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AICN BOOKS! Adam Balm Reviews Philip K Dick's New Book! The Long-Lost VOICES FROM THE STREET Finally Arrives!

WAY TO GO BALM by colonel_lugz	Jan 16th, 2007 05:56:10 AM
GREAT STUFF!
needs more... by keepcoolbutcare	Jan 16th, 2007 06:01:09 AM
Dick jokes.
Not First! by emvan	Jan 16th, 2007 06:02:11 AM
Except in some alternate reality. Pretty decent review, but I have to object to the characterization of the late-life Dick as "mentally deteriorated" and viewing himself as a religious figure. Some kind of extreme weirdness (probably neurological but possibly paranormal / divine) happened to PKD in 1974 and he spent the rest of his life obsessed with trying to figure it out in as rational a way as possible, while writing four of his best novels. And in his late short story "I Hope I Shall Arrive Soon" ("Frozen Journey") he argued, for the first time in his career as a writer, for some objective consensus reality; it and his last novel, THE TRANSMIGRATION OF TIMOTHY ARCHER, are probably the sanest-sounding works of fiction in his ouevre. And, BTW, he almost certainly wasn't schizophrenic, but that's a more reasonable and common error.
PKD: STILL COOKIN THE BOOKS FROM BEYOND THE GRAVE! by DOGSOUP	Jan 16th, 2007 06:02:12 AM
I bet you 100 bucks this will be fast-tracked for moviedom by 2009.
PHILIP K DICK GOTTA EAT...oh well maybe not by scribblercee	Jan 16th, 2007 06:17:21 AM
Seriously though, this could be an interesting read and a look at the writer before he became the writer. Big up to AICN for pointing this one out.
I agree with KCBC... by Lurker Johnson	Jan 16th, 2007 06:30:43 AM
coulda thrown some more taint around, too.
Silverfish and moths gotta eat Dick? by JackPumpkinhead	Jan 16th, 2007 06:36:37 AM
Dick was a dick in real life, by the way. Put your tinfoil hat on so they don't steal your ideas!
Any particular reason... by Tin Snoman	Jan 16th, 2007 06:37:34 AM
why this book has been sitting on a shelf for like 50 years? And when is someone going to make a film version of Dr. Bloodmoney? I want a McDonald's tie-in with little toy Hoppy Harringtons in the happy meals.
BALMY BALMY! by Bean_	Jan 16th, 2007 07:05:16 AM
Agreed with Mori, great job, man!
We fried Dick's brain-stem!!!! by seppukudkurosawa	Jan 16th, 2007 07:12:15 AM
"If his realist works (Man Whose Teeth Were All Exactly Alike, Puttering About in a Small Land, Humpty Dumpty in Oakland, etc...) had not been greeted with deafening silence from the mainstream publishers, forcing him to turn to SF, then there's no doubt what road he would've taken." Sounds to me as if Dick dived into things like peyote and mescaline with the intent of fishing-out glimpses from the ether and giving them to us in the form of books like Valis and Flow my Tears the Policeman Said. Actually I feel kind of guilty for that, so I'd like to take this opportunity to apologise to the great man. I'm sorry. You should have been allowed to get your Buk on more often. Anyway, that was an insanely good review Balmy, and the perfect book with which to kick off a (hopefully) long career adding some class to the mainpage.
EvilWizardGlick: by ThisIsTheGirl	Jan 16th, 2007 07:13:59 AM
Thanks for providing an excellent example of the difference between talkbacks and The Zone. To wit: The Zone isn't full of gentlemen (or should that be c*nts?) like yourself Fantastic review, Astro-Boy....
le sigh by darkjedijaina	Jan 16th, 2007 07:46:23 AM
you make me proud, mister tehbalm.
Nice work... by MonkeyM666	Jan 16th, 2007 07:47:31 AM
I look forward to more Balm. Nicely done...
I gotta have that DICK!!! by Prague23	Jan 16th, 2007 08:11:16 AM
http://www.you tube.com/watch?v=P1cDtAPhZSc
LOL, Shades Of 1984 At AICN by Winky Man	Jan 16th, 2007 08:28:52 AM
First the word "fag" becomes f@g, now "nigger" is "nigg@r." Soon the "@" will just designate any word that might offend anyone. And this is while reviewing a sci-fi novel from a novel known to take on themes of organizations dictating morality at the expense of personal freedom. Is it even possible for the irony to get any thicker?
Do Androids Dream of Electric Trolls? by seppukudkurosawa	Jan 16th, 2007 08:29:16 AM
Glck, I like how you've adopted teh snarks and everything, but there's no getting around the fact that you call yourself an evil wizard. What's got you so excited dude, did you finally make Level 67 AdamantiumMaster, which entitles you to a quicky with Empress Savina? What's the matter, will none of your friends play with you anymore because you took D&D too seriously and started walking around with that aluminium sword you bought on ebay and calling yourself "Lord Smegerick"? Go fck off back to KKKforums.com ya a*wie.
I Meant Author Not Novel by Winky Man	Jan 16th, 2007 08:32:52 AM
Oops. And while Glick is certainly trolling, the point is a valid one. The cost of free speech is allowing the ass hats access to the microphone.
Re: "...the Salvador Dali of 20th century literature" by RetroActive	Jan 16th, 2007 09:36:48 AM
While admiring your viewpoint, you must be joking. No doubt, Dick has done some amazing things...but to compare him on a cultural level of influence to Dali is more than just a tad hyperbolic.
Winky Man by DinoDeLaurentiis	Jan 16th, 2007 09:46:16 AM
Iffa you know Teh Balm, then a you prolly alla'ready know that a the irony of a which a you speak? She's inna'tentional, no? Of a course, teh Balm is a such a the gentleman that a maybe just a maybe he donna wanna to type out a the word for his own a personal reasons anna beliefs, no?
Ahhh, I See by Winky Man	Jan 16th, 2007 09:58:43 AM
Hard to know who all the players are. I am shamed.
AICN ____________(Insert category) by DarfurOnTheRocks	Jan 16th, 2007 09:59:29 AM
Perhaps AIC should focus on quality rather than attempt to branch out and over reach themselves...
DICK JOKES BY TEH BALM = NIPPLES ON OPTIMUS PRIME by King Psyz	Jan 16th, 2007 10:03:46 AM
well... it does.
who gave Michael Richards the keys to the talkback? by TheBaxter	Jan 16th, 2007 10:37:34 AM
hey EvilWizardGlick, there's an afro-american superman outside who'd like to have a word with you.
Wait - that's a GOOD idea by snomusic	Jan 16th, 2007 10:40:15 AM
Nipples on Optimus Prime....I think it's a good idea....but only if they aren't too silver - maybe brushed steel. Forget Richie - has anyone seen Alex Jones?
Did you read Adam's review, Darfur? by RaulMonkey	Jan 16th, 2007 11:49:06 AM
Kind of hard to believe you would bitch about a lack of quality if you had. And Psyz: DICK JOKES BY TEH BALM = FUDGE-COVERED NUTS ON YOUR PARFAIT
You weren't bitching, Darfur... by RaulMonkey	Jan 16th, 2007 12:22:03 PM
...but still, clearly no reason to worry about quality shit on AICN now that Adam's in tha hizzauz.
quality by darkjedijaina	Jan 16th, 2007 01:35:45 PM
with teh balm on board, you're gonna get quality AND quantity. wait. what?
Any of you numbskulls want to talk Dick? by CarefulBen	Jan 16th, 2007 04:08:44 PM
I'm a big lover of Dick (never gets old), but I couldn't care less about this book. You read Dick for the crazy sci fi and shifting realities - not for his banal misanthropy. There's a great biography out about him "I am alive - you are dead" by Emmanuel Carrere. A better buy than Voices from the Street
HOORAY BALM! by LeckoManiac	Jan 16th, 2007 04:10:05 PM
Excellent review man. Top notch.
i love banal misanthropy by TheBaxter	Jan 16th, 2007 04:34:40 PM
it's the only thing that gets me through the day.
Re: Nigger by BannedOnTheRun	Jan 16th, 2007 05:36:58 PM
Oh no, I just typed it! Must amputate unclean hands! Anyway, it's sort of funny to see the censor-matic at Rotten Tomatoes go to work on words like s****ing. Yes, that's right, you can't say s****ing. Too risque.
Fantastic review by IMScully33	Jan 16th, 2007 08:29:46 PM
Keep up the good work, Balm. It's nice to see one of our own doing so well on The Main Page.
Jeeeez. by HK_Cavalier	Jan 17th, 2007 01:14:21 AM
This isn't that partied out and burned out, paranoid and borderline delusional, drug-soaked cerebrum of the 60s. And sadly, this isn't going to be the next hot Dick property that Hollywood will be clamoring to adapt. To go in with those expectations perhaps misses the bigger point: that this is the Batman Begins or Casino Royale to Dick's career. This is the PKD who didn't yet know he was going to be the Salvador Dali of 20th century literature. This is PKD before he knew that he was Philip Fucking K. Dick. He's a diamond that hasn't been cut yet, still rough around the edges, still learning his trade, discovering who he is. This PKD is 25 years old. He had only just sold his first short story with Beyond Lies the Wub, and it would still be three more years until he would sell his first novel, Solar Lottery. It was this year that he would quit his job at the record store to try and devote himself full time to writing. (During this period he would publish 72 short stories, an average of one every two weeks.) This isn't yet PKD the “American Borges” or Kafka. This isn't surrealist or “neo-realist” PKD. This is gritty realist PKD wanting to tell you about the fucked up day-to-day world around him, about the sick society he sees outside his window. The closest thing to this that PKD has done would maybe be Confessions of a Crap Artist. It's PKD by way of Bret Easton Ellis or Chuck Palahniuk. By the end of that little fucking tirade, I'd completely forgotten what you were on about. Paid by the word, are we?
that's pretty weak, cavalier by CarefulBen	Jan 17th, 2007 11:27:57 AM
That's clearly a well written, informative and insightful review. To say otherwise is to troll. And I've got no idea who Balm is, unlike his mates on this TB, but I'll be looking out for more of his stuff
AICN has a book channel? by Novaman5000	Jan 17th, 2007 01:07:02 PM
Well I'll be!
onverly censored boards are funny. by Novaman5000	Jan 17th, 2007 01:11:09 PM
Like when it won't let you write the words "class" or "brass" or "vagina".
*overly by Novaman5000	Jan 17th, 2007 01:11:24 PM
Whoopsies.

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AICN BOOKS! Adam Balm Reviews Philip K Dick's New Book! The Long-Lost VOICES FROM THE STREET Finally Arrives!

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