Time Out of Joint

By: Philip K. Dick

Narrated by: Jeff Cummings

Length: 7 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's summary

Ragle Gumm has a unique job: Every day he wins a newspaper contest. And when he isn’t consulting his charts and tables, he enjoys his life in a small town, in 1959. At least, that’s what he thinks. But then strange things start happening. He finds a phone book where all the numbers have been disconnected, and a magazine article about a famous starlet named Marilyn Monroe, whom he’s never heard of. Plus, everyday objects are beginning to disappear and are replaced by strips of paper with words written on them, like "bowl of flowers" and "soft-drink stand". When Ragle skips town to try to find the cause of these bizarre occurrences, his discovery could make him question everything he has ever known.

©1987 Laura Coelho, Christopher Dick, and Isa Dick (P)2012 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Dystopic future with pastoral past

Time Out of Joint by Philip K Dick is a dystopian future where Earth is at war with lunar colonists and the only individual who can inform defense is living in a 1959 version of the US where solving a daily newspaper puzzle provides the clues for the next planetary strikes. Gumm is surrounded by others most of which have been brainwashed into believing this fantasy. Gradually, he becomes aware of something not right and finally escapes to learn the truth.

Surprisingly, Dick utilizes very little sci-fi, other than the lunar colonization which is only mentioned. 1998 offers little in the way of advancement (other than lunar conquest) in terms of technology. The elaborate nature of the ruse seems overdone as is the ease of which lunar spies and sympathizers can infiltrate.

The narration is reasonable with good pacing that moves the tale along quickly.

Another great work by PKD

Great narration, and another great story by PKD. Always keeps you thinking ahead wondering where it’s going.

elements of Truman show and Ubiq abound.

elements of Truman show and Ubiq abound. worth the short listen. buy it now ok.

technically 3.5 stars for the story

Any additional comments?

Master of the weird, Philip K. Dick takes us back to a 1958 world revolving around Ragle Gum, literally. Famous for continuously winning a newspaper contest and the subject of news himself, everyone seems to know him. However, as we read more, nothing is ever at it appears.

I appreciate this work as a classic from a twisted mind, but it is more predictable than most. The twist comes in the second half of the story as in the first half we are only given the background, the drawing of the picture of Mr. Gum’s life consumed by winning entries in the newspaper contest.

Where he becomes confused, so perhaps, do the readers, drawing conclusions, forming theories and reading just one more chapter to find the clues as to what is really going on.

Without spoilers, this is definitely from the mind of Mr. Philip K. Dick.

would PKD do well today?

masterful world building and fascinating storytelling by PKD as usual, thought provoking.
but one has to wonder if his works would have been very well received in today's day and age with some subtle views hinted within the book and the overtone of sexism consistent in all his writings.

Time yarn copyright 1959

dated story by a good author but cutting edge thought is capable of much greater depth now

Climax never comes. Plot ends so suddenly.

This was really fun getting to see the plot unfold in a not too often used way. Obviously a popular movie took huge inspirations from this that sorta made it easy to predict where things were going.

This though did sorta feel like half a story. A whole lot of world and character building was done and a very short scattering of plot build up towards the end.

Right when the plot starts picking up speed and details, the book suddenly ends. Sorta feels like there are missing chapters that would contain a few more climactic moments the plot is supposed to build up to and a ending.

This really didn't feel at all like it had an ending.

Loved the concepts though and still enjoyed my short time experiencing it.

Good Dick, PK

First experience with Dick, PK. I was as lost as Gumm at first, turned out to be... Out there, in a good way.

The narrator did a great job of making most of the characters sound annoying, esp the woman and children. At first I hated, but I ended up thinking that the annoying voices added to Gumm's psychosis.

Great performance

This was a neat one. As always the performance was wonderful and immersive. This particular story was not as immediately engaging as some others of Dick's, but as a whole it was a good premise and when more details about what was going on were revealed it kept me hooked. A great example of Dick's writing where reality is not what it seems and nothing can be trusted.

Well ahead of his time even in 1959

People who know PKD's works do not need a review.

To hear one of PKD's earlier novels has been a great experience. His stories travel better through time than most of Heinlein's novels. At times I was reminded of 'The Manchurian Candidate' ( Richard Condon, 1959) and of the more recent CIA experiments in mind control.
I was/am keen to again hear Heinlein's 'Moon is a Harsh Mistress' (that I do rank as one of my favouite stories) after listening to this.

Jeff Cummings' reading was good as were the ideas embedded in the story. The quest for the nature of reality and the nature of words in defining percieved reality is interesting at very least. ( Not a spoiler because that is not the story, just following through to his later works.)

For anyone new to PKD this is a mystery story set in a future written over 50 years ago, and not too hard to follow,

For me it was a great listen.