Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Galactic Pot-Healer





























Joe Fernwright fixes ceramic pots in a future Cleveland. Since most of the world uses plastic, Joe doesn't have much work. He's kind of desperate, so when he gets a job offer plopped in his
toilet bowl, not only de we know we're in PKD novel, but he's ready to accept right away. The job offer comes from this Jabba The Hut like alien ("The Glimmung") from another galaxy. After Joe accepts the job (raising a cathdral from the bottom of another planet's ocean) the Glimmung transports Joe to Plowman's Planet where he's supposed to get to work.

Galactic Pot-Healer is probably in the top 5 strangest PKD novels. Sometimes it is completely random. However, in my humble opinion it is Dick's funniest novel. Healer was written in 1969 (PKD's late-60s novels are my favorites). However, it can probably be most closely aligned to Dick's Maze of Death published in 1970. Both novels are overtly religious, and also have a theme of migration to a new planet to begin a new endeavor.

Rumor has it that there will be a 3rd Library of America volume and it will include: Maze of Death, Valis, The Divine Invasion, and The Transmigration of Timothy Archer. While all of these novels display PKD ruminating on religion, I'm a tad aggrieved that Galactic Pot-Healer will not be included. If you're looking for some deep thoughts, and some good laughs, check it out.





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