Vulcan's Hammer: A Novel (Paperback)

by Philip K. Dick (Author)
Key Phrases: pencil beam, heat beam, Jason Dill, Father Fields, Rachel Pitt (more...)

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


From the Trade Paperback edition. --This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

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

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Vintage (August 10, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1400030129
• ISBN-13: 978-1400030125
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #702,172 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in this category: (What's this?)

  #94 in

  Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Authors, A-Z > ( D ) > Dick, Philip K.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 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 (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

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.

5 of 6 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 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.

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Man and machine, October 28, 2002

By	Platonism (Montreal) - 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.