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A review by shivani_maurya
Selected Stories of Philip K. Dick by Philip K. Dick
4.0
My very first read by Philip K. Dick..and I am already onto his other collections :D Anyways moving on to the review..I started this collection with "Second Variety" and half expected to find something akin to Asimov and his robots..A futuristic diorama unfolding in the imagination, of a world where humans can't live without machines and bots..But in retrospect and to my surprise, Dick's science-fiction does not rely as much on science as it does on the elements of fiction..
His stories happen to humans..husband-wife, father-son, soldiers, kids, wanderers, technicians, revolutionaries etc..And exactly for this fact, they are so much more relatable..All the while I wondered less about the aliens and the fancy gadgets and more about how the human protagonist would react..Thoughts like "What's he/she gonna do now?", "There's no way he's escaping this", "I bet he is the one!!", "Oh my God!! Open your eyes, damn it!", "No! Don't go to the old lady!!", "C'mmon! He is one of them now!!"..The stories are a touch-and-go kind..They lead on the reader, in favour of his/her suspicions..And WHAM!!..down goes the white flag of truce between Dick and the reader, as he shoots us down with epiphanies..
All I can say is : Dick is good..real good at the "Whoa!!" moments..And these being short stories, one can easily make a guess at his genius in getting the readers riled up with such short accounts..So impressed I was/am that I think each of his stories deserve a mention with their own ratings..
3★ Beyond Lies the Wub
3★ Roog
3.5★ Paycheck
4.5★ Second Variety
3.5★ Imposter
3★ The King of the Elves
3★ Adjustment Team
3★ Foster, You're Dead!
3★ Upon the Dull Earth
3.5★ Autofac
3.5★ The Minority Report "and to think this was one of the influences that led to Psycho-Pass..Nostalgia(sigh)"
3★ The Days of Perky Pat
3★ Precious Artifact
3.5★ A Game of Unchance
4★ We Can Remember It for You Wholesale
3★ Faith of Our Fathers
3★ The Electric Ant
4★ A Little Something for Us Tempunauts
3.5★ The Exit Door Leads In
3★ Rautavaara's Case
3.5★ I Hope I Shall Arrive Soon
I confess that I had known PKD only for his "The Man in the High Castle"..But I am glad that he has written enough sci-fi stories to keep me away from other genres for a while :)
His stories happen to humans..husband-wife, father-son, soldiers, kids, wanderers, technicians, revolutionaries etc..And exactly for this fact, they are so much more relatable..All the while I wondered less about the aliens and the fancy gadgets and more about how the human protagonist would react..Thoughts like "What's he/she gonna do now?", "There's no way he's escaping this", "I bet he is the one!!", "Oh my God!! Open your eyes, damn it!", "No! Don't go to the old lady!!", "C'mmon! He is one of them now!!"..The stories are a touch-and-go kind..They lead on the reader, in favour of his/her suspicions..And WHAM!!..down goes the white flag of truce between Dick and the reader, as he shoots us down with epiphanies..
All I can say is : Dick is good..real good at the "Whoa!!" moments..And these being short stories, one can easily make a guess at his genius in getting the readers riled up with such short accounts..So impressed I was/am that I think each of his stories deserve a mention with their own ratings..
3★ Beyond Lies the Wub
3★ Roog
3.5★ Paycheck
4.5★ Second Variety
3.5★ Imposter
3★ The King of the Elves
3★ Adjustment Team
3★ Foster, You're Dead!
3★ Upon the Dull Earth
3.5★ Autofac
3.5★ The Minority Report "and to think this was one of the influences that led to Psycho-Pass..Nostalgia(sigh)"
3★ The Days of Perky Pat
3★ Precious Artifact
3.5★ A Game of Unchance
4★ We Can Remember It for You Wholesale
3★ Faith of Our Fathers
3★ The Electric Ant
4★ A Little Something for Us Tempunauts
3.5★ The Exit Door Leads In
3★ Rautavaara's Case
3.5★ I Hope I Shall Arrive Soon
I confess that I had known PKD only for his "The Man in the High Castle"..But I am glad that he has written enough sci-fi stories to keep me away from other genres for a while :)