Product Description

It began with a blinding light, a divine revelation from a mysterious intelligence that called itself VALIS. And with that, the fabric of reality was ripped open and laid bare so that anything seemed possible, but nothing seemed quite right. Part science fiction, part theological detective story - in which God plays both the missing person and the perpetrator of the ultimate crime, VALIS is both disorienting and eerily funny, and a joy to read.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #24785 in Books
• Published on: 2001-07-12
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 272 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
Only Philip K Dick could produce a novel as comically disturbing as Valis (1981), grappling with troubled, off-sane episodes of his own life and triumphantly resolving them through SF.

Early in 1974 Dick felt a "pink beam" flashing through his head, a religious experience--or mild stroke--which inspired him to write his vast theological "Exegesis". In Valis the pink beam illuminates Dick's mentally unstable friend Horselover Fat; Philip is Greek for lover of horses and Dick is German for fat.

Dick's alter ego Fat duly creates the weird Gnostic theology of the Exegesis, with its visions of salvation from the insane side of reality--the Empire, whose Black Iron Prison cages us all. "The Empire never ended." Also there's a three-eyed race among us and all time between AD 103 and 1974 may be a divine illusion...

The resulting debates between Fat and friends, including Dick, are often hilariously insane. It's clear that Fat is deluded--until they all see the SF movie Valis, whose rock star actor-director suggests David Bowie in The Man Who Fell To Earth and which uncannily features Exegesis code phrases, timeslips, third eyes, early Christian symbols and pink beams.

Maybe the film's Vast Active Living Intelligence System, a satellite which controls minds via lasers, is the same as the messiah imagined by Fat? Naturally he and friends contact the director, leading to an unexpected interview with VALIS itself.

Dick was the supreme SF master of booby-trapped reality and Valis celebrates his own escape from the trap that claimed him in 1974. Chilling, moving and acknowledged by the SF Encyclopedia as the finest novel of Dick's last years. --David Langford

About the Author
SALES POINTS 'It is about madness, pain, deception, death, obsessive delusory states of mind, cruelty, solitude, imprisonment, and it is a joy to read' Washington Post 'Valis is a carefully structured, profoundly thoughtful study of some crazy people who just might have touched something illimitable, something so deep-rooted in myth that it is literally unspeakable' Theodore Sturgeon Philip K. Dick was one of the greatest and most influential writers of science fiction of his generation.

Customer Reviews

Phill's Exegesis
Firstly, I'd advise that anyone about to read VALIS would be better off already being familiar with some of the author's work. Having some background knowledge of his life would also be useful (as it is such a strongly autobiographical text). These, in my opinion, help you to digest more of the information and understand its significance.

Central to the book are the deaths of two women (Sherri & Gloria) and their impact upon the author, who suffers a breakdown as personal tragedies mount up. Page after page is dedicated to theological and/or philosophical theories, many created by the Dick himself, and are uniquely tailored to his personal circumstances. Other theories would appear to be virtually cut and pasted from copies of the author's Britannicas. Dick uses creating these theories as a form of 'catharsis'(as he states in the book) to help make sense of why such troubling things happen to him. That is my simplified perspective anyway.

At best, there are certain passages that have a wonderful, visionary quality. This is especially apparent when Dick describes his visitation from God(or Valis/St. Sophia/'zebra'); dreams he has had; or the Lamptons' motion picture (also titled) VALIS. At worst, some of the pages dealing with complex theories are mildly boring.

You'll probably find this rewarding if your familiar with Dick's work, if not A SCANNER DARKLY or THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE, may be a better bet.

Life-affirming - a truly great read........
This was not the first PKD book I had read-I had already read some of his other work.

I first became intrigued after watching Total Recall and Blade Runner,I just fell in love with those films,in particular the whole question of reality and our existence that Philip K. Dick so uniquely questions.

I started Valis cautiously-I had skimmed a bit and it seemed a bit...complicated for a preteen,but once I started reading I just couldn't stop thinking about all the things that must have been going through PKD's head.

I saw one of the reviews where someone said that it was boring etc,but I think if you look beyond the slow-paced start,you'll find a magnificent novel full of questions and possibly answers.

I suggest if you have started reading it and have given up,stick with it! It is a truly rewarding book and I would recommend it to anyone who is fairly open-minded and who has ever questioned life,and why we are here.

Happy reading!

Not a conventional sci-fi
You'll be able to tell from the other reviews here that this novel is one of those that people will either love or hate. I can appreciate and understand that. It is one of those books. Having said that, I think that if it's read with the reader forewarned that this is not a conventional sci-fi novel, then there is a greater chance of enjoyment.

I read this many years ago having borrowed the entire Valis trilogy from a friend thinking - "Philip K. Dick, yeah, he writes science fiction, therefore this must be science fiction". It is, no doubt about it, but it's quite unlike any other sci-fi I've read. The first time I read this, it was an effort and for the most part I didn't enjoy it much. I didn't really think that it was sci-fi then, and felt cheated.
Then I got to the last few chapters and it all began to gell for me. The exegesis which is liberally littered throughout the main body of the novel was re-printed at the end, and it all made sense to me there, when it hadn't in the piecemeal form.
Subsequently reading about PKD and the problems he faced from 1974 onwards just makes this book even more special. Once you realise that it's semi-autobiographical it almost becomes something different. This actually prompted me to read Valis again, and this time it completely blew me away.
I've read it again since that, and I think it was the most enjoyable yet. The only problem(??) then was having to continue on to read the Divine Invasion and the Transmigration of Timothy Archer, which complete the trilogy.

It's not a good place to start if you've not read PKD before, but it is one of his best (IMO). His dark wit shines through at times, and so do the moments of dark depression. It comes across to me as a work of love, and also a catharsis. Valis was certainly something that obsessed PKD for many years. I understand why, I almost find myself looking for signs of Valis sometimes, especially after a particularly unlikely coincidence or synchronous event.

All that said I'd just like to re-iterate that this is not a conventional sci-fi novel. It can be read on many different levels, but be prepared to jump into the deep end of the philosophical pool. Otherwise, stay down the shallow end and read Harry Potter or Dr. Who novels instead.