Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said

Philip K. Dick

Jul 2012 · Sold by HarperCollins

About this ebook

Winner of the John W. Campbell Award and a Hugo and Nebula award nominee, Philip K. Dick's Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said is a rollicking chase story that combines altered reality, genetic enhancement, and drug use into a dystopian setting to create one of the most popular and enduring science fiction novels.

"Dick skillfully explores the psychological ramifications of this nightmare."—New York Times Review of Books

Jason Taverner—world-famous talk show host and man-about-town—wakes up one day to find that no one knows who he is—including the vast databases of the totalitarian government. And in a society where lack of identification is a crime, Taverner has no choice but to go on the run with a host of shady characters, including crooked cops and dealers of alien drugs. But do they know more than they are letting on? And just how can a person’s identity be erased overnight?

Ratings and reviews

A good PKD read but not as enthralling as A Scanner Darkly. A famous entertainer loses his identity for two days and wanders about a police state full of odd, but complex characters. I enjoyed the story but in the end missed the author's point and thought it ended too soon.

Identity, loss, grief and fear are explored in depth throughout this vivid, dystopian novel.

I wouldn't put it in the same ballpark as "Do Androids..." but great work per his usual.

About the author

Over a writing career that spanned three decades, PHILIP K. DICK (1928–1982) published 36 science fiction novels and 121 short stories in which he explored the essence of what makes man human and the dangers of centralized power. Toward the end of his life, his work turned to deeply personal, metaphysical questions concerning the nature of God. Eleven novels and short stories have been adapted to film, notably Blade Runner (based on Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?), Total Recall, Minority Report, and A Scanner Darkly, as well as television's The Man in the High Castle. The recipient of critical acclaim and numerous awards throughout his career, including the Hugo and John W. Campbell awards, Dick was inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame in 2005, and between 2007 and 2009, the Library of America published a selection of his novels in three volumes. His work has been translated into more than twenty-five languages.