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3.46 AVERAGE
3.46 AVERAGE
I didn't hate this book while I was reading it - it was pretty entertaining at the time and his writing style isn't difficult to get through. Upon reflection however, I really didn't like it. I get that an absurd plot like this would appeal to some people, and I definitely love absurdity myself! but trying to kill your wife is just. I just can't see the appeal in that. The conflict between Chuck's two jobs was also confusing as hell and way too much time was spent on it. Also Philip K. Dick is a prime example of why men should never write about women - his misogyny was, I suspect, meant to be tongue-in-cheek at times, with the focus on nipple dilation surgery and the various breast augmentations and breast-exposed fashions that he oh-so-ingeniously thought up. So I already found it distasteful and gross, but the big reveal that Mary's desire for Chuck to get another job was actually due to her depression? Revolting. Her becoming an apologetic, whimpering mess at the end was really the final straw for me. And, of course, Chuck is revealed to be the rational, non-mentally ill one - his paranoia and suicidal urges and homicidal thoughts are all part of being a Normal Rational Man! Whereas his wife's simple desire for him to work at a better job is the result of neuroses. Please. All of the female characters were horrendous tropes and defined almost entirely by their breasts and unexplainable attraction to Chuck. Like if you're gonna be misogynistic, at least do it in an interesting, unique way. This was just overdone and bad.
The aspect of the mentally ill clans was without a doubt the most interesting part of this book, but even that wasn't handled well. I still can't decide if his gross misunderstanding and exaggeration of the various disorders was because of 1) his own failings to understand mentally ill people; 2) the conceptions of these disorders at the time it was written (ie. understanding mania to be un-empathetic when it's more commonly understood today as primarily hyperactivity); or 3) commentary on how defining your entire selfhood by your diagnosis can lead to becoming more disordered/how accepting mental illness as acceptable and natural might lead to a complete abandonment of the pretense of being neurotypical and embracing your disordered ways. Somehow I suspect it's more a combination of the first 2, as there wasn't really enough to prove that he was engaging meaningfully with the latter - and, clearly, I'm a bit prejudiced against Dick at this point so I don't have much faith in him.
The aspect of the mentally ill clans was without a doubt the most interesting part of this book, but even that wasn't handled well. I still can't decide if his gross misunderstanding and exaggeration of the various disorders was because of 1) his own failings to understand mentally ill people; 2) the conceptions of these disorders at the time it was written (ie. understanding mania to be un-empathetic when it's more commonly understood today as primarily hyperactivity); or 3) commentary on how defining your entire selfhood by your diagnosis can lead to becoming more disordered/how accepting mental illness as acceptable and natural might lead to a complete abandonment of the pretense of being neurotypical and embracing your disordered ways. Somehow I suspect it's more a combination of the first 2, as there wasn't really enough to prove that he was engaging meaningfully with the latter - and, clearly, I'm a bit prejudiced against Dick at this point so I don't have much faith in him.
Another book I thought I'd read.
This isn't one of Dick's better efforts - it's a glorious mess, with a busy, muddled narrative although it possesses the usual Dick ingredients of mental illness, marriage infidelity and underachievement. It was fun to read, but it's not on the same page as his better works. It simply doesn't have the single-minded focus he's capable of.
This isn't one of Dick's better efforts - it's a glorious mess, with a busy, muddled narrative although it possesses the usual Dick ingredients of mental illness, marriage infidelity and underachievement. It was fun to read, but it's not on the same page as his better works. It simply doesn't have the single-minded focus he's capable of.
We listened to the audiobook on the way home from Mammoth Lakes. The narrator performed well.
PKD showed his humorous side here more than other novels of his I’ve read. His main point was that everyone is mentally ill and that it can be measured by minuscule degrees. The protagonist’s rocky marriage and looming divorce mirror that of his real life. The mental illness theme of the book also mirrored that of his real life when he spent time in a hospital for schizophrenia.
My favorite character by far was the slime mold ;)
PKD showed his humorous side here more than other novels of his I’ve read. His main point was that everyone is mentally ill and that it can be measured by minuscule degrees. The protagonist’s rocky marriage and looming divorce mirror that of his real life. The mental illness theme of the book also mirrored that of his real life when he spent time in a hospital for schizophrenia.
My favorite character by far was the slime mold ;)
This was my third attempt at reading PKD, and I will probably dabble a little more, searching for another gem like Ubik to keep me exploring this crazy world PKD has created.
The idea of a society built by patients of an abandoned mental hospital had a lot of potential, unfortunately I found that so many elements were added to the storyline that it took away from that. CIA spies, human-like androids, inter-solar system wars, a nasty divorce, a famous comedian, psychic abilities, and telepathic slime molds. Many of these things distracted form the main plot line, which in all honestly was not very believable even for sci-fi. I couldn't understand why Terra and Alpha were even fighting over a moon full of mentally ill people, there didn't seem to be anything worth fighting for. The psi, Joan Tireste, has a very cool ability that does nothing to drive the plot. It was seemingly introduced for no particular reason, unlike when a similar ability is used later in Ubik. The telepathic slime mold on the other hand was a really interesting character who actually does drive the plot line- he is a keeper. The androids seemed to open up more plot holes- if the moon was unsafe for Terrans to land on, why not send a whole party of simulacra- why just send one?
In a more thematic view Alpha III M2 can be seen as a more open and honest version of our own society, with no denials of the existence of mental illness (in varying degrees) in most of the population or of the division of labor that occurs.
The idea of a society built by patients of an abandoned mental hospital had a lot of potential, unfortunately I found that so many elements were added to the storyline that it took away from that. CIA spies, human-like androids, inter-solar system wars, a nasty divorce, a famous comedian, psychic abilities, and telepathic slime molds. Many of these things distracted form the main plot line, which in all honestly was not very believable even for sci-fi. I couldn't understand why Terra and Alpha were even fighting over a moon full of mentally ill people, there didn't seem to be anything worth fighting for. The psi, Joan Tireste, has a very cool ability that does nothing to drive the plot. It was seemingly introduced for no particular reason, unlike when a similar ability is used later in Ubik. The telepathic slime mold on the other hand was a really interesting character who actually does drive the plot line- he is a keeper. The androids seemed to open up more plot holes- if the moon was unsafe for Terrans to land on, why not send a whole party of simulacra- why just send one?
In a more thematic view Alpha III M2 can be seen as a more open and honest version of our own society, with no denials of the existence of mental illness (in varying degrees) in most of the population or of the division of labor that occurs.
adventurous
dark
funny
fast-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
As much as I love PKD's writing, I suffered through this one. It has all the deficits I've come to expect:
•Misogyny
•Antiquated psychiatry
•Poorly realized protagonists
•1-dimensional supporting characters
•Stiff, pulpy dialogue
•Poorly paced conclusion
•Loose ends tied up hastily at best
But this one didn't redeem itself with any of the solipsistic puzzles or mind-twisting plot tinkering that makes it all well worth enduring. The plot skeleton held promise, but I couldn't sustain my optimism past halfway through, where many of the best parts were ditched in favor of trivial conventions.
Oh, well. I'll still keep reading his stuff. And at worst, I can always come back to stories like The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch, or Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, or Martian Time Slip, or Now Wait for Last Year, or Ubik, or...
•Misogyny
•Antiquated psychiatry
•Poorly realized protagonists
•1-dimensional supporting characters
•Stiff, pulpy dialogue
•Poorly paced conclusion
•Loose ends tied up hastily at best
But this one didn't redeem itself with any of the solipsistic puzzles or mind-twisting plot tinkering that makes it all well worth enduring. The plot skeleton held promise, but I couldn't sustain my optimism past halfway through, where many of the best parts were ditched in favor of trivial conventions.
Oh, well. I'll still keep reading his stuff. And at worst, I can always come back to stories like The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch, or Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, or Martian Time Slip, or Now Wait for Last Year, or Ubik, or...
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I think this one was supposed to be funny, but it very thoroughly missed the mark for me. I've only read this and one other short story by Philip K Dick, and I am not a fan. The guy has major issues with writing female characters, and the plot in this book was not enough to make up for the fact that even his male characters are pretty generic. Coming from a modern perspective, I also absolutely do not vibe with how this book portrays or talks about mentally ill people. The 1.5 stars I do give this book are solely for Lord Running Clam, the absolutely iconic Ganymedean slime mold and the fact that I got to research the differences between 2010's and 1960's understandings of various mental illnesses since I read this for class. That was actually sort of interesting and thought provoking which is more than I can say for the book itself. Anyway, if you want to read some nice alien sci-fi, choose something else. Unless you're unhealthily interested in hearing about the nipples of every female character you meet in a book in which case, this is the one for you.
I feel like I shouldn't be giving this such a good rating when it was by no means even close to his "best" work, but I had SO MUCH FUN reading this
Dick is unique in the field of SF as far as I can tell. Nobody else I've read or even heard of would have thought up the premise for this book, which I'm not going to give away. Yes, it's about a CIA propagandist caught up in an interstellar web of conspiracy, largely through his own foolishness, but no, it's not really about that, at all. It's difficult to talk about the true theme without spoiling the effect, so I will save that for the bit hidden behind spoiler tags.
THIS REVIEW HAS BEEN CURTAILED IN PROTEST AT GOODREADS' CENSORSHIP POLICY
See the complete review here:
http://arbieroo.booklikes.com/post/587689/clans-of-the-alphane-moon-philip-k-dick
THIS REVIEW HAS BEEN CURTAILED IN PROTEST AT GOODREADS' CENSORSHIP POLICY
See the complete review here:
http://arbieroo.booklikes.com/post/587689/clans-of-the-alphane-moon-philip-k-dick