The Ganymede Takeover

The Ganymede Takeover is worthwhile for a very phildickian tale combining more typical Dick themes with some surprising twists and turns, especially in regards to the Civil Rights Movement and the Nation of Islam. And as a collaboration with Ray Nelson, it's interesting to see how the writing style is, while similar to that of other Dick novels and full of much of his creative imagination and technology in a near-future Earth, is also full of unexpected humor and different pacing in terms of the plot (not to mention some awkward but possibly self-aware prose). Dick must have been one of the few creative minds in science fiction to find some way to tackle the Cold War, the Civil Rights Movement, Buddhism, collectivism versus individualism, and the recent legacy of World War II in such a zany yet thought-provoking manner, including some rather interesting aliens, worm-like beings occupying the Earth. 

Naturally, as one would expect with Dick, things are never as the appear on the surface, feelings are hurt and some are betrayed, and the central contrasts or dichotomous aspects of the mind, the social order, and in psychology and philosophy are perhaps not as clear-cut as one would expect. Perhaps the intersection of reality and unreality in this novel (occuring with weapons designed by Bulanik, a central figure of the novel who may be comparable to Palmer Eldritch) is less developed here or as challenging as Dick's famous works from the 1960s, but this novel is still worthwhile for rare glimpses at Dick's creative goosebumps 'vibing' with another writer. Frankly, the very humorous and dated (to the point of caricature) depiction of Percy X as a reflection of 1960s Black Power and Gus, the horrid redneck representing the white American Southerner as a redneck racist trying to revive the Confederacy leads one to presume Dick and Nelson were smoking marijuana while reading the news or listening to speeches of Maulana Karenga, Farrakhan, and Bull Connor.

Here's a fascinating reading of a short story by Ray Nelson and an interview with Nelson, including discussion of The Ganymede Takeover. Nelson, LeGuin, and Dick go way back...