They never knew that Valancy had two homes--the ugly red brick box of a
home, on Elm Street, and the Blue Castle in Spain. Valancy had lived
spiritually in the Blue Castle ever since she could remember...
Reality pressed on her too hardly, barking at her heels like a maddening little dog.
Dr. Trent was over seventy and there had been rumours that he meant to
retire soon. None of the Stirling clan had ever gone to him since he had
told Cousin Gladys, ten years before, that her neuritis was all
imaginary and that she enjoyed it. You couldn't patronise a doctor who
insulted your first-cousin-once-removed like that--not to mention that
he was a Presbyterian when all the Stirlings went to the Anglican
church. But Valancy, between the devil of disloyalty to clan and the
deep sea of fuss and clatter and advice, thought she would take a chance
with the devil.
Fear--fear--fear--she could never escape from it. It bound her and enmeshed her like a spider's web of steel.
"Fear is the original sin," wrote John Foster. "Almost all the evil in
the world has its origin in the fact that some one is afraid of
something. It is a cold, slimy serpent coiling about you. It is horrible
to live with fear; and it is of all things degrading."
"'If you can sit in silence with a person for
half an hour and yet be entirely comfortable, you and that person can be
friends. If you cannot, friends you'll never be and you need not waste
time in trying.'"
© 2025 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
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