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Ubik cover art

Ubik

Written by: Philip K. Dick
Narrated by: Luke Daniels
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Publisher's Summary

A mind-bending, classic Philip K. Dick novel about the perception of reality.

Named as one of Time's 100 best books.

Glen Runciter runs a lucrative business - deploying his teams of anti-psychics to corporate clients who want privacy and security from psychic spies. But when he and his top team are ambushed by a rival, he is gravely injured and placed in "half-life," a dreamlike state of suspended animation. Soon, though, the surviving members of the team begin experiencing some strange phenomena, such as Runciter's face appearing on coins and the world seeming to move backward in time. As consumables deteriorate and technology gets ever more primitive, the group needs to find out what is causing the shifts and what a mysterious product called Ubik has to do with it all.

©1969 Philip K. Dick (P)2014 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.

What the critics say

"From the stuff of space opera, Dick spins a deeply unsettling existential horror story, a nightmare you'll never be sure you've woken up from." (Lev Grossman, Time)
"More brilliant than similar experiments conducted by Pynchon or DeLillo." (Roberto Bolaño)

What listeners say about Ubik

Average Customer Ratings
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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

I wonder what that was about...

As with most novels by Philip K. Dick, this is very hard to classify. It's definitely a dystopia - the economy is literally nickel-and-diming the citizens to death, in a hilarious indictment of capitalism.

It's also a detective story. With the development of psychic abilities comes abuse.

Then it got metaphysical... By the time I finished reading, I couldn't tell who was alive or dead, awake or in the VR equivalent they called "Half-Life."

Typical, Phil. Leave me confused and disturbed.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Fantastic

Luke Daniels was amazing. This book is a treat to listen to. Who can say what actually happened, but I enjoyed it thoroughly.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Stellar performance of a great book.

I loved it and was surprised that it ended so soon. It's a great story and I would like to hear more from Mr. Dick.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Not bad

It was confusing to follow until the story reveals itself but really never identified who the antagonist is or what it is. A bit of a meandering tale.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Weird, but in a good way.

I am still scratching my head, being unsure of what I just experienced. I enjoyed it so I guess that is good.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Interesting but out dated slurs and misogynistic views of young girls/ women

Story- interesting, curious, had to listen to the book twice to figure out what was going on. Unique and unexpected story ending.

Outdated- a few slurs and misogynistic descriptions of young girls and women that caught me off guard. Yes this book was written awhile ago- just didn’t sit right being 2023 and knowing better.

Performance- very good- the readers voice was what carried me through the story- also popped into my head throughout the day.

Overall- I did like it-it was interesting, and strange, which was what I was looking forward to from PKD.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

If you like Dick you will like this

A team of anti-psychic's get ambushed on the moon and are thrown into a realm where things deteriorate into older time periods and evolve into never actualized futures.

I know my description sounds weird, but listen to the book and you will get it.

Like all books by Dick he goes to great length to explore his central tenet but also the rest of the science part of the science fiction is weak and might as well be magic. I have read this is the pinnacle of his works but for me I preferred The Zap Gun, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, Time out of Joint to this one.

I think the narrator was good and did well with the material.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Excellent

Definitely worth a listen. I came across this book by chance and I'm so glad I found it!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Outstanding performance

Interesting premise and engaging story. Absolutely amazing performance by the narrator. I will look for titles narrated by him in the future!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Reality Bending

Well, this one's a mindfreak. Of course, if you're familiar with Dick's _oeuvre_, you have a grip on what to expect, but Ubik is (arguably) his pinnacle. Be ready to have your perceptions challenged.

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3 people found this helpful