A Scanner Darkly

by Philip K. Dick

Published March 14, 2013 by Gollancz.

ISBN:: 978-1-4072-4741-0

(148 reviews)

A Scanner Darkly is a science fiction novel by American writer Philip K. Dick, published in 1977. The semi-autobiographical story is set in a dystopian Orange County, California, in the then-future of June 1994, and includes an extensive portrayal of drug culture and drug use (both recreational and abusive). The novel is one of Dick's best-known works and served as the basis for a 2006 film of the same name, directed by Richard Linklater

25 editions

indutny reviewed A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick

What does the scanner see

5 stars

Content warning Contains some information on the plot and some thoughts about it.

On a surface layer "Scanner Darkly" is about the police state through the eyes of a paranoid junkie. Suspicion mixed up with delusion, true and broken friendship, and heavy drug use. However, further into the book and beneath the surface lies the question of a relationship between the god (if any) and man. Building upon St. Paul's "for now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known." Philip K. Dick seems to ask a question: if we do see the god darkly through the glass, does the god see us the same way? If there's no way to know whether you see only the worst in people, could it help to look into morally (and perhaps visually) inverted mirror? Watching his friends and himself Bob Arctor asks that, and wonders if it is someone's obligation to "at least mark their sad comings and goings" "so they’ll be remembered." The answer to this is certainly not present in the book, but sometimes a good question is much better to have and for that I'd recommend reading "Scanner Darkly".

decadent_and_depraved reviewed A scanner darkly by Philip K. Dick

Review of 'A scanner darkly' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

I have read a few books written by and about druggies and drugs, think William S. Burroughs and Irvine Welsh, and I have largely enjoyed them even when I did not believe them to be good works. The thing with A Scanner Darkly is that I found the writing neither authentic nor original and the story quite mediocre. Yet, I do not honestly dislike it, and although I would not say I enjoyed it in the sense that it is a book written by a druggie about druggies, there is a certain other atmosphere to it that makes it work - as much as I can say that it works. I would also note that I do not believe one really gets anything extra out of this book as compared to the movie based on it, and I would recommend the movie over the book.

V171 reviewed A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick

Review of 'A Scanner Darkly' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

This was equally interesting and depressing. I'd heard a lot of buzz about this several years ago when I believe there was a movie coming out, which initially piqued my interest. It details a depressing life of a police agent working undercover as a drug addict in a drug den, but subsequently becomes addicted to drugs in the process. Side effects of this drug include psychotic breaks that lead to him being unable to distinguish reality from hallucination. I found the overall story to be sadly realistic in the way that addicts are both criminalized but also used as tools in the legal system only to be discarded when they have no more utility. The twists were interesting and unexpected, but some of the logic fails when you take a moment to think about it. For example, this seems to be a pretty technologically advanced setting with scramble suits and the ability to hide advanced monitoring software, but for some reason there is still a reliance on getting police officers addicted to drugs in order to infiltrate crime circles. Like.. surely there's a better way. The characters weren't as fleshed out as much as I would have hoped and were honestly just used as props to move the story forward, but there were times when characters did bring a sense of charming realism to a scene or two. Overall, this book was fine. Quick read, but nothing to write home about in my opinion.

Allen reviewed A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick

Review of 'A Scanner Darkly' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

Awesome book. I love the way Philip K. Dick deals with the themes of identity and self.

Owl of Minerva reviewed A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick

Review of 'A Scanner Darkly' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

Quite a hard read. The book is extremly vierd and psycotic. But the points about humanity, drugs, police, personhood and individuality. I recomend the book maybe not as a first for P. K. Dick but maybe after a few. My personal favorite is "Do androids dream of electric sheep?" the book blade runner is based on.

loppear reviewed A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick

Review of 'A Scanner Darkly' on Goodreads

4 stars

The bored tedium of drugs and work, the paranoia and destruction of drug use and drug wars. Glad to see how closely the movie followed, the grim humor at losing your mind.

gimley reviewed A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick

Review of 'A Scanner Darkly' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

Evidently, P.K. Dick had a bad time on drugs. Or else he wants us to think he did. Or else the drugs made him think he did by destroying his good memories of his drug experiences. As a writer, he could have written them down so he'd remember but that could be used as evidence against him. Though he could claim it was fiction.
And so on. . .

Realgnomidad reviewed A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick

Review of 'A Scanner Darkly' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

Dick explores the confusion and intransigent apathy of drug culture in an imagined future that seems close enough. His style of blending concurrent realities makes for an engaged read that keeps you on your toes.

prince lucija is reading reviewed A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick

Review of 'A Scanner Darkly' on 'GoodReads'

5 stars

Last few chapters are actually shockingly painful. This feels like a pretty well written novel about drug misuse. Also very helpful is author's afterword.

Laura Lemay reviewed A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick

Review of 'A Scanner Darkly' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

I am conflicted about Phil Dick. Most of the time for me his writing is sloppy and poor. On the other hand his ideas are so unique and so....weird, that I still find him compelling. Dick feels like he is a writer barely in control of his talent. It's fascinating.

Formally I didn't like this book at all; it felt dated and crude and it was confusing to follow. But conceptually it is brilliant; the main character unravels over the course of the book, and the text grows schizoid along with the character. As messy as this book is, it's quite a ride.

drizzy reviewed A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick

Review of 'A Scanner Darkly' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

While reading Scanner Darkly I was wondering how much P.K.Dick knew about drugs. It wasn't until I reached the afterword that I realized book was semi-autobiographic in nature. I could see before my eyes how Bob Arctor the drug addict started mixing with Fred the undercover cop. And it was not a pretty sight. As destructive as Substance-D was, Fred risked his life taking it, to try and track down its local source. And he was in for a ride. Line "If I knew it was harmless I would have killed it myself" will probably stay with me for some time. Certainly a great read even for non-SF fans (because there is almost no sciency stuff)

ascagnel reviewed A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick

Review of 'A Scanner Darkly' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

"A Scanner Darkly" is a mind-bending alarmist tale about America in the 1960s. The story is vaguely auto-biographical, based loosely off [a:Philip K. Dick|4764|Philip K. Dick|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1197324658p2/4764.jpg]'s own experiences in the turbulent decade.

The story documents the life of Bob Arctor, an undercover narcotics agent in the future-1990s. At work, Arctor reports to "Hank" as "Fred," an endlessly shifting coagulation of thousands of people. Through his drug use with housemates Jim Barris and Ernie Luckman, he rapidly devolves into just a borderline junkie. Fred, however, is tasked with monitoring the house, as the police believe that it is at the center of a drug-running operation. Specifically, Fred must focus on Arctor and his relationship with Donna Hawthorne, who is Arctor's main provider of Substance D, nicknamed "Substance Death" or "Slow Death."

While in the course of monitoring Arctor, Fred becomes disjointed through heavy use of S.D., and is eventually removed from the case. Donna steps out of her role as "Hank" to bring Arctor/Fred to a New Path clinic, where he is to receive treatment for his fractured mind. At the very close of the book, however, Fred/Arctor discovers a series of small blue flowers, and his instincts kick in to deliver one of these flowers to Donna at the next yearly visit. The flowers are the source of Substance D, and New Path is the creator of the horrid drug they claim to rehabilitate from.

The twists at the end create a unique literary view, especially as the "crosstalk" between Arctor/Fred takes stronger and stronger hold. In mid-sentence, German and Latin quotations will appear suddenly in the text, and the total confusion of character as Arctor/Fred rapidly degenerates, and finally is renamed "Bruce" by New Path, puts the reader in the position of having to struggle along with Arctor/Fred as to who he really is.

As complex as the book is, it is not Dick's most complicated work. [b:Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep|7082|Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?|Philip K. Dick|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51%2BSiK9L9XL.SL75.jpg|830939] is a far more complex novel, and explores less the human psyche and more the very definition of humanity and empathy.

A. Rivera reviewed A scanner darkly by Philip K. Dick

Review of 'A scanner darkly' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

In the interest of disclosure, I have to say that I have not read the original novel or seen the film yet. However, I still liked this one. I also borrowed it from my local public library branch.

See my note on it in my blog here:

[http://gypsylibrarian.blogspot.com/2007/06/short-booknotes-on-graphic-novels-14.html]

nicknicknicknick reviewed A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick

Review of 'A Scanner Darkly' on Goodreads

3 stars

''As silly as this is, he thought, it's frightening. Something is being done to me and by a mere thing, here in my own house. Before my very eyes.
Within something's very eyes; within the sight of some thing. Which, unlike dark-eyed Donna, does not ever blink. What does a scanner see? he asked himself. I mean, really see? Into the head? Down into the heart? Does a passive infrared scanner like they used to use or a cube-type holo-scanner like they use these days, the latest thing, see into me#into us#clearly or darkly? I hope it does, he thought, see clearly, because I can't any longer these days see into myself. I see only murk. Murk outside; murk inside. I hope, for everyone's sake, the scanners do better. Because, he thought, if the scanner sees only darkly, the way I myself do, then we are cursed, cursed again …