Collected Stories of Philip K. Dick Volume Three: Upon the Dull Earth [1953-1954]

Collected Stories of Philip K. Dick Volume Three: Upon the Dull Earth [1953-1954]

Illustration By Bill Sienkiewicz

Dust jacket by Bill Sienkewicz

Philip K. Dick (1928-1982) was one of the seminal figures of 20th century science fiction. His many stories and novels, which include such classics as The Man in the High Castle and Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, reflect a deeply personal worldview, exploring the fragile, multifarious nature of reality itself and examining those elements that make us--or fail to make us--fully human. He did as much as anyone to demolish the artificial barrier between genre fiction and "literature," and the best of his work has earned a permanent place in American popular culture.

Upon the Dull Earth is the third installment of a uniform, five-volume edition of The Collected Stories of Philip K. Dick. This generous collection contains 23 stories and novellas written in 1953 and 1954, along with extensive--and valuable--story notes. Included here are a number of bona fide PKD classics, among them the title story, the brilliantly conceived account of a bizarre, ultimately catastrophic resurrection, "The Father-Thing," in which a young boy comes to realize that his once familiar father has somehow changed, and "The Golden Man" (filmed in 2007 as "Next"), which tells the tale of a golden skinned mutant who may represent the future direction of the human race. These and all the other stories in this important and necessary book offer a wide range of literary and intellectual pleasures. At the same time, they provide a fascinating glimpse into the continuing development of this iconic--and hugely influential--figure.

Limited: 250 numbered copies, bound in leather
Trade: Fully cloth bound hardcover copies

Table of Contents

  • Fair Game
  • The Hanging Stranger
  • The Eyes Have It
  • The Golden Man
  • The Turning Wheel
  • The Last of the Masters
  • The Father-Thing
  • Strange Eden
  • Tony and the Beetles
  • Null-O
  • To Serve the Master
  • Exhibit Piece
  • The Crawlers
  • Sales Pitch
  • Shell Game
  • Upon the Dull Earth
  • Foster, You're Dead
  • Pay for the Printer
  • War Veteran
  • The Chromium Fence
  • Misadjustment
  • A World of Talent
  • Psi-Man Heal my Child
  • Notes

From Publishers Weekly:
"Fueled by sharp wit and an irrepressible undertone of paranoia, the 22 stories are a testament to Dick’s genre-transcendent genius; while some stories are a bit dated, the majority are timeless gems, still entertaining and thematically profound after half a century."

From Booklist:
"...this third volume of Dick’s short fiction contains such stories as 'The Golden Man' (which was made in the movie Next); 'The Father-Thing,' in which a boy’s father is replaced by a replica; the religious-themed stories 'Upon the Dull Earth' and 'The Turning Wheel'; and the clever satire 'Foster, You’re Dead.' Although the book doesn’t contain a lot of classic Dick stories—some of these pieces are fairly obscure, having been rarely reprinted since their original publication—it does offer readers an excellent opportunity to explore Dick’s wide range of themes and literary styles."

From Library Journal:
"From the mounting terror of a resurrection gone terribly wrong (the subject of the title story) to the narrator's dawning realization that logic points inescapably to a dark fate for the human race (‘The Golden Man’), the moments embodied in the stories of Philip K. Dick remain some of the best and most significant in sf."

artists_list:
Bill Sienkiewicz
authors_list:
Philip K. Dick
book_case:
None
book_type:
Collection
country_of_manufacturer:
United States
isbn:
978-1-59606-512-3
is_subpress:
Yes
print_status:
Out of Print
year:
2012