Confessions Of A Crap Artist (GollanczF.)
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Product Description
Jack Isidore is a 'crap artist', a collector of crackpot ideas and worthless objects. His beliefs make him a man apparently unsuited for real life and so his sister, an edgy and aggressive woman, and his brother-in-law, a crass and foul-mouthed businessman, feel compelled to rescue him from it. But, observed through Jack's murderously innocent gaze, Fay and Charley Hume are seen to be just as obsessed as Jack. Their obsessions may be a little more acceptable than Jack's but they are uglier. And, in the end and thanks to Jack's intervention, theirs lead to tragedy . . .
About the Author
Philip K. Dick (1928-1982) was born in Chicago but lived in California for most of his life. He went to college at Berkeley for a year, ran a record store and had his own classical-music show on a local radio station. He published his first short story, 'Beyond Lies the Wub' in 1952. Among his many fine novels are The Man in the High Castle, Time Out of Joint, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? and Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
What is normality?,
By A Customer
This review is from: Confessions of a Crap Artist (Paperback)
That's the question at the back of this non-SF book, which was the first of Dick's mainstream novels to find an audience, in the mid 70s. The crap-artist of the title is Jack Isidore, gatherer of bits of bizarre information, and chronicler of the lives of the 'normal' people around him. But as Jack sees these people abuse and hurt each other he comes to wonder if normality is all it's cracked up to be. The reader, dragged along by Jack's weird, skewed vision of the world, comes to sympathise with him. Often disturbing, often darkly funny, this is Dick at his most real. If you thought he was just another pulp sci-fi writer, albeit a good one, this is the book to shatter your illusion.
5.0 out of 5 stars
PKD's Best Mainstream Novel,
By
This review is from: Confessions of a Crap Artist (Gollancz S.F.) (Paperback)
"Jack Isidore is a 'crap artist', a collector of crackpot ideas and worthless objects. His beliefs make him a man apparently unsuited for real life and so his sister, an edgy and aggressive woman, and his brother-in-law, a crass and foul-mouthed businessman, feel compelled to rescue him from it. But, observed through Jack's murderously innocent gaze, Fay and Charley Hume are seen to be just as obsessed as Jack. Their obsessions may be a little more acceptable than Jack's but they are uglier. And, in the end and thanks to Jack's intervention, theirs lead to tragedy . . ."
-- from product review Written in 1959 but not published until 1975, Confessions of a Crap Artist was the only mainstream novel published during Dick's lifetime. It is an intriguing look at what it is to be normal set within the milieu of 1950s California. Disturbing and funny this is an excellent read. If you are new to Philip K Dick's work I would also recommend the Science Fiction novels (which generally seem to be regarded as among his best): Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep?: The novel which became 'Blade Runner' (S.F. Masterworks) Ubik (S.F. Masterworks) A Scanner Darkly (S.F. Masterworks) The Man In The High Castle (S.F. Masterworks) Flow My Tears, The Policeman Said (S.F. Masterworks) The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch (S.F. Masterworks) If you fancy another of PKD's mainstream works, you might like to try Mary and the Giant (Gollancz S.F.) or In Milton Lumky Territory (Gollancz S.F.). Also of interest may be the excellent biography of Philip K Dick Divine Invasions: A Life of Philip K. Dick (Gollancz S.F.)
5.0 out of 5 stars
The first PKD I ever read...,
By Lexx (Worcestershire, UK) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Confessions of a Crap Artist (Gollancz S.F.) (Paperback)
... and again the most recent. Yes, I dug this out of my shoe-box containing my 1990's US Vintage editions ( the ones with the goofy computer art covers ).
Well, I have to say, my student self had great taste, because this is a brilliant book. It perfectly captures the rot that began to set in to affluent post-war America. In fact, this book is so sharp, it reminds me of the recent TV series MAD MEN, in its depiction of that side of America. It's hard to believe that PKD's forte was actually science fiction. This has no sci-fi whatsoever, yet it's utterly compelling, and beautifully written. The characterisation is superb. I'm glad I revisited it, and it makes me want to read all the PKDs that aren't yet in my collection.
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