Blade Runner

Originally published as Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

By: Philip K. Dick

Narrated by: Scott Brick

Length: 9 hrs and 12 mins

Publisher's summary

Here is the classic sci-fi novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, set nearly thirty years before the events of the new Warner Bros. film Blade Runner 2049, starring Harrison Ford, Ryan Gosling, and Robin Wright.

By 2021, the World War has killed millions, driving entire species into extinction and sending mankind off-planet. Those who remain covet any living creature, and for people who can’t afford one, companies build incredibly realistic simulacra: horses, birds, cats, sheep. They’ve even built humans. Immigrants to Mars receive androids so sophisticated they are indistinguishable from true men or women. Fearful of the havoc these artificial humans can wreak, the government bans them from Earth. Driven into hiding, unauthorized androids live among human beings, undetected. Rick Deckard, an officially sanctioned bounty hunter, is commissioned to find rogue androids and “retire” them. But when cornered, androids fight back—with lethal force.

Praise for Philip K. Dick

“[Dick] sees all the sparkling—and terrifying—possibilities . . . that other authors shy away from.” - Rolling Stone

“A kind of pulp-fiction Kafka, a prophet.”- The New York Times

©1968 Philip K. Dick (P)2007 Random House, Inc. Random House Audio, a division of Random House, Inc.

Not Blade Runner but something else great entirely

This story contains a few of the same characters and scenes from the movie Blade Runner but has a much different story that was fun & enjoyable to listen too. Animals are gold and the same could be said about this book too.

aight

lots of plot holes. wierd phrasing. neat concepts, though not resolved at or fully explored.

I've never felt so sorry for a spider in my life

This book is an extremely well written example of the need for empathy. The last 4-5 chapters made me want to cry in anguish because of the pain and suffering from different characters. I'll never look at a spider the same way though.

Scott Brick is the best

the book is good, fairly cerebral. but Scott Brick could read me a Highlights magazine and I'd be captivated and on the edge of my seat.

amazing.

One of the greatest, most engaging books of all time.
this book made me question my own morals and sense of empathy in a way I'm not quite accustomed to.

Truly Amazing

Would you consider the audio edition of Blade Runner to be better than the print version?

I have never read the print version, so I can not say.

What did you like best about this story?

I hate questions like this, especially for books that are done so incredibly well that there is nothing that I did not like. I can't choose one thing that I liked most about this book. I guess I like the superb way that it was crafted.

Which scene was your favorite?

Without spoiling anything, I like the scene in the police station after the arrest. Nail biting, edge of your seat stuff!

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I can't listen to any book all in one sitting, but I didn't want to turn it off when I had to.

Any additional comments?

Many people on here have stated how unlike the book the movie is. It really can't be stressed enough. If you have only seen the movie, and for some reason did not like it enough to give the book a whirl (you would have to be nuts!!!), then fear not. This book is so much deeper and more important than the movie. I use the word important because this book has the potential to imbibe its readers with a kind of magic and inspiration and awe that could almost tangibly effect them. It is easily my favorite book by Phillip K. Dick, and it is one of my favorites in the genre.

Better than the movie

I have become a big fan of Scott Brick's narrating, which was a big reason why I enjoyed this book. The story can get a little ambitious at times & the quality narration made all the difference in being able to follow it consistently. Overall, very good story as long as you can push through the first two chapters.

Fantastic insight to the film.

This book was a joy to listen to. The story was as good as I had hoped. The dictation was great and it clears some of the more mystifying things covered in the Film. I highly recommend it.

one of my favorite novels

it's one of my favorite novels. every once in a while I go back to it and find be thoughts to think about it. I'm a bit disappointed that they changed the title though. "blade runner" is never even mentioned in the book.

Great

This is one of the great PKD novels and one of the all time great science fiction novels. The performance is first rate.