Four Novels of the 1960s

Four Novels of the 1960s, by Philip K. Dick

Four Novels of the 1960s is what the title implies. Four books by Science Fiction writer & visionary Philip K. Dick (1928-1982), who received little beyond cult recognition until after his death when the film Blade Runner based on his 1968 book Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep (included in this collection) was released. Four Novels, in addition to Sheep (which details the hunt for human-like androids), also contains The Man in the High Castle (set in an alternative universe where the Axis won World War II; 1962), The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch (involving a bizarre plot to conquer an already-decaying Earth via mass-produced drugs, ugly dolls designed to replace children and a false messiah;1964) and Ubik (1969), a comic novel involving consumer culture, drugs (again), life after death and God. All four novels stand out with their shared themes (characters searching for the truth, be it inner or otherwise; characters, good & bad, having multiple identities and personalities, some without their knowledge; children as forces for good and evil, and yes, drugs) and deliver powerful thought-provoking stories that will stick with you long after closing the covers. (You'll also want to reread the stories again as well, just to see what you may have missed the first time.) Also available: Dick's A Scanner Darkly, probably his best novel from the 70s and the basis for an okay movie released last year. (Read the book first.)
-Ed