Ubik (Philip K. Dick)

Overview: A well-thought-out tale, but not a complete one, Ubik is the story of the destruction of Runciter's anti-paranormal agency at the hands of its pro-paranormal counterpart, Hollis. The plot is reasonable, although not well-developed. The characters are a fairly typical Dick cast, as the Wikipedia article on this book points out. The conflict is interesting, and the resolution is nice (before the last two pages), although a lot more could have been done with this plot. The idea of people being in half-life cold-storage is underutilized, along with many other aspects of the book, suggesting that perhaps Philip Dick had something greater in mind when he wrote this, but that it lost favor in his eagerness to work on another project. Nevertheless, it was worth reading, despite ample room for improvement. A. Plot The plot of this twisted tale takes a bit to start but once it does, it is worthwhile. The first sixty pages or so merely outline the competition between Runcite... Read more

Is it a good book or a great book? Some say that "Ubik", published a few years after Philip K. Dick's classic period, is a genuine and final return to form, a true last burst of lunatic genius before the drugs and disappointments ate it up for good. Others call "Ubik" the desperate attempt of a rapidly fading talent to cash in one last time by cynically copying the inspiration that had already deserted it. Let's see if we can take a fresh look at it, unencumbered by the past. It's going to be a tangled project. At some point in this book itself, the very characters find themselves firmly entangled in the past, so what hope do we have? What's more, parts of this book show that PKD was indeed seeking to repeat his former glories, with limited success. For example, in his previous work he was very good at throwing in bizarre details for no particular reason; apteryx-shaped buildings, wood-burning automobiles. The oddities in "Ubik," however, feel forced. Take the outfits the ... Read more

The book (UBIK) came to me in 2 days! Excellent price and it was in new condition. Thanks! AAAA++++

i wish i was no longer alive... there is no god and there is no dog either. suicide might be the cure if only i would die for real... my mom told me if i had nothing nice to say to just say nothing at all. i bought his book after he died just to spite him. buy this book then die or don't buy this book then die, it's your choice... or will you?

would be for this one. This is a PKD masterpiece. A strong convoluted story that, unlike many PKD novels, does not trail off but stays strong and sustained to the very end. All the familiar pieces, played as well as he ever did. Paranoia funny and paranoia very dark. The besieged ordinary people of the future who have apartments (conapts, sorry) that know your credit history, doors that won't let you out unless you pay up in cash. Who work for battling corporate giants selling the services of precogs or telepaths versus the services of 'inertials', those who can block the intrusive powers of the first. A new element is that you can find yourself in 'cold-pak', at least if the cold-pak company gets to you soon enough after you die. A twilight state of consciousness between life and death, in which your relatives can still visit you and talk to you through a speaker and headphones. The problem as it turns out is that it's hard to know, when you're in cold pak, if you're a... Read more