Second Variety by Philip K. Dick

This novella is a real scream

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Podcast Series
Podcast Series

Our Review

Published January 21, 2011

Books & Nachos is now part of Now Playing Podcast. Before our book reviews were branded as Now Playing Podcast Book Reviews, they were released under a separate show called Books & Nachos. That podcast focused on book discussions, most of which tied directly into films we were covering on Now Playing Podcast. We’ve now merged those episodes into the main Now Playing Podcast feed for easier access and a complete archive. But these older episodes still have the original Books & Nachos intro and credits on those older recordings.

This week, Stuart continues his discussion of Philip K. Dick’s works with Second Variety, Dick’s 1953 short story about autonomous killing machines that evolve beyond human control. The tale of soldiers trapped in a war against weapons that can perfectly mimic their creators would later inspire the 1995 film Screamers, but how does the original prose stack up against its cinematic offspring? Stuart digs into Dick’s bleak worldview, razor-sharp concepts, and unsettling twists to determine whether this story still cuts deep.

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Book Details

Author
Philip K. Dick
Published
1998
Publisher
Citadel Press
Pages
432
ISBN
9780806512266
Genres
Classics, Dystopia, Fiction, Horror, Post-Apocalyptic, Sci-Fi, Science Fiction, Short stories, War

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