Reviews

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick

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deathbyspreadsheet's review

3.0

I give Philip Dick major kudos for writing a book so ahead of its time, but ultimately it still falls very, very short. Having read and agreed with many of the other critical reviews that have already been written, I don't see the need to rehash them here. Suffice to say that had the plot and premise of this novel been in the hands of a more talented author capable of nuanced and complexly developed writing, it would have been phenomenal. As is, it had difficulty breaking out is the pulp fiction noir detective style of poorly written and poorly developed literature. I wanted to like this novel SO MUCH; it had such potential.

lonodopo's review against another edition

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adventurous reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

carmine_b's review against another edition

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reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character

4.0

yourpal's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

alju2404's review against another edition

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4.0

3.5

mathman329's review

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3.0

When I first picked up this book, I wasn't really sure what to expect. Knowing that it loosely served as the inspiration for Blade Runner, all I really pictured was Harrison Ford throughout the novel.

What really stuck me was how advanced many of the ideas put forth by Dick still seem to be, even now nearly 50 years after its publication, while we are on the precipice of inventing some of the other ideas he puts forth. Whereas we're not really looking at the advent of mood organs or hover cars any time soon and our weaponry still relies on traditional ammunition instead of lasers, our quest for artificial intelligence and the kinds of robotics found in this novel is much closer than we might think. Even the premise of animatronic animals and pets is not farfetched (and this is speaking for a society where real animals are still found in abundance!).

The human nature and empathic abilities distinguishing us from androids seemed natural, and the fear of androids somehow becoming able to feel (or at least reasonably fake it) certainly should give pause when considering what would it truly be like to live with artificial intelligence meant to replicate and resemble us.

Overall, I enjoyed the story, though maybe not as much as I imagined I would. Some things still managed to surprise me, and I felt satisfied at the end. A solid 3/5 stars here.