Emmanuel Carrère
I Am Alive and You Are Dead: A Journey Into the Mind of Philip K. Dick (1993)
Author: Emmanuel Carrère
Genre: Nonfiction (Biography)
Book Summary:
Essentially a biography of science fiction author Philip K. Dick, this book was originally published in 1993 in French and was only recently (2004) translated into English by Timothy Bent. Carrère's book is, however, an unusual biography in that his approach blends "literary criticism and cultural history with a novelist's earnest speculation" (L.A. Times Book Review). The narrative begins with Dick's birth and covers his formative years, but the focus is on Dick the writer. What makes the book so compelling is the way that Carrère provides not only the social context in which Dick wrote his best-known books but the psychological context. Seeing as how Dick's books are extremely psychological in nature, it is interesting to see how the themes of his fiction reflected events in his own life--be it relationships, paranoia (lots of paranoia), or ruminations on the meaning of life (again, lots of ruminations on the meaning of life). The book is in fact much more than a simple biography, it is a statement on the doubts, hopes, and fears of Phil Dick and, by extension, those that many of us experience--even if Dick's life was an amplified version of the lives many of us live written out via analogy in the pages of his books. To call this book fascinating would be an enormous understatement. This book is, quite possibly, one of the greatest biography's ever written--definitely in terms of style, and likely with regard to content.
Geographical Setting: Berkeley, San Rafael, and San Fernando, California
Time Period: 1928-1982
Appeal Characteristics:
Anyone who is a fan of Philip K. Dick's novels is sure to enjoy this book as Carrère explores many of Dick's writings (including the partially published Exegesis). Being an avid fan and collector of his books, I found it very hard to put this book down (and will likely read it again at some time). The book is also likely to appeal to those interested in science fiction writers of the "New Wave" and in unique individuals--Dick definitely merits the use of that adjective. The book also provides some insight into Bay Area California circa the late '60s and early '70s. It would also be somewhat interesting for those wishing to understanding the nature of mental illness brought on by paranoia and drug abuse. The book is paced well, and the author changes up his style in ways that are appropriate and compelling and which provide a change of perspective that is both refreshing and exemplary of a writer at the top of his form. The book has garnered exceptionally high praise from numerous literary critics--and deservedly so. Much more than a simple biography of Philip K. Dick, science fiction writer. This is immersion into the man's mind.
Read-alikes: definitely of interest in the context of Phil Dick's own work. Of note are his books Ubik (1969), A Scanner Darkly (1977), The Man in the High Castle (1962), and Valis (1981). The latter is a semi-autobiographical account of Dick's encounter with an alien life-force he referred to as VALIS. Another excellent biography of PKD is Divine Invasions: A Life of Philip K. Dick (1989) by Lawrence Sutin. If you're interested in more titles by Emmanuel Carrère, try The Class Trip for which he won the Prix Femina Literary Prize in 1995, or The Adversary: A True Story of Monstrous Deception (2000), which tells the true story of a man who killed his wife, children, and parents after living a lie for over 18 years.
Red Flags: drug use, a few sexual references, and a bit of foul language
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