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What does a best-selling science fiction author have to do with endangered animals? Quite a lot, actually.
There’s hardly a science fiction fan out there that isn’t familiar with the work of Douglas Adams. The adventures of the Hitchhiker’s Guide series and the antics of Dirk Gently are well known worldwide. But did you know that Douglas Adams had a passion for conservation and often wrote on environmental issues as well?
Last Chance to See is one of those projects. Together with zoologist Mark Carwardine, Adams travels around the world to seek out the last remaining individuals of endangered and threatened species. Despite its somber message, the book is fun and lighthearted in the author’s characteristic style. Between Adams’s honest portrayal of his dislike of ‘roughing it’ and things often not turning out in the two adventurers’ favor, it’s an amusing and quick read…where you just happen to learn a little something on the side.
The book was published in 1992 and Douglas Adams and Mark Carwardine had always hoped to follow up on their original work, but, unfortunately, Adams passed away before this could happen. So 20 years later, Stephen Fry joined Mark to retrace the original route and discover what had happened to the species Adams had written about. This trip was documented in a second book as well as a TV series (currently available on Netflix!). Like his predecessor, Stephen Fry isn’t exactly made for bush life, but his honesty and good natured humor bring a fresh insight to the pair’s adventures. Sadly, however, what they found was not altogether encouraging.
If you have any interest in animals and conservation (or you’re just a Douglas Adams fan), you should definitely add Last Chance to See to your reading list. Despite the book’s age, it continues to be a fun and entertaining call to action re: society’s often unfortunate impact on the natural world.
