Hitchhiker's Guide reading order
Start here
The Hitchhiker
1979
Douglas Adams’s Hitchhiker novels in publication order through Mostly Harmless, then Eoin Colfer’s And Another Thing… — the sixth labeled so it is not book one.
Short answer · Start here
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
It is book one of the novels (1979). The radio series is older and not identical. The film is a cousin. Do not start with Mostly Harmless. Do not start with And Another Thing….
Adams called it a trilogy in five parts. Publication order of the five is the first-read path. Other media — radio, TV, stage, film, text adventure — reshuffle jokes and deaths. They are not a table of contents for the novels.
Short version of book one: Where to buy The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. This page is the five, plus the later sixth labeled.
The five novels
| # | Title | Year | Notes | Shop |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  The Hitchhiker's Guide to the GalaxyStart here | 1979 | Start here. | |
| 2 |  The Restaurant at the End of the Universe | 1980 | ||
| 3 |  Life, the Universe and Everything | 1982 | ||
| 4 |  So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish | 1984 | ||
| 5 |  Mostly Harmless | 1992 | Ends Adams’s five. |
Read them in this order. There is no honest “start at book four because Earth is back” door.
Young Zaphod Plays It Safe is a short. Optional. Not book 3.5. The Salmon of Doubt is a later unfinished-project collection, not Hitchhiker 6.
The sixth — optional, labeled
| Title | Year | Notes | Shop |
|---|---|---|---|
 And Another Thing...Do not start here | 2009 | Authorized continuation by Eoin Colfer. After Mostly Harmless. Not an on-ramp. |
Contested extra, labeled: Jane Belson sanctioned Colfer’s novel. Adams had talked about wanting a sixth that was less bleak than Mostly Harmless. Plenty of readers stop at five. That is allowed. This house lists the sixth as optional aftercare, not as required homework and not as a better book one.
If you want Colfer’s own long series, see Artemis Fowl.
Common mistakes
- Starting with the 2005 film and calling it the novel.
- Starting with the radio primary phase and skipping the books, then asking where Mostly Harmless goes.
- Starting with And Another Thing… because it is “the last one.”
- Treating The Salmon of Doubt as a finished sixth.
What to read next
- The Culture (Iain M. Banks) — If you want another literary SF shelf that is several doors, not one chronology.
- Discworld — Rincewind (Terry Pratchett) — If you want another travel comedy that is a real sequence.
- Bobiverse (Dennis E. Taylor) — If you want another long-timescale tinkering voice, warmer.
- Artemis Fowl (Eoin Colfer) — If the sixth book’s author is the hook, in his own series.
- Stop after Mostly Harmless. The five are a complete visit. The sixth is optional.
FAQ
Radio or novels first?
This page is the novels. The radio is earlier and different. Do not use it as a novel order.
Do I need the Colfer book?
No.
Is there a book six by Adams?
No finished one. The Salmon of Doubt is not that book.
Movie order?
The film is a cousin of book one. It is not the series.
Sources
- Penguin Random House, Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy — publisher series hub for Adams’s novels. Opened 2026-09-13.
- Pan Macmillan, Hitchhiker’s Guide books — publisher overview of the five plus Colfer’s sixth. Opened 2026-09-13.
Common questions
Asked about this shelf
- Where to buy The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (1979)
Same shelf
