A review by burritapal_1
Philip K. Dick's Electric Dreams by Philip K. Dick

adventurous dark emotional funny informative lighthearted reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? N/A
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? N/A
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.5


Exhibit Piece, 3 stars
A 20th century expert at the History Museum has an exhibit that displays a typical 20th Century House. He hears a noise inside and goes to investigate, and finds he has crossed a Time Bridge. He decides to stay, thinking it's better than the 22nd century he came from. Until the ending.

"Miller straightened his collar and bright hand-painted necktie. He smoothed down his blue pinstripes coat, expertly lit a pipe full of two-Century-old tobacco, and returned to his spools."
No way.

Commuter, 4 stars
"across the aisle a tall man in a light coat got to his feet, put his hat on, and moved rapidly toward the door. He leaped down from the train, onto the ground. Paine watched him, fascinated. The man walked rapidly away from the train across the dark fields. He moved with purpose, heading toward the bank of gray haze. 
The man rose. He was walking a foot off the ground. He turned to the right. He rose again, now just three feet off the ground. For a moment he walked parallel to the ground, still heading away from the train. Then he vanished into the bank of haze. He was gone."

By going into the past, finding a town on the railroad line that previously didn't exist, Macon Heights, a railroad employee changes his present. When he tries to go back, everything is changed. But he can't remember...

The Impossible Planet, 4 stars
The ending is a bit like Planet of the Apes ending, where the human sees the Statue of Liberty buried in the sand at the seashore. But instead of the Statue of liberty, the captain of the spaceship finds a coin with the legend on it e pluribus unum.

The Hanging Stranger, 4 stars
This story makes me think about the way the planet is being destroyed, the way we're falling into Fascism and the end of humanity, and people are going around as if nothing is happening, they're making new humans as if there's any tomorrow left for those new humans.

Sales Pitch, 2 stars
Morris has to commute from Ganymede back to earth, from his job. When the story opens, he finally reaches home and when his wife greets him he asks 
"... 'what's for dinner?'
Sally gave his hat and coat to the closet.'We're having Uranium wild pheasant; your favorite dish.'
Morris' mouth watered, and a tiny surge of energy crawled back into his exhausted body. 'no kidding? What the hell is the occasion?' "
Seriously, Uranium wild pheasant?
And....
" Sally swept breathlessly into the living room, her breasts quivering with excitement. 'what is it? Oh!' She saw The robot and halted uncertainly. 'ed, did you order something? Are we buying something?' "
A worker is so dogged by a robot that self-advertises, and won't leave until Ed and Sally Buy it, that he commits suicide, taking the robot with him.

The Father-Thing, 4 stars
This reminds me of that 1050s movie, Invasion of the Body Snatchers.
" he got the rake and pushed it down to stir the remains. They were dry. They cracked and broke at the touch of the rake. They were like a discarded snake skin, flaky and crumbling, rustling at the touch. An empty skin. The insides were gone. The important part. This was all that remained, just the brittle, cracking skin, wadded down at the bottom of the trash barrel in a little heap. This was all the father-thing had left; it had eaten the rest. Taken the insides - and his father's place."
" the negro boy had raised a concrete stone. In the moist, rotting soil the light gleamed on a metallic body. A thin, jointed thing with endless crooked legs was digging frantically. Plated, like an ant; a red-brown bug that rapidly disappeared before their eyes. Its Rows of legs scabbed and clutched. The ground gave rapidly under it. Its wicked-looking tail Twisted furiously as it struggled down the tunnel it had made." (It controls the father-thing. )
" a shape, a silent, unmoving shape that grew up from the mound of Filth like some nocturnal mushroom. A white column, a pulpy mass that glistened moistly in the moonlight. Webs covered it, a moldy cocoon. It had vague arms and legs. An indistinct half-Shaped head. As yet, the features hadn't formed. But he could tell what it was. 
A mother-thing. Growing here in the filth and dampness, between the garage and the house. Behind the Towering bamboo. 
It was almost ready. Another few days and it would reach maturity. It was still a larva, white and soft and pulpy. But the sun would dry and Warm it. Harden its shell. Turn it dark and strong. It would emerge from its cocoon, and one day when his mother came by the garage... behind the mother-thing were other pulpy white larva, recently laid by the bug. Small. Just coming into existence. He could see where the father-thing had broken off; the place where it had grown. It had matured here. And in the garage, his father had met it."

The Hood Maker, 4 stars
From the intro, by Matthew Graham
"... it spoke to the theme of the story -- What secrets do we have the right to keep? Should all our thoughts be sacred even if they are dark or dangerous ones? Do I have the right to read your mind if I believe it's in the National interest? Can I hide? Is that wrong?"

Something similar is coming our way soon (having our minds read). But at least in this story, the mind readers are "vanquished. "

Foster, You're Dead, 3 stars
342 million population in U.S. 2024
170 million population in U.S. 1971
" '... they always said the way to sell something was create anxiety in people. Create a sense of insecurity -- tell them they smell bad or look funny. But this makes a joke out of deodorant and hair oil. You can't escape this. If you don't buy, they'll kill you. The perfect sales pitch. Bye or die - new slogan. Have a shiny new General Electric H-bomb shelter in your backyard or be slaughtered.' "

Human Is, 3 stars
How's this?
" 'you have to make allowances,' Frank said. 'after all, he's a scientist.'
'I don't care,' Jill said. 'I'm leaving him. As soon as he gets back from Rexor IV. I've made up my mind.'
Her brother was silent, deep in thought. He stretched his feet out, onto the lawn of the little garden. 'well, if you leave him you'll be free to marry again. You're still classed as sexually adequate, aren't you?' "
If my abusive husband was taken over by a nice alien, I'd keep the alien, too. You go Jill.

Autofac, 2 stars
" 'The Institute of Applied Cybernetics,' O'Neill explained, 'had complete control over the network. Blame the war. Blame the big noise along the lines of communication that wiped out the knowledge we need. In any case, The Institute failed to transmit its information to us, so we can't transmit our information to the factories -- the news that the war is over and we're ready to resume control of industrial operations.'
'and meanwhile,' Morrison added sourly, 'the damn Network expands and consumes more of our natural resources all the time.' "

Anthropomorphizing buildings and a scavenger ore cart: 
"The ore cart reached the edge of the ruined plain and halted briefly. Above it, the dot of black Still Circled the sky. For a time, the cart remained frozen.
'The Factory's trying to decide,' perine said.  'it needs the material, but it's afraid of that Hawk up there.' 
The factory debated and nothing stirred. Then the ore cart again resumed its unsteady crawl. It left the tangle of vines and started out across the blasted open plain. Painfully, with infinite caution, it headed toward the slab of dark concrete and metal at the base of the mountains."