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3.52 AVERAGE
3.52 AVERAGE
Personally, I wouldn't 'highly recommend it'.
I thought it was only OK.
I mean the writing felt sort of jilted, amateurish. Not to mention male-gazy as hell.
The story of 'a guy realizing that his reality/society is controlled by men in white lab coats' feels like something I've read SO many times before (especially in my creative writing class).
It sort of reminded me of Fahrenheit 451 for various reasons, one of which being that halfway through I got a disappointing sensation of 'oh. this is it?'
The most redeeming aspect of this book is actually how loving the wife is. Not sure if the author realizes it, but this breathed life into the story.
I thought it was only OK.
I mean the writing felt sort of jilted, amateurish. Not to mention male-gazy as hell.
The story of 'a guy realizing that his reality/society is controlled by men in white lab coats' feels like something I've read SO many times before (especially in my creative writing class).
It sort of reminded me of Fahrenheit 451 for various reasons, one of which being that halfway through I got a disappointing sensation of 'oh. this is it?'
The most redeeming aspect of this book is actually how loving the wife is. Not sure if the author realizes it, but this breathed life into the story.
Ah, is there ever a WRONG time for Philip K. Dick!? This is a short story that I think I have seen translated into 3 tv episodes. Just that slightly askew look of the world that we live in...courtesy of PKD.
J'ai vu le film par hasard à la tv avec Matt Damon et je dois dire que j'ai adoré. Cette idée que nous ne sommes pas maîtres de notre destinée, que le libre arbitre n'est que chimère...
Du coup j'ai eu envie de découvrir la nouvelle qui a inspirée le film, et je ne regrette pas. Bon je dois dire quand même que ça n'a pas grand chose à voir avec le film et qu'en tant que lectrice je suis gravement restée sur ma faim avec cette nouvelle ; inévitablement en ayant vu le film on s'attend à plus de développements mais c'est un peu comme si l'auteur avait décidé de simplement dérouler le fil d'une idée qu'il a eu un jour sans chercher à aller plus loin.
Malgré tout ça reste un texte vraiment super, qui pose une foule de questions....
Du coup j'ai eu envie de découvrir la nouvelle qui a inspirée le film, et je ne regrette pas. Bon je dois dire quand même que ça n'a pas grand chose à voir avec le film et qu'en tant que lectrice je suis gravement restée sur ma faim avec cette nouvelle ; inévitablement en ayant vu le film on s'attend à plus de développements mais c'est un peu comme si l'auteur avait décidé de simplement dérouler le fil d'une idée qu'il a eu un jour sans chercher à aller plus loin.
Malgré tout ça reste un texte vraiment super, qui pose une foule de questions....
short, realistic, and sweet. thinking about reality makes me have an existential crisis. so thank you Philip.
Update JAN 2022 I re-read it because I didn't remember much.
New rating: 3/5 l liked it but the ending isn't the best.
2020's ATY in 52 books: 15. A book without a person on the cover
Original Rating: : 3.5/5 I liked it
Very good short story. This's the story that inspired Matt Damon's movie The adjustment bureau . I really liked the movie and wanted to read this. The movie takes some things but is completely another story.
Phillip K Dick's writing is engaging and creative. If you don't know, many (a ton) of sci-fi movies are based or inspired on his works: Blade runner, total recall, minority report, next, paycheck, a scanner darkly, impostor, the man in the high castle, among others. He is an important figure in sci-fi, and often explored the question about what's real and identity.
I liked this very much, is interesting, creative, intriguing, it puts your imagination to fly. I recommend it.
From wikipedia
man called the Clerk approaches a talking dog, and explains in businesslike manner that "Sector T137" is scheduled for "adjustment" at 9 o'clock. He instructs the dog to bark at exactly 8:15, which the Clerk explains will summon "A Friend with a Car", which will take real estate salesman Ed Fletcher to work before 9, but while the Clerk is preoccupied, the dog falls asleep and as a result barks a minute too late. Inside Ed's house, while he is getting ready for work, Ed is accosted by a door-to-door insurance salesman and doesn't leave for work until 9:30. Ed arrives at his office building, but upon stepping onto the curb, finds himself in a sunless version of the world where everything and everyone is immobile, ash-grey, and crumbles at his touch. Ed is accosted by white-robed men, who talk about "de-energizing" him with a hose-like piece of equipment, but he flees outside and across the street, back to the everyday world, fearing he's had a psychotic episode.
The Clerk is brought to the top-level Administrative Chambers to explain what went wrong to someone referred to only as "the Old Man", who decides to personally deal with this unusual situation and orders Ed "brought up here". Meanwhile, Ed has found his wife Ruth and told her about the experience. With Ruth accompanying him for moral support, Ed returns to his workplace to prove he has not experienced a full psychotic breakdown or seen behind the fabric of reality, as he still fears. Things seem normal at first, and Ruth leaves, but he soon realizes people and objects have changed in their appearance, location, age, and countless other subtle differences. Panic stricken, he runs to a public phone to warn the police, only to have the phone booth ascend heavenward with Ed inside.
Meeting the Old Man, Ed first thinks he is dead, but is informed he is only visiting. The Old Man tells him that a correction was being made, it was a very serious error, he was not changed, and his revealing to others what he saw is a grave threat, explaining, "the natural process must be supplemented—adjusted here and there. Corrections must be made. We are fully licensed to make such corrections. Our adjustment teams perform vital work." In this instance, the adjustment is to bring about a chain of events that will lessen Soviet–Western Bloc war tension. Ed is allowed to return without being de-energized and adjusted, on the condition that he tell no one the truth he has learned, and convinces his wife that everything he has already told her was due to a temporary psychological fit. The Old Man threatens him that should he fail doing so, he will have a terrible fate when they meet again, and adds that every person eventually meets the Old Man.
On Ed's return, Ruth catches him lying about where he spent the afternoon and demands he tell her the truth, while he tries to stall her long enough to come up with a story she will believe. A bark is heard and a vacuum cleaner salesman rings the doorbell. While Ruth is distracted by the salesman's demonstration, Ed escapes to the bedroom, where he shakily lights a cigarette and gratefully looks up, saying, "Thanks ... I think we'll make it—after all. Thanks a lot."
New rating: 3/5 l liked it but the ending isn't the best.
2020's ATY in 52 books: 15. A book without a person on the cover
Original Rating: : 3.5/5 I liked it
Very good short story. This's the story that inspired Matt Damon's movie The adjustment bureau . I really liked the movie and wanted to read this. The movie takes some things but is completely another story.
Phillip K Dick's writing is engaging and creative. If you don't know, many (a ton) of sci-fi movies are based or inspired on his works: Blade runner, total recall, minority report, next, paycheck, a scanner darkly, impostor, the man in the high castle, among others. He is an important figure in sci-fi, and often explored the question about what's real and identity.
I liked this very much, is interesting, creative, intriguing, it puts your imagination to fly. I recommend it.
Spoiler
From wikipedia
man called the Clerk approaches a talking dog, and explains in businesslike manner that "Sector T137" is scheduled for "adjustment" at 9 o'clock. He instructs the dog to bark at exactly 8:15, which the Clerk explains will summon "A Friend with a Car", which will take real estate salesman Ed Fletcher to work before 9, but while the Clerk is preoccupied, the dog falls asleep and as a result barks a minute too late. Inside Ed's house, while he is getting ready for work, Ed is accosted by a door-to-door insurance salesman and doesn't leave for work until 9:30. Ed arrives at his office building, but upon stepping onto the curb, finds himself in a sunless version of the world where everything and everyone is immobile, ash-grey, and crumbles at his touch. Ed is accosted by white-robed men, who talk about "de-energizing" him with a hose-like piece of equipment, but he flees outside and across the street, back to the everyday world, fearing he's had a psychotic episode.
The Clerk is brought to the top-level Administrative Chambers to explain what went wrong to someone referred to only as "the Old Man", who decides to personally deal with this unusual situation and orders Ed "brought up here". Meanwhile, Ed has found his wife Ruth and told her about the experience. With Ruth accompanying him for moral support, Ed returns to his workplace to prove he has not experienced a full psychotic breakdown or seen behind the fabric of reality, as he still fears. Things seem normal at first, and Ruth leaves, but he soon realizes people and objects have changed in their appearance, location, age, and countless other subtle differences. Panic stricken, he runs to a public phone to warn the police, only to have the phone booth ascend heavenward with Ed inside.
Meeting the Old Man, Ed first thinks he is dead, but is informed he is only visiting. The Old Man tells him that a correction was being made, it was a very serious error, he was not changed, and his revealing to others what he saw is a grave threat, explaining, "the natural process must be supplemented—adjusted here and there. Corrections must be made. We are fully licensed to make such corrections. Our adjustment teams perform vital work." In this instance, the adjustment is to bring about a chain of events that will lessen Soviet–Western Bloc war tension. Ed is allowed to return without being de-energized and adjusted, on the condition that he tell no one the truth he has learned, and convinces his wife that everything he has already told her was due to a temporary psychological fit. The Old Man threatens him that should he fail doing so, he will have a terrible fate when they meet again, and adds that every person eventually meets the Old Man.
On Ed's return, Ruth catches him lying about where he spent the afternoon and demands he tell her the truth, while he tries to stall her long enough to come up with a story she will believe. A bark is heard and a vacuum cleaner salesman rings the doorbell. While Ruth is distracted by the salesman's demonstration, Ed escapes to the bedroom, where he shakily lights a cigarette and gratefully looks up, saying, "Thanks ... I think we'll make it—after all. Thanks a lot."
After watching The Adjustment Bureau I picked the short story it was based on up from Amazon for 99 cents. I was intrigued by how a short story could be woven into such an intricate movie plot.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
Interesting premise but a short story wasn't enough to fully realize its potential.