Blade Runner cover art

Blade Runner

Originally published as Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

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Blade Runner

Written by: Philip K. Dick
Narrated by: Scott Brick
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The classic sci-fi novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, which inspired two major motion pictures: Blade Runner and Blade Runner 2049

By 2021, the World War has killed millions, driving entire species into extinction and sending mankind off-planet. Those who remain covet any living creature, and for people who can’t afford one, companies build incredibly realistic simulacra: horses, birds, cats, sheep. They’ve even built humans. Immigrants to Mars receive androids so sophisticated they are indistinguishable from true men or women. Fearful of the havoc these artificial humans can wreak, the government bans them from Earth. Driven into hiding, unauthorized androids live among human beings, undetected. Rick Deckard, an officially sanctioned bounty hunter, is commissioned to find rogue androids and “retire” them. But when cornered, androids fight back—with lethal force.

Praise for Philip K. Dick

“[Philip K. Dick] sees all the sparkling—and terrifying—possibilities . . . that other authors shy away from.”—Rolling Stone

“A kind of pulp-fiction Kafka, a prophet.”—The New York Times©1968 Philip K. Dick; (P)2007 Random House, Inc. Random House Audio, a division of Random House, Inc. Adventure Cyberpunk Dystopian Fantasy Fiction Science Fiction Solar System Classics
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I always enjoy the dichotomy between Rick and Phil and how they view the occupation.

Classic Science fiction

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The narrator makes this the best way to enjoy this book. the characters, voices, and pacing are all superb. This production feels as much like a radio drama as a novel. I'm a massive fan of the author and of this particular story. This is my favorite version of Deckards struggles.

Better than the novel

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I knew it would be different from the film but, man, this is a weird book. I generally enjoyed the main plot about Deckard finding the androids but even that had some really odd chauvinistic attitudes toward the female characters.
The subplots involving Isidore and his religion (called “Mercerism”) were just plain strange and baffling to me.
If Philip K. Dick we’re trying to make some statement about religion, it was lost on me, like tears in rain.
Final thoughts: if you’re a diehard fan of Blade Runner (the franchise), P.K. Dick, or science fiction literature, it is a must-read, but to the casual listener, it may be a little off-putting.

Weird book, man.

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There is so much more here than they come close to in the film. I found it very engaging and thought-provoking.

The author very skillfully walks the reader up to the question of whether a completely human-like machine is a person, or not. It explores each of the various possibilities and questions with different scenarios that you come back to after reading, and think about, and each approaches the core question from a different angle.

Very thought provoking

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Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep is a classic science fiction novel by Phillip K Dick. It's unique for being one of the origins of the cyberpunk genre, due to it spawning the film Blade Runner.

What's interesting about DADoES is it's a film noire story more than it is a science fiction novel. The science fiction elements are a thematic flare that adds to its story. What I was surprised to see was it had a series of nuanced religious themes as well, similar to Dick's other novel Ubik. The story is fundamentally about how to derive meaning in a world where everything is fake and artificial. He really nails the execution of this nicely and much like Ubik it keeps you pondering its characters and world long after the story has concluded.

The performance is also really good especially how the voice over clearly distinguishes its two narrators Rick Deckard and John Isidore. It really makes the dual narration stand out really nicely. I really recommend listening to this book a lot because of it.

Overall if you liked the film, I am almost certain you'll like the book as well. It delivers a similar albeit fundamentally different story that gives you a new experience.

Mythical

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