May 2019 Host:  Megan

Ubik by Philip K. Dick

Summary

This is truly a difficult novel to explain. While reading it, one oftentimes must backtrack to grasp what is happening, as there are many bizarre events and futuristic concepts. An example is amphetamine dispensing vending machines.  The year is set in 1992 and the main character is Joe Chip, a technician working for a business that employs psychics to block precog mind infiltration.  One of his newly hired coworkers is a woman named Pat Conley, who has the ability to go back in time and alter events. Characters can communicate with some of the dead who are in a ‘half-life’ state through cryonic suspension.  These characters, along with a group of others, go to the moon to visit associates.  When they return to earth, strange things begin to happen, such as fresh food becoming moldy and technology rapidly moving backward.  This is where Ubik comes in.  This story engages you from the beginning and although at times is difficult to understand, it is highly recommended and one of Time’s best 100 English language novels.