I won\u2019t give a synopsis of the plot.\u00a0 If you\u2019ve seen the movie \u201cBlade Runner\u201d then you have an approximate idea of the world and the action of the story.\u00a0 Rick Deckard is a bounty hunter who kills androids that break free of their service as bond slaves for humanity on Mars.\u00a0 He lives on an Earth where a remnant of humans remain who haven\u2019t emigrated off-Earth.\u00a0 The Earth is contaminated with radioactive fallout called \u201cthe dust\u2019 that is slowly mutating and killing every living thing.\u00a0 And many species have gone extinct and there is an almost cult-like love for animals that is expressed by owning farm animals like sheep and goats.\u00a0 And the extension of this cult is something called Mercerism that expresses empathy for all living things (except androids).<\/p>\n
Let me give my impressions of Philip K. Dick\u2019s writing and style.\u00a0 He is a very effective writer.\u00a0 His characters are sparingly but clearly represented and his narrative is interesting and cleverly crafted.\u00a0 He has carefully thought out many details of how this strange world works.\u00a0 The interpersonal interactions between Deckard and his wife, his boss, the androids, the other people in his surroundings are all consistent and keep you immersed in the story.\u00a0 He is a very talented science fiction writer.\u00a0 And if this book is representative of his type of story, he is not for me.<\/p>\n
If I would sum up this book in one word it would be \u201cdystopia.\u201d<\/p>\n
Everything in this book is downbeat.\u00a0 Deckard is depressed.\u00a0 His wife is practically suicidal.\u00a0 His boss is bleak.\u00a0 The owner of the corporation that makes the androids is harried.\u00a0 And finally, the androids are schizophrenic.\u00a0 The only ones who seem cheerful are the tv comics meant to sedate the populace and the pet salesmen who sell overpriced animals and fake animals to the desperate remnant of Earth\u2019s human population.<\/p>\n
So, here\u2019s the thing.\u00a0 I think PKD is a major talent and I\u2019m sure his reputation as a talented author is well deserved.\u00a0 And I\u2019m sure there is a large audience for his type of fiction.\u00a0 Unfortunately, I\u2019m not a part of that audience.\u00a0 I\u2019m not a hopeless dystopia kind of guy.\u00a0 That doesn\u2019t mean I need utopia.\u00a0 I don\u2019t mind crises and catastrophes.\u00a0 But a story that has absolutely no one to root for just doesn\u2019t inspire me to keep reading.\u00a0 If everyone in the story is a neurotic basket case and no one can summon the will to try and overcome the awful things that are happening in the story; or if morally speaking, the \u201cgood guys\u201d are completely indistinguishable from the \u201cbad guys\u201d then why the hell should I care who wins or loses?<\/p>\n
So, yeah, this is a good book.\u00a0 But it\u2019s not for me.\u00a0 I\u2019ll probably read a few more PKD \u201cmasterpieces\u201d to see if there\u2019s anything for me.\u00a0 If they\u2019re all like this then I\u2019m going to assume that the author was an extremely unhappy man and if I don\u2019t want to end up that way myself, I should move on to greener sf pastures.<\/p>\n