Philip K. Dick (PKD), the cult author of sci-fi literature, began his career in the early 1950s by writing stories for magazines. Roog, which he wrote when he was 22, was the first story which he made money by selling. The story was about a dog who imagined scavengers who came to their neighborhood as aliens who stole the neighborhood's valuable food items.
The vast majority of the 121 stories PKD wrote during his career were penned in the 50s. He wrote his stories for publication in cheap magazines of the period, called 'pulp magazine.' In the biography named The Search For Philip K. Dick, Anne R. Rubinstein mentions rejection letters that pile up like a mountain in the mailbox during this period. In addition to being rejected, he has also published numerous stories in magazines such as Fantasy Fiction, Galaxy Science Fiction, Science Fiction Quarterly, Astounding SF. The years 1953 and 1954 have a special place in PKD's storytelling, as he wrote about half of all his stories in these two years. Although there was no significant decline in PKD's productivity in the following years, he directed his creative energy to write novels. Again, from the biography named The Search For Philip K. Dick, we also understand that this is more about the problem of livelihood than an artistic choice.
Many books have been published worldwide, consisting of PKD stories in the 50s, 60s, and 70s. PKD's short stories were published as a five-volume collection of 'collective stories" created after the author's death.
The Collected Stories of Philip K. Dick
1 - The Short Happy Life of the Brown Oxford
2 - We Can Remember it for You Wholesale
3 - Second Variety
4 - The Minority Report
5 - The Eye of The Sibyl
In PKD stories, we find a realistic portrait of American daily life in the 1950s and 1960s, in a form not often found in science fiction literature. This realism about middle-class Americans is more pronounced, especially in the first parts of the stories. In stories, the mediocrity of everyday life is disrupted by the outbreak of an event that is hard to believe. The incredible variety of themes in the stories surprises those who first met PKD's stories. A colorful world filled with oracles, telepaths, half-life humans, mutants, androids, time travelers, and more.
Although they address difficult-to-believe, absurd, almost unreal situations, the stories of the PKD give us a strong impression of authenticity. This impression, derived from the details of daily life and characters modeled after real people, allows PKD stories to 'work' better for readers. Although he wrote most of them early in his career, it is understood that PKD was fond of the stories. It is possible to find masterwork depictions in his stories that we don't encounter in his novels. Instead of flashbacks or summary narratives, dialogues occupy an essential place in PKD stories, where events are always transmitted at that moment and help bring the people in the story to life in the reader's mind.
Collected stories volume 4, The Minority Report, covers 18 science fiction stories written between 1955 and 1964. The Minority Report story that gave the book its name was also adapted for film by Steven Spielberg in 2002. It is possible to say that the film, starring Tom Cruise, is enriched by additional elements by Spielberg while remaining true to the spirit of the story. Speaking of films adapted from PKD stories, it will be appropriate to commemorate the films Total Recall, Impostor, Next (The Golden Man adaptation), Screamers, Paycheck, Adjustment Bureau, and Electric Dreams.
Choosing one or the other of PKD's works and suggest to potential readers is quite difficult. Because in every book you can come across interesting, surprising details, fascinating sci-fi inventions. Although artistic tastes vary by person, the likes scores on the Goodreads platform show readers like PKD's storybooks. In this context, it may be a good idea to read PKD storybooks like his novels that attract more attention.
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