Philip K. Dick

[Gurm]

So Julie and her boss have had this "reading exchange program" going on. She lent him Harry Potter, now he's got her reading "Minority Report".

Well it turns out that it's a book of short stories. So I flip through, and EVERY SINGLE ONE has been made into a movie. Good stories, too.

Minority Report - Duh.
Imposter - Gary Sinise, a little-known movie from 2001.
The Second Variety - Screamers (starring Peter Weller)

etc. etc. etc.

The guy (Philip K. Dick) seems to be astonishingly prolific. I never much cared for "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep", preferring Blade Runner (yeah, sometimes I like the movie better than the book). But this guy CAN write. Jeez.

Gpar_

[lecter]

Yeah, he's damn good, I really enjoyed his "The man in the high castle", one of the coolest dystopias I ever read.

[Dr Mordrid]

I really liked Martian Time-Slip and Eye In The Sky.

Dr. Mordrid

[Gurm]

You know what my problem is?

I have read so much REALLY GOOD sci-fi that I have a hard time remembering WHERE I read it, and WHO wrote it.

I know when something is Asimov, that's not a problem. Or Lem, or Niven, or Dick, or Bradbury, or Gibson, or Sterling, or Silverburg. But often only when I'm reading it. I can't remember 5 years down the line who wrote it. My mind is going, honestly.

But beyond the big names, I get lost. And I don't OWN that many sci-fi compendiums any more (read most of it when I was in school - the library is your FRIEND).

So, while I can definitely recommend some excellent stories, I have a hard time telling you where to find them, or who wrote them.

And let's face it - science fiction has changed. It used to be less about the robots and space ships and more about examining some hard questions and the fundamental human condition, not to mention ethics and morals, and a lot of fun ironic endings and concepts.

The fact was that the science-fiction setting was mostly to remove the reader to a far future where morality may have evolved, but where the essential "rules" of today don't apply, in order to explore the theme of the story.

SOMETIMES science-fiction is just fun spaceship stuff, but lately I haven't seen too much thought-provoking work, except from authors that purposely write old-school, such as Gibson. (Despite all his swearing, sex, drug-infestation and whatnot, he's really an old-school sci-fi author.)

*sigh*

I love sci-fi. Can you tell?

Gpar_

[Rob(QG)]

Re: Philip K. Dick

The guy (Philip K. Dick) seems to be astonishingly prolific. I never much cared for "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep", preferring Blade Runner (yeah, sometimes I like the movie better than the book). But this guy CAN write. Jeez.

Best advert for LSD ever

He was so paranoid, and it came through in all of his writing.

Big fan here

[GNEP]

Just got started on some Iain M Banks here - so far quite impressed

[AlgoRhythm]

Oh, you must read "Radio Free Albemuth". I just read it a few weeks ago. Very cool book of Dick's published posthumously. Mixes so many cool ideas. One of the main characters in the book is a Sci-Fi writer names "Phil Dick".


AlgoRhythm

[Wombat]

I'm a big fan of PKD's work. I recommend the "PKD reader." A great collection of short stories he did, including one of my favorites, <I>Paycheck</I>, which is being turned into a movie (yay) with Ben Affleck lined up for the lead role (boo).