We Can Remember It for You Wholesale (The Collected Stories of Philip K. Dick, Vol. 2) [Paperback]

Philip K. Dick (Author)

Book Description

Release date: April 1, 2002

Many thousands of readers consider Philip K. Dick the greatest science fiction mind on any planet. Since his untimely death in 1982, interest in Dick's works has continued to mount and his reputation has been further enhanced by a growing body of critical attention. The Philip K. Dick Award is now given annually to a distinguished work of science fiction, and the Philip K. Dick Society is devoted to the study and promulgation of his works.

This collection includes all of the writer's earliest short and medium-length fiction (including some previously unpublished stories) covering the years 1952-1955. These fascinating stories include We Can Remember It for You Wholesale, The Cookie Lady, The World She Wanted, and many others.

"A useful acquisition for any serious SF library or collection". -- Kirkus Reviews

"The collected stories of Philip K. Dick is awe inspiring". -- The Washington Post

"More than anyone else in the field, Mr. Dick really puts you inside people's minds". -- Wall Street Journal

Product Details

• Paperback: 381 pages
• Publisher: Citadel; Reprint edition (April 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0806512091
• ISBN-13: 978-0806512099
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 1.1 x 9.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #375,222 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 27 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars More early works from one of the masters February 21, 2003

By mrliteral TOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

It is a credit to Philip K. Dick's talent that even in his early days - at a time when he was cranking out stories just to keep food on the table - that he was able to write so much fiction that is not only good, but great.

In this second volume of a five book set that includes essentially all his short works, we get to read more of his earliest tales and find there is little to disappoint here. The title piece is the short story which was adapted into the movie Total Recall. I like the movie well enough, but outside the premise, there is little that is really similar to the original story, which has much more of an emphasis on the comic than on action.

In fact, the majority of these stories have a comic touch. Since these are tales of dark futures - most involve Earth's that are either environmentally wrecked or repressive dictatorships - the humor prevents things from getting too depressing.

You don't have to be a Dick fan to enjoy these stories, nor even much of a science fiction fan (though it helps); this is just a fantastic collection of short stories that are both fun and thought-provoking. What more could you want?

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful Read; Bad Edition February 27, 2001

By Exodus

Format:Paperback

While Philip K. Dick never fails to impress me with his brilliance, the publisher succeed in writing a sketchy edition of these short stories. Every story has its own thought behind it - a deeper meaning. My favorite stories were "Some Kinds of Life", "We Can Remember It For You Wholesale", and "Adjustment Team" which each story brings a whole new concept that has been exploited in recent media. However, while entranced in these short bursts of envigorating stories, one can become distracted with the large amount of typos in this edition. The abscence of characters and grammatical errors often caused me to stop reading smoothly and re-read the sentence. Ultimately, I was disgusted by this bad representation of such a masterpiece.

I would recommend people to buy this book who are interested in Dick's works, but do not have the time to immerse themselves in a full-fledged novel. These stories take approximately twenty minutes each and are all amusing. A wonderful read, but the publisher might want to proofread the writing.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars The Evolution Of Dick's Short Stories April 2, 2007

By Dave_42

Format:Paperback

In May of 1987 Underwood-Miller published a five volume set titled "The Collected Stories of Philip K. Dick", with the second volume being subtitled "Second Variety". In September of 1990 the Carroll Group republished the second volume with a few of changes including changing the subtitle to "We Can Remember It for You Wholesale". In addition to the change of title, they removed the title story from the original volume and replaced it with the new title story. This was probably done to take advantage of the release of the movie "Total Recall" which was based on the story. The last change they made was to move the story "Prominent Author" from the last story to the third story.

This is another great volume in the collection of Philip K. Dick's early short fiction. The original intent of the series was to present the stories in the order in which they were believed to have been written instead of the order in which they were published. However, by switching stories and changing the order in this book, the stories are now no longer in either order. There are 27 stories here, so it doesn't make sense to go through them all in detail, but there are several ones of note:

The title story, as mentioned earlier, was the basis for the movie "Total Recall", and for those familiar with the movie the first part of the story matches the first part of the movie very well. Douglas Quail is unsatisfied with his life and has a desire to go to Mars, he decides to check-out Rekal and is convinced to get the memories of a trip there as a secret agent implanted. At some point the two stories diverge though, and while the movie turns into an action film, the story takes a different twist at the end.... The story was written in 1965 and first published in 1966, so it is much newer than the rest of the stories in this book which were mostly written and published in 1953 and 1954. In 1999, this story tied for 32nd on the Locus All-Time Poll for novelettes.

There are stories about our humanity such as "Progeny", which takes a look at what our society might be like if parents are taken out of the business of raising their children. There is "Human Is", which looks at what it really means to be human. "Breakfast at Twilight" involves at a family which is pulled into the near future to witness a war which appears to be the end of civilization. Lastly, there is James P. Crow, which looks at a future society which has forgotten that humans created robots and instead believes the reverse.

This is a very good collection, despite the decision to break away from the chronological order of the stories. The original collection was ranked 3rd on the Locus poll for collections in 1988. The diversity is greater here than in the first volume. Some of the stories may be a bit predictable, however that is largely due to other writers copying Dick's style and ideas. This volume leaves the reader looking forward to volume 3 and the continued evolution of Dick's writing. Read more ›

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't miss the book for its dazzling ideas April 21, 2001

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

I started reading PKD's work 6 years ago and I had a... copy of this book. Looking back, I was very glad I picked this superb volume to begin with. The amount of entertainment and thought-provoking ideas I got out of the ...book made me buy every book (new or old) I could find of PKD.

Now I just hope I have the time to read all of them...at least once.

Don't miss any of PKD's books, especially the short stories.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Philip K.Dicks short stories are fascinating to read in this great volume. February 1, 2012

By B-Goody

Format:Paperback

'We Can Remember It For You Wholesale'(made into a film,'Total Recall') is the second volume of Philip K.Dick's volume of short stories. All of the stories in this volume are at most very interesting and thought out. Yet there are quite a few great ones as well, the ones you'll read again and again or share with a friend or family member. The stories here are just as or more so interesting in this day of age than at the time of his career. Only now are we all getting to know this fabulous writer through the movies that are inspired from his work.(Minority Report, Paycheck, A Scanner Darkly, Bladerunner) Most of the stories here are science fiction, mystery and the curiosity and nature of mankind, time travel and the questions of "Am I who I think I am?".
One of my favorite stories is 'The Cosmic Poachers',where humans intercept an alien craft for it's cargo of eggs, yet not knowing the risk of whatever is inside those eggs.
Or the story, 'A Surface Raid', in a future apocalypse the people of the underground world set forth upward to capture the mostly extinct humans, but in the view of one man from beneath, the humans are....better?
In 'The Trouble With Bubbles', mankind is depressed because they never found life outside the solar system, so instead everyone creates their own miniature worlds with full life and fauna, only every year to get together at the awards ceremony to smash their worlds to bits.
Others such as 'Jon's World', 'A Present For Pat','James P.Crow' and 'The impossible Planet' are lovely and intricate sci-fi stories.
These are stories that grab you and at most times at the very end of the story he'll throw in something you never saw coming....

Philips work is broad and extraordinary, and his characters, even in these shorts are brought to life on the paper.
This is a great volume of his early writing and an excellent choice for a reader being introduced to his work. Philip K.Dick will always be remembered as one of the greatest sci-fi writers of all time.

27 stories include:1)The Cookie Lady 2)Beyond The Door 3)Prominent Author 4)WCRIFYW 5)Jon's World 6)The Cosmic Poachers 7)Progeny 8)Some Kinds Of Life 9)Martians Come In Clouds 10)The Commuter 11)The World She Wanted 12)A Surface Raid 13)Project: Earth 14)The Trouble With Bubbles 15)Breakfast At Twilight 16)A Present For Pat 17)the Hood Maker 18)Of Withered Apples 19)Human Is 20)Adjustment Team 21)The Impossible Planet 22)Impostor 23)James P.Crow 24)Planet For Transients 25)Small Town 26) Souvenir 27)Survey Team Read more ›