I was about to recommend some of those. Basically, some of the stuff from before he went all weird due to (a drug trip/a stroke, I forget).
Count me strongly with those who think Dick sucks, as it were. No talent hack who appeals to people who value style over message or story. And his style reeks too.
Dick did refer to the three books as a trilogy in an interview.
Better title than the movie, Blade Runner. Dick was like Ellison, all the thinking went into the title. Most Dick novels I didn’t bother finishing. I didn’t care if the protagonists lived or died. No empathy; no identification.
One of the great, unanswered questions of the universe. God, his books were awful.
Well, Androids has been recognized as a classic of the genre, and Man in the High Castle won a Hugo, so that’s why he found a publisher: some whose job it was to pick out good novels for publication thought they were.
His earlier novels were more conventional that his later works; the first of his novels I read was The Penultimate Truth, which has a more conventional plot, but does touch on Dick’s usual themes of conspiracies.
He also wrote some great short stories. “I Can Remember It For You Wholesale” and “Second Variety” were excellent work (though their movies were nowhere close; “Second Variety” was the second scariest SF story I read as a kid*).
Dick was never my favorite, but I certainly respect his output, and clearly, he’s one SF writer who got a ton of notice from literary sources after his death.
*The scariest was Jack Williamson’s “With Folded Hands.”
I know, I’m just saying you don’t need to think of them that way. No shared characters no continuing plot, etc.
Well, yes, it is a lot easier in a short story, in which there are, inevitably, a lot fewer ends to be tied
As for the novels, saying he couldn’t and opposed to couldn’t be bothered to was merely a figure of speech. The point, however, is that the endings of his novels are typically an unsatisfying let-down, even though the journey to get there is often highly involving. Possibly this was some sort of intentional literary effect, although I am pretty sure I am far from the only person who dislikes it; more likely however, it was just laziness and lack of control on Dick’s part.
** Minority Report Spoilers ** (and continuing a minor hijack)
He believes in the pre-cogs and pre-crime fully and without question. When his name comes up, he can’t just let it go. The pre-cogs can’t be wrong, which means one way or another he is going to kill that man. So hiding out isn’t an option; he has to find out why.
And a non-spoiler comment about Minority Report – the motivation and ending to the novella is (IMO) superior to the movie.
There are problems with reality too in “Do androids…” In fact there are in most if not all of Dick’s books. And there’s no point in asking what is really real, because you never know.
Random, confuse, unsympathetic characters? Well, that’s Dick. I used to love it specifically for these reasons. I don’t anymore. I doubt the OP will have more luck with other books. If anything, they’re worst from this point of view. The man in the high castle is pretty straightforward, by Dickian standarts.
Hated TMitHC (boring!!!). Loved “WCRIfYW.” Not sure if I’ve ever read anything else by him…