I always know where my towel is! Almost anyway...

 

Have you thought of, that if someone is able to maintain the lifestyle of an intergalactic hitchhiker, and still know where his towel is, it's logical to assume they are generally reliable so thus it should be safe to lend them either of the things they may be currently missing? Well, that's the thought of the late Douglas Adams in his legendary bestseller "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" anyway, and today on Monday the 25th of May 2009, we celebrate the (a tad late, but that's fine) 8th anniversary of the his death day. He passed away at age 49 from fatal cardiac arrhythmia while at his gym.

"The Hitchhiker", as it became generally abbreviated to, made a very very strong mark in my early youth. I was pretty much obsessed with it and read the five-part trilogy probably at least five times. I marked particularly funny passages in the book and shared quotes from the book ad nauseum, and it was it which taught me that sometimes bypasses just have to be built, that total perspective can be detrimental to your health and that for some, it can make perfect sense to resignate to a life of meticulous sandwich making.

Eventually I grew up and grew tired of the quotes and silliness, and loved other books, but none were probably ever quite as popular as Douglas Adams' master work. Anyway, I made a little interesting list in my head at some point - some norm for literary development in a nerd:

1. the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
   
2. the Principia Discordia
3. the Foundation series
   
4. the Illuminatus! trilogy
5. a recent addition, Daemon

What nerd books have you read and loved, or do you think either of my favourites do not qualify for the list? For some ideas, check out 32 Sci-Fi Novels You Should Read .

(PS. It's really heart-warming to see on twitter that I'm not alone to cherish his memory: #towelday)