Mark Stay, Online Key Accounts Director
Like a lot of SF fans my age (late 30s, all my own teeth) my introduction to Philip K Dick came via Blade Runner. I remember first seeing it on VHS at a friend’s birthday party (12 years old, teeth not quite fully formed).
We were expecting Indiana Jones in Space and got something else entirely. The room was split between those who hated it, and a few us who thought it was cool but honestly didn’t understand what the hell was going on.
Then came the Marvel comics adaptation. Aah, okay, things were a little clearer now, and some time later I discovered that it was based a book called Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep?. Surely that would fill all the gaps for me?
The book I read in my tender teens was one of the most mind-blowing reading experiences in my life at that point. My initial disappointment that it bore little relation to the film soon melted away and I was drawn into a world with mood organs and empathy boxes and yes, electric sheep.
This wasn’t a story just about killer androids – cool though they are – but a man’s search for meaning in his life, for empathy and identity. Themes that didn’t just obsess PKD, but must surely resonate with everyone. I’ve read it a few times since then and I still don’t completely understand the ideas bubbling underneath the text. Perhaps that’s the book’s allure? Every time you read it, it reveals something new about yourself.
Cast your vote here for your favourite Gollancz Science Fiction and Fantasy titles to celebrate our 50th anniversary.
