4 ms·

I love the VALIS trilogy and like to recommend Radio Free Albemuth as an intro book to new PKD readers. It’s basically a rewrite of the trilogy in a single, sh

I love the VALIS trilogy and like to recommend Radio Free Albemuth as an intro book to new PKD readers. It’s basically a rewrite of the trilogy in a single, short novel.

skhm 4y ago
Thank you for this - I loved VALIS and read it after most of his other major novels but the fact that the third in the trilogy (transmigration?) was unfinished put me off carrying on. I'll be reading this today.
- Trasmatta 4y ago
  The Transmigration of Timothy Archer was finished. It was published after his death, but he did complete it. It's also not really related to VALIS at all. I still don't really understand why people call it "the third novel in the VALIS" trilogy. It explores some of the same philosophical and religious themes, but has no connection otherwise. The "second book", The Divine Invasion, feels closer to VALIS (and it's pretty good, I'd recommend it!), especially because of the gnostic themes. But even that is distinctly different. VALIS honestly stands entirely on its own. PKD never wrote another book quite like it -- in fact, nobody has.
  - skhm 4y ago
    Thank you for this clarification - I don't think I ever read Invasion (despite reading relative dross like Frolix) - so I might revisit.
Trasmatta 4y ago
Interestingly, it was actually his original idea for VALIS, and wasn't published until after his death. He scrapped the original idea when he decided to make VALIS much more directly about himself and his experiences. ...but in typical PKD fashion, it gets weird, because he adapted the rough plot of Radio Free Albemuth into the book VALIS as a fictional movie called VALIS.
- prepend 4y ago
  It was really fun for me as I first read RFA and then learned there were more books that fit into the plot of RFA. Not everyone is into postmodern American Gnosticism , for those that are PKD’s last works are a goldmine. And he also has lots of journals where he just goes on batshit crazy threads (some are collected as the Exegesis of Philip K Dick). I really would have loved to see his collected bulletin board posts or Usenet posts if he had just lived a few more years.

I love the VALIS trilogy and like to recommend Radio Free Albemuth as an intro book to new PKD readers. It’s basically a rewrite of the trilogy in a single, short novel.

skhm 4y ago

Thank you for this - I loved VALIS and read it after most of his other major novels but the fact that the third in the trilogy (transmigration?) was unfinished put me off carrying on. I'll be reading this today.

Trasmatta 4y ago
The Transmigration of Timothy Archer was finished. It was published after his death, but he did complete it. It's also not really related to VALIS at all. I still don't really understand why people call it "the third novel in the VALIS" trilogy. It explores some of the same philosophical and religious themes, but has no connection otherwise. The "second book", The Divine Invasion, feels closer to VALIS (and it's pretty good, I'd recommend it!), especially because of the gnostic themes. But even that is distinctly different. VALIS honestly stands entirely on its own. PKD never wrote another book quite like it -- in fact, nobody has.
- skhm 4y ago
  Thank you for this clarification - I don't think I ever read Invasion (despite reading relative dross like Frolix) - so I might revisit.

Trasmatta 4y ago

Interestingly, it was actually his original idea for VALIS, and wasn't published until after his death. He scrapped the original idea when he decided to make VALIS much more directly about himself and his experiences. ...but in typical PKD fashion, it gets weird, because he adapted the rough plot of Radio Free Albemuth into the book VALIS as a fictional movie called VALIS.

prepend 4y ago
It was really fun for me as I first read RFA and then learned there were more books that fit into the plot of RFA. Not everyone is into postmodern American Gnosticism , for those that are PKD’s last works are a goldmine. And he also has lots of journals where he just goes on batshit crazy threads (some are collected as the Exegesis of Philip K Dick). I really would have loved to see his collected bulletin board posts or Usenet posts if he had just lived a few more years.