The Man in the High Castle

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Summary: The Master of the Mind-Altering
Review: I dare you to read Philip Dick and not have some portion of your thought changed. From the paranoid to the visionary and the beautiful, all of the elements of Philip Dick's greatness shine through in The Man in the High Castle. This is a bit of a historical "what if?" It is also a condemnation of true history. This book speaks to the rampant cultural imperialism of the Twentieth century. What a wake up call it is! I urge you to read it.

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Summary: The Ultimate Deconstructionist Novel...
Review: THE GRASSHOPPER does LIE HEAVY in Philip K.Dick's radically philosophical, award winning novel.The Bible employs "grasshopper"in nine ways; all are synonymous with the LOCUST.The latter was God's agency for the devastating EIGHTH PLAGUE "very grievous were they; before them there were no such locusts as they; neither after them shall be such (Exodus 10:14)." In PKD's novel of a historically deconstructed TIME-SPACE contiuum, The Nazi Plague (Hitler's legions were victorius)has swept across the world. Africa has been "cleansed" by nuclear holocaust; the Jews are relentlessly pursued as last remnant of the Judaeo-Christian tradition is exterminated. Japanese Co-Victors of WWII flay themselves in an epicene culture of neither science nor philosophy with recourse to the Chinese Book of Wisdom, I Ching ...consulted like a Ouija Board...as Societal Principal of Intelligibility and Order.The effects are disastrous.The NAZIs plan one final nuclear assault...the Final Solution against all Mankind and History.

THE MAN in the HIGH CASTLE is about what happens when LOGOS is destroyed. That is,when what anchors infinite reality in a FINITE CONSTRUCT is ruptured (pp.34-36)by ...sexual perversity; pseudo-scientific fantasy; or profane anti-Logos constructs of power-driven madmen(Hitler; Heidegger). Philip K.Dick's book is NOT easy,nor often "friendly" reading. Nor is it optimistic. Yet careful study permits hope if one allows WISDOM to be gleaned from REALITY(when in Rome or on Mars,let PC police stay home) where it's revealed--the true meaning of APOCALYPSE--in this visit to THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE...

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Summary: A waking dream
Review: The biggest compliment I can pay this book is to say that the entire thing is infused with a surreal, almost dreamlike quality. Dick keeps us guessing right up until the end, and even then leaves us to largely draw our own conclusions. The book deals in alternate realities (a recurring theme in Dick's books) and asks us to question if what we are apparently seeing is actually true.

The premise here is that it was the axis powers (Japan, Germany and Italy) and not the allies who triumphed in WWII. The world continues on however, divided up between the twin empires of Germany and Japan. America itself is divided up into 3 zones. The west is ruled by Japan, the east by Germany with the centre zone acting as a buffer between these two superpowers. Within this buffer zone a writer has produced a book called 'the grasshopper lies heavy' an alternate history detailing what it would be like if the allies and not the axis had triumphed.

A big contrast drawn in the book deals with the way the Germans and Japanese rule over their prospective conquered territories. Germany a cold, efficient, genocidal, almost machine-like state, the Japanese more spiritual, serine and interested in absorbing as much of the dying American culture as possible. The massive counterfeit trade in items of "americana" to the ruling Japanese being a stunning metaphor for the whole books sense of distorted reality.

Reading the book we begin to question what is real and what is not. This is one of Dick's most complex, yet finest books. Dealing with subjects like Taoism, The I Ching, spirituality and philosophy it at times asks more questions than it answers.
One common criticism of the book is its ambiguous ending. The idea that all the loose ends are left "untied" in some way. I however prefer to think of it as an open invitation for the reader to think for themselves about what may be going on.

All in all an excellent book, although I would urge first time readers of PKD to try other books of his before reading this one.

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Summary: What if Hitler won and what is reality?
Review: Philip K. Dick writes a sort of strange science fiction that is speculative, philosophical and very interesting. His musings on the nature of reality are bizarre but that is his trade mark. I have previously read "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" and "The Divine Invasion" (both of which I have reviewed), but this is very different compared to them. There are certain elements in common; the focus is on ideas rather than characters, the ending seems to follow Samuel Delaney's recommendation, "Endings, to be useful, must be ambiguous," but some parts of the plot seem weakly held together and the synopsis frequently given for it is misleading. Dick himself once said that he wrote in the science fiction genre because, "there is more latitude in science fiction for the expression of pure ideas than other genres." Dick's exploration of ideas on the fringes of philosophy and religion are mind-bending however this novel looks at how history could be different.

The setting of the novel is that Germany and Japan won World War 2 and that the United States is split between the two conquerors. While the basic "Germany wins..." is a major, if not dominant theme in the alternative history sub-genre, Dick's novel is probably the best. He sketches several different characters; a man who sells antique Americana to interested Japanese collectors, a science fiction writer, a Japanese diplomat and so on.

Dick's speculation on what Germany might have done after World War 2 is intriguing. Set in 1962, the Third Reich "purifies" Africa, begins space exploration and Hitler is closeted away somewhere in a sanitarium. Through the course of the novel, there is a power struggle for the leadership of the Reich, which is convincingly based on the way Nazi Germany conducted its internal politics. During the struggle, there is a meeting of Japanese government officials who go through the psychological profiles of each of the main contenders (the description of Göring was the most memorable); by having the Japanese discuss it instead of just listing the details in straight narration or some other way, the reader is drawn into a convincing political situation.

The science fiction writer mentioned above plays a small role in the novel and parallels Dick himself in some respects. I hesitate to reveal anymore for fear of ruining the novel. As several other insightful reviewers have pointed out, the alternative history setting is not really the main focus of the novel. Dick uses the setting, Taoism (specifically the concept of balance), and the I Ching to examine his favorite metaphysical question, "What is reality?"

One of the strangest things about the novel is the fact that Dick used the I Ching (Book of Changes) to help him write it. In addition to this background role, the I Ching itself is frequently consulted by almost all of the characters of the novel at some point or another. For readers who do not know what it is, the I Ching is a major book in ancient Chinese religion. To employ it, the user must have a clear question in his mind and then flip a series of coins or stalks to produce a pattern. The user than takes this pattern and looks it up in the I Ching; it offers 4-5 lines of vague advice.

One last comment: The ending makes you think. Definitely give it a few reads to understand.

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Summary: A very complex book that is not what it seems
Review: Upon first glance, this seems to be a different type of book for Philip K. Dick to write. It's more linear, and has far less screwy elements, than the majority of his work. It was one of the first major alternate history novels, and has been quite influential in that manner, and it also, as the back of the book claims, broke down the barriers between "science fiction and the serious novel of ideas." The book seems kind of haphazard after the first reading, and can actually be a disappointment. Being one of Dick's most famous books, and winner of the Hugo award, one might expect more than the seemingly arbitrary plot elements and non-action of the book - not to mention the apparently shabby ending. The book offers no obvious revelations, nor does it give any easy answers. The book, which seems to end almost at random, will, in all likelihood, leave you railing something along the lines of, "What?! That's IT?! How can it be done?! What was the POINT?!"

However, once examined, you realize something: this book isn't really about what you thought it was. I think that the sypnosis of this book that is generally given (the one on the back cover) is rather misleading, as is the one for Dick's novel, A Scanner Darkly. For, the sypnosis that is given has absolutely nothing to do with what the book is really about - much less what it means (also like the aforementioned novel.) Sure, this is an alternate history novel. Sure, in it, the Allies lost the war, and the United States is now occupied jointly by Germany and Japan - sure, sure, sure. That has nothing to do with the book, however.

Allow me to explain. Despite what may gleam from the surface of this book, what Dick has actually done here is write another book that asks - in a fashion much more slip-shod and roundabout than usual - the question, "What is reality?" The book has nothing to do with war, alternate history, or anything else that you may imagine it has to do with. What the book actually does is examine the very fabric of reality itself. It's almost a cosmic joke - on a grand, realistic level.

Look at it. Dick wrote this book, in which resides an alternate history in which Germany and Japan won the war. In it, a man writes an alternate history book in which Germany and Japan lost the war. (Interstingly enough, let me point out something else, too: THIS BOOK HAS ABSOLUTELY NO SCIENCE FICTION ELEMENTS. This fact is appreciated by Dick, who, in describing the novel within the novel, has a character say that it resides in the real of "fiction, possibly science fiction." Another character rebukes, saying that it isn't set in the future, and contains no science - elements both necessary for a novel to be considered science fiction. The arbiter refutes this notion, saying that it, like much science fiction, deals instead with the alternate present. This book just gets pigeon-holed as SF because it was written by Dick. Almost certainly, if it had been written by an author who wasn't generally considered and SF author, it would've never been called SF.) However, we find out, in the end, that Germany and Japan actually lost the war in the book, as well.

Or did they?

Like in many of Dick's other great novels - Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, A Scanner Darkly, VALIS - the story starts out strange, and only gets stranger. And, just when you think you've got it pinned down, there is a major twist in the novel that will leave you scratching your head. Dick, at his best, pulls the thinner-than-you-think mat of reality out from underneath your feet at the moment you least expect it, leaving you reeling and questioning the very nature of your existence.

Perhaps existence is more arbitrary than we imagine - after all, what IS reality?

I think Dick himself said it best when he said, "Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away."

...and that's what this book is all about. Not war, not alternate history - but reality itself. Incidentally, I think the whole heavy emphasis on the alternate WWII element may have ruined the book for many people. They went into it expecting something other than what they got, and left it feeling empty, and perhaps cheated. Here's a tip: ignore the back of the book. On any Philip K. Dick novel. It will only lead you down the wrong path. I don't think Dick intended the reader to know that this book was set in that alternate universe going in. It kind of spoils the story; one would be better off - and certainly more surprised - if they went into the book thinking that it was set in our time, and slowly realized the differences - and then back again... thinking, Maybe it's not SO different, after all...

Ultimately, this book does have a few problems. It's not perfect, and it's not Dick's best. However, it is a very interesting read - much more than it seems on the surface - and one that anyone should read. If you are a first-time Phil Dick reader, I advise you to start elsewhere - Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? or VALIS, for instance - but you will want to read this one, eventually: it's an essential book for any Philip K. Dick fan.

Rating:
Summary: A True Classic
Review: Who would have thought to write a book where the Axis won the war? Ok everyone, but who would have thought to write the same book where the people in the "Real World" are reading about a future where the allies won the war?

Overall-A very engaging read, but a weak ending too happy

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Summary: Great premise. Intricate structure
Review: Germany and Japan have won the war. Great premise. The alternate world is revealed through bits and pieces, incidental, for us to assemble.

The story has intricate, delicate structure which fascinates. Conflict between destiny and predetermination on one hand, free will and accident on the other. What appears as chance to some characters may be the plot of another character.

But this good book is not a great book. A good sci-fi book, it is very interesting. Not a great book, it does not move. One does not care about the characters, one is more curious about the details of the alternate world.

Luftwaffe has destroyed the RAF early in the war. The RAF has launched desperate criminal terror-bombings of German cities in the dying stages of the war. Logical inconsistency.

But the ending is the weakest point. Vague and incongruous. The 'Grasshopper' tells us that Germany and Japan have lost the war. "Inner Truth" is moral redemption. But according to who? According to the "I Ching", the very symbol of Oriental superstition defeating American rationalism. Logical incosistency.

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Summary: A dissatisfying conclusion
Review: This was the 1st PKD novel I read, although I had read and enjoyed many of his short stories previously. I picked it up with a great anticipation, knowing that it was a Hugo winner and after reading many reviews on it. Although I found it well-written, thought-provoking and intriguing, I was completely put off by the ending, and I am glad to see after reading the reviews here that I am not alone. I realize that the author may have been leaving it open for the reader to continue the philiosophical discussion on his/her own, or that he may have been guided by the I Ching to end it thus, but to me the ending was a cop-out. No, I don't need an author to tell me what to think or what conclusions to draw, but this ending says "Hmm, I don't know where I'm going with this and I'm getting tired of writing, so let's just end it here with a surprise to keep people guessing." Maybe 40 years ago it was sufficient simply to pose the question "What is reality?", but at this stage in my life I have heard the question asked so many times and in so many ways that the question in and of itself has lost its value. It would be more meaningful if the question was accompanied by some ideas on how to find some answers (and don't tell me the I Ching is the answer), or at least on different ways of looking at it. A dissatisfying conclusion to an otherwise good book.

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Summary: dated ethnic stereotyping
Review: Loved the book, open ending and all -- though I believe the open ending is less open than generally thought. My major issue with it was the stereotyping required by it's ethnocentric theme. Americans really won the war they lost, the novel argues, because Americans are capable of creation, innovation, and change, while the Japanese and Germans are bound by lack of creativity and hate, respectively. Seems to me that this view was no major crime at the time the book was written, but, unlike most PKD, it is therefore a little dated.

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Summary: interesting, but flawed..
Review: Highly acclaimed novel by troubled author Dick which loses its interesting premise somewhere amidst the numerous alternate realities. Recommended for history/poly. sci. buffs but it's definitely not a typical science fiction thriller by any means. Stereotyped (arguably intentionally so) characters flood this novel and calling it open ended is a definite understatement.