- Hardcover: 246 pages
- Publisher: William Morrow & Co; 1st, First Edition, First Printing edition (Sep 1989)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0688052096
- ISBN-13: 978-0688052096
- Product Dimensions: 21.1 x 14.5 x 2.8 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,162,910 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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More About the Author
Product Description
Product Description
Douglas Quail is haunted by nightmares of Mars, covert missions and a life more glamorous than his earthbound 2089 AD reality. So he turns to "Recall", manufacturers of synthetic memories. They implant a memory into him but he soon finds that his nightmares are true memories.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
and definitely one of my favourites. A little late in realising that there was a novel, 21 years later, but I thought I would give it a try.
As would be expected it is heavily based on the screenplay, but it does divert, expand and add in a quite detailed plotline involving the alien artefacts.
To begin with the book practically mirrors the film including the dialogue, although it does start with an alternative scene on the surface of Mars. As would be expected of a book it is more detailed than anything a film could convey and Quaid's thoughts are much expanded upon and give a greater insight into the character whilst also explaining some of his onscreen behaviour. He is certainly deeper than Arnie portrayed him.
As the book progresses more detail is given of off screen events, such as what happens at Rekall post Quaid visit and who the man with the suitcase was, and sections added, such as a chapter on the shuttle journey between Earth and Mars when Quaid is in his fat woman disguise.
A major addition to the storyline is the previously mentioned alien artefacts and a whole chapter near the end is dedicated to expanding on what Quaid learns when Kuato scans his mind. There is no way that the detail in this chapter could have been in the film and I personally think that whilst it was interesting it was rather silly and is weaker than the screenplay. And why I rate it a 4.
Watching the film straight after the book certainly enhanced my enjoyment as I could add in the detail that was in it. It doesn't map across exactly, but what does are useful additions to the story.
For what this can now be got for, if like me you can never tire of watching the film, it can only add to what is already a masterpiece of science fiction film making.
As would be expected it is heavily based on the screenplay, but it does divert, expand and add in a quite detailed plotline involving the alien artefacts.
To begin with the book practically mirrors the film including the dialogue, although it does start with an alternative scene on the surface of Mars. As would be expected of a book it is more detailed than anything a film could convey and Quaid's thoughts are much expanded upon and give a greater insight into the character whilst also explaining some of his onscreen behaviour. He is certainly deeper than Arnie portrayed him.
As the book progresses more detail is given of off screen events, such as what happens at Rekall post Quaid visit and who the man with the suitcase was, and sections added, such as a chapter on the shuttle journey between Earth and Mars when Quaid is in his fat woman disguise.
A major addition to the storyline is the previously mentioned alien artefacts and a whole chapter near the end is dedicated to expanding on what Quaid learns when Kuato scans his mind. There is no way that the detail in this chapter could have been in the film and I personally think that whilst it was interesting it was rather silly and is weaker than the screenplay. And why I rate it a 4.
Watching the film straight after the book certainly enhanced my enjoyment as I could add in the detail that was in it. It doesn't map across exactly, but what does are useful additions to the story.
For what this can now be got for, if like me you can never tire of watching the film, it can only add to what is already a masterpiece of science fiction film making.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
5 reviews
21 of 24 people found the following review helpful
A Valuable read whether you liked the movie or not.
22 Jan 1999
Format:Paperback
This is an excellent book for those who saw the movie and thought "This idea had potential." The Piers Anthony version of this story is superior to both the movie and the screen play. This book gives insight into the mind of a alien race and what it might expect from a species that considers itself mature enough for space travel. Mr. Anthony puts a relatively new face on the oft used concept of colonialism extended to interplanetary colonization. We see that the downtrodden are not always forgotten. We are also given the opportunity to wrestle with the question, of what makes a person themselves; is it ones actions(past, present, or future) or is it ones thoughts and ideas (remembered and forgotten). While the "Total Recall" story is taken from a short story entitled, "We can remember it for you wholesale." Piers Anthony offers a fresh look at the timeless concepts.
4 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Don't ignore the book just because of the movie...
27 July 2004
Format:Paperback
The book by Anthony Pier is different from the movie, the first half is relatively the same, but the second half seems almost like a different thing. The ending, although the outcome is the same, is executed differently. The ending is actually explained with some intelligence too, and entire sub-plots are in the book.
The short story by Philip K. Dick, "We'll remember it for you wholesale" was the inspiration for this book.
A good entertaining read, although it's hard to read the book without imagining Arnold Schwarzeneggar's blazing Austrian accent speaking the dialogue.
3 1/2 mars...er....stars.
The short story by Philip K. Dick, "We'll remember it for you wholesale" was the inspiration for this book.
A good entertaining read, although it's hard to read the book without imagining Arnold Schwarzeneggar's blazing Austrian accent speaking the dialogue.
3 1/2 mars...er....stars.
Good story and an easy read
10 Jan 2012
Format:Paperback
The film "Total Recall" is actually one of the more thought-provoking films of the 1990s, one whose intelligence was largely ignored by the public because it starred Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The fact is, despite all its explosions, it is no less complex at its core than Vanilla Sky or Memento....
The Piers Anthony novel is well-written and quickly paced, but I got the impression that they commissioned Anthony to churn out a novelized version of the screenplay to coincide with the film's release. It's certainly a decent read, but if you didn't like the movie, you probably won't love the book.
The fact is, despite all its explosions, it is no less complex at its core than Vanilla Sky or Memento....
The Piers Anthony novel is well-written and quickly paced, but I got the impression that they commissioned Anthony to churn out a novelized version of the screenplay to coincide with the film's release. It's certainly a decent read, but if you didn't like the movie, you probably won't love the book.
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