It began with a blinding light, a divine revelation from a mysterious intelligence that called itself VALIS (Vast Active Living Intelligence System). And with that, the fabric of reality was torn apart and laid bare so that anything seemed possible, but nothing seemed quite right.
It was madness, pure and simple. But what if it were true?
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Early in 1974 Dick felt a "pink beam" flashing through his head, a religious experience--or mild stroke--which inspired him to write his vast theological "Exegesis". In Valis the pink beam illuminates Dick's mentally unstable friend Horselover Fat; Philip is Greek for lover of horses and Dick is German for fat.
Dick's alter ego Fat duly creates the weird Gnostic theology of the Exegesis, with its visions of salvation from the insane side of reality--the Empire, whose Black Iron Prison cages us all. "The Empire never ended." Also there's a three-eyed race among us and all time between AD 103 and 1974 may be a divine illusion...
The resulting debates between Fat and friends, including Dick, are often hilariously insane. It's clear that Fat is deluded--until they all see the SF movie Valis, whose rock star actor-director suggests David Bowie in The Man Who Fell To Earth and which uncannily features Exegesis code phrases, timeslips, third eyes, early Christian symbols and pink beams.
Maybe the film's Vast Active Living Intelligence System, a satellite which controls minds via lasers, is the same as the messiah imagined by Fat? Naturally he and friends contact the director, leading to an unexpected interview with VALIS itself.
Dick was the supreme SF master of booby-trapped reality and Valis celebrates his own escape from the trap that claimed him in 1974. Chilling, moving and acknowledged by the SF Encyclopedia as the finest novel of Dick's last years. --David Langford
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Book Description Paperback. Condition: new. Paperback. It began with a blinding light, a divine revelation from a mysterious intelligence that called itself Valis. And with that, the fabric of reality was ripped open and laid bare so that anything seemed possible, but nothing seemed quite right.Part science fiction, part theological detective story in which God plays both the missing person and the perpetrator of the ultimate crime, VALIS is both disorienting and eerily funny and a joy to read. Classic science fiction from the master. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability. Seller Inventory # 9781780220390
Book Description paperback. Condition: New. Language: ENG. Seller Inventory # 9781780220390
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Book Description Paperback / softback. Condition: New. New copy - Usually dispatched within 4 working days. Classic science fiction from the master. Seller Inventory # B9781780220390
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Book Description Paperback. Condition: Brand New. 272 pages. 7.68x5.08x0.83 inches. In Stock. Seller Inventory # __1780220391
Book Description Condition: New. 2012. Paperback. Classic science fiction from the master. Num Pages: 272 pages. BIC Classification: FL. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 150 x 197 x 21. Weight in Grams: 258. . . . . . Books ship from the US and Ireland. Seller Inventory # V9781780220390
Book Description Condition: New. 2012. Paperback. Classic science fiction from the master. Num Pages: 272 pages. BIC Classification: FL. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 150 x 197 x 21. Weight in Grams: 258. . . . . . Seller Inventory # V9781780220390
Book Description PAP. Condition: New. New Book. Shipped from UK. Established seller since 2000. Seller Inventory # GB-9781780220390