Vulcan's Hammer: A Novel [Paperback]

Philip K. Dick (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 10, 2004

Objective, unbiased and hyperrational, the Vulcan 3 should have been the perfect ruler. The omnipotent computer dictates policy that is in the best interests of all citizens—or at least, that is the idea. But when the machine, whose rule evolved out of chaos and war, begins to lose control of the “Healer” movement of religious fanatics and the mysterious force behing their rebellion, all Hell breaks loose.
Written in 1960, Philip K. Dick’s paranoid novel imagines a totalitarian state in which hammer-headed robots terrorize citizens and freedom is an absurd joke. William Barrios, the morally conflicted hero, may be the only person who can prevent the battle for control from destroying the world—if, that is, he can decide which side he’s on.

Winner of both the Hugo and John W. Campbell awards for best novel, widely regarded as the premiere science fiction writer of his day, and the object of cult-like adoration from his legions of fans, Philip K. Dick has come to be seen in a literary light that defies classification in much the same way as Borges and Calvino. With breathtaking insight, he utilizes vividly unfamiliar worlds to evoke the hauntingly and hilariously familiar in our society and ourselves.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“The finest American novelist of our time.” —Hartford Advocate

“Dick was…one of the genuine visionaries that North American fiction has produced in this century.”–Steve Erickson, L.A. Weekly

“If there’s such a thing as a ‘black science fiction,’ Philip K. Dick is its Pirandello, its Beckett and its Pinter.” –Harlan Ellison

About the Author

Philip K. Dick was born in Chicago in 1928 and lived most of his life in California. He briefly attended the University of California, but dropped out before completing any classes. In 1952, he began writing professionally and proceeded to write numerous novels and short story collections. He won the Hugo Award for the best novel in 1962 for The Man in the High Castle and the John W. Campbell Memorial Award for best novel of the year in 1974 for Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said. Philip K. Dick died on March 2, 1982, in Santa Ana, California, of heart failure following a stroke.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Vintage (August 10, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1400030129
• ISBN-13: 978-1400030125
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.4 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #483,086 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars suspenseful and fun; perhaps not for Philip K. Dick fans, July 30, 2003

By 

lazza (Fort Lauderdale, Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Vulcan's Hammer (The Gregg Press Science Fiction Series) (Hardcover)

Vulcan's Hammer is a very conventional early science fiction story about the future of the world dominated by a computer. Naturally the humans catch on that this situation has drawbacks, and a rebellion is launched. But with Vulcan's Hammer the computer doesn't take kindly to any encroachment on its reign.

Unlike the author's later works there aren't any deep-rooted social commentary with Vulcan's Hammer. And this story is completely readable; I believe many Philip K. Dick fans enjoy deciphering his often unintelligible prose. Best of all the story reads as a suspense novel, with the author deftly placing in twists to keep the reader hooked .. and it worked for me.

Bottom line: a fun if somewhat unremarkable read. Recommended.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Man and machine, October 27, 2002

By 

"mythologue" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Vulcan's Hammer (The Gregg Press Science Fiction Series) (Hardcover)

In the world of `Vulcan's Hammer', humans have apparently given up on their political power. They are under the authority of Vulcan III, a massive underground computer that ended war, unemployment and poverty years ago. Two human factions are set against each other: the Union, led by many high-profile directors including William Barris, and the `Healers', a rebellious group seemingly led by a mysterious figure named Father Fields. Many questions are submitted daily to Vulcan III, but the machine has not yet said a word about the group; people are quick to blame head-director Jason Dill, the only one allowed to submit such questions. In addition to the powerful Vulcan III, there's also the older Vulcan II, which is destroyed but still reveals crucial insights about the Healers and Vulcan III when some of its remains are reconstructed. The `Union versus Healers' opposition can be multiplied by at least three, because there is some discord a) in the Union itself, b) in the Healers movement, and, most interestingly, c) between the machines. Both of the Vulcan computers play as big a role as the humans, and often seem just as `alive' as they are. The entire work can be seen as an ongoing mind game, sometimes between men, sometimes between man and machine, sometimes between the machines themselves; it is a lot more substantial than its dismal reputation would lead the unsuspecting reader to believe.

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Hammer misses, August 22, 2004

By 

Doug Mackey (Fairfield, IA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Vulcan's Hammer: A Novel (Paperback)

This minor novel in Dick's oeuvre is the tale of a giant computer, Vulcan 3, to which humanity has acceded absolute power over the fate of the world. Its flying "hammers" are deadly extensions of itself, spying on everybody and killing whomever it perceives as a threat. One needs to be very paranoid indeed to survive against this paranoid machine. Vulcan 3 is not as memorable a character as another killer computer, HAL in 2001: A Space Odyssey. Both, however, are representations of the disembodied intellect becoming self-aware and preempting the unmechanical wisdom of the feelings. Vulcan is a metaphor for the failure of the rational thinking mind to integrate the irrational feeling side of the personality. The result is that the ego is mechanized, or Vulcanized, and the wrath of the fire god is visited upon a self-destructive humanity. These mythic overtones aside, the book is mainly of interest to the Dick afficianado; those new to PKD could more profitably begin with almost any of his other science-fiction novels.