A terrible vessel, but its own – a review of Philip K. Dick’s Tinker of the Galaxy

Here is the story of how few of them. Meet a potter embroiled in a strange adventure with a cunning alien, a book of prophecies and two cathedrals. The second edition of “Druciarz galaktyki” by Philip K. Dick with a fantastic introduction by Anna Kańtoch is now available thanks to the Rebis publishing house.

So funny to tear the sides – how about no?

Monotony and no sense. This is, in a nutshell, the life of Joe Fernwright, a ceramics restorer. The world he lives in provides him with virtually nothing but everyday worries. Will he finally get the contract? Will he manage to spend the money, which lose most of its value within a dozen or so hours after receiving it? Can he come up with a good password for the Game? Every day is the same until he receives a mysterious, and lucrative, job. Why would someone or something want to download it to Sirius 5?

I am ashamed to admit it, but this is my first encounter with the work of Philip K. Dick. Somehow it happened that our paths have not crossed so far, so I cannot place this book in the context of his entire work. However, I would like to refer to the text on the cover of Druciarz: “The funniest novel by Philip K. Dick”. This book, in my opinion, is not funny. It can be absurd at times, but it should come as no surprise, since its author is considered to be one of the precursors of weird fiction. In turn, there are very few funny things about it, for me. Scary and overwhelming, in turn, a whole lot. The plot takes place in 2046. Everything is made of plastic, everything is standardized (even on the street you should walk at a specific pace, otherwise the law enforcement officer will point out) and systematized. Inflation is so huge that money loses 80% of its value during the day. It is hard, bitter and overwhelming. In these realities, the main character must function somehow, a divorcee living in an apartment without windows (even without simulating the view outside the window), and additionally practically unemployed, because he has not received any commission for 7 months. Although his life begins to change with a mysterious proposal that results in a flight to Sirius 5, it is still full of rather unhappy events. Even an alien (or more precisely, Glimmung,

Faust must die!

Dick writes specifically, without deliberation, but at the same time in a specific style. Although it includes twists in the content, when reading, you get the impression that not much is happening and that the story is moving forward at an equal pace. What is worth remembering before reading Druciarz is at least a summary of Faust , because from about half of the book there are many references to him. Fortunately, for those who don’t remember this character or don’t know him, Wikipedia exists. I myself reached for the note contained in it after reading the entire novel and came to the conclusion that both stories are similar to each other.

The cliche is inexperienced

Except for FaustJoe himself often returns in his statements to his favorite terrestrial pastime, the Game. Choose a title for your book, give it to a computer in Japan to translate it into Japanese, and then put it back through the translator into your language. This is roughly the rules. The game is an important element of the main character’s life, but also an important point of reference to the events of Sirius 5, where the translation of the book of prophecies is even talked to a linguist, and the translation itself and its understanding have a large impact on how the plot unfolds and what decisions does Joe make. Both in the game and in the book of Kalends, the meaning of information changes with the translation. These inaccuracies lead to misinterpretations, and as a result … well, you have to read it yourself.

I want to judge by the cover

The book is beautifully published – in a hard, silver binding with a paper cover on it. In addition, I was delighted with the introduction written by Anna Kańtoch, which I read both before and after reading the novel, because it is a fantastic summary combined with interpretation, thanks to which I have the impression that I understood and appreciated this book more.