Review of 'The Minority Report and Other Stories' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
I think these five stories rank among the best of the author's short stories. The two most well-known titles "The Minority Report" "We CAn Remember It for You Wholesale" (which inspired Total Recall) were the ones I actually liked less well than the others, but I think part of the reason they were adapted to film had to do with the lengths of these stories compared to the others. After the death of Philip K. Dick he started being recognized as the science fiction author who had some of the most intriguing takes on our world, extrapolated into some weird directions. He never really seems as interested in his characters' lives as full-fledged inhabitants of their worlds, so they often seem more like stock characters or even more as fairly repellent types. This collection shows how far an author can take a single piece of fantastic worldbuilding and spin a …
I think these five stories rank among the best of the author's short stories. The two most well-known titles "The Minority Report" "We CAn Remember It for You Wholesale" (which inspired Total Recall) were the ones I actually liked less well than the others, but I think part of the reason they were adapted to film had to do with the lengths of these stories compared to the others. After the death of Philip K. Dick he started being recognized as the science fiction author who had some of the most intriguing takes on our world, extrapolated into some weird directions. He never really seems as interested in his characters' lives as full-fledged inhabitants of their worlds, so they often seem more like stock characters or even more as fairly repellent types. This collection shows how far an author can take a single piece of fantastic worldbuilding and spin a compelling story out of it.
The audiobook narration by Keir Dullea was understated but filled in some of the nuance the bare words on the page might lack for a reader of today. I really enjoyed taking in these stories partly because they work so well in the audiobook medium.