Year Zero

Aren't we at the point yet where just because something involves aliens, spaceships and more than a few laughs, we don't have to invoke Douglas Adams? (not that I have anything against the man or his work) But this book owes more to Scalzi's [b:Agent to the Stars 7945523 Agent to the Stars John Scalzi http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1316638539s/7945523.jpg 18280048] than to anything about Arthur, Ford or Zaphod (or even Dirk).I'd give this 4.75 stars, really. Rounded up. But whatever, the important thing is that this book is a hoot. There's nothing about this that isn't funny–the plot, the characters, the commentary on the music industry, congressional shenanigans, trendy restaurants, Microsoft...whatever Reid touched on, he hit squarely and hilariously. I laughed out loud a whole lot. And then some more.I think towards the end, plot lines and plot points got a bit out of control. But honestly, he just reminded me of most of [a:Christopher Buckley 16903 Christopher Buckley http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1191422295p2/16903.jpg]'s work in that regard (and several other ways now that I think of it)–though I think Reid did a better job of pulling it all together at the end than Buckley usually does. And the coda? Perfect. And more than made up for any flaws.