King of the Castle (The Man in the High Castle - Philip K. Dick)

Name: nlingwood

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Product:	The Man in the High Castle - Philip K. Dick
Date:	14/08/00 (24 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Strong idea, well developed

Disadvantages: You start to wonder...

Philip K Dick’s science fiction classic is set in an alternative world. Here, the Axis powers won the Second World War, and for a generation have divided the USA between them. Japan controls the West, based in Dick’s home California, and is relatively benign. The Nazis control the Eastern US, Europe, and have plans to turn on their former allies.

In this disturbing world, Dick uses his usual device of showing normal people, trying to live normal lives. He combines the extremes of enemy invasion and global power-struggles with relationships and earning a living. At one point, the Japanese consul sees our version of the American city, and is shocked by the noise and pollution. The uncertainty over what is real is shown by the ‘Man in the High Castle’ himself, a writer describing a world in which the Allies did win the war. This subversive figure, living in the neutral zone, becomes the target for the characters’ hopes.

Strong on ideas, this is classic PK Dick at his best.

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