Flow my tears, the policeman said
by Philip K. Dick · first published 1974
50% recommend45% neutral5% critical
Why HN recommends it
A 1970s novel by Philip K. Dick, ranked among his best, with a reality-bending plot and creative concepts. It works well as a starting point for readers new to Dick's work.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said is a 1974 science fiction novel by American writer Philip K. Dick. The story follows a genetically enhanced pop singer and television star who wakes up in a world where he has never existed. The novel is set in a futuristic dystopia, where the United States has become a police state in the aftermath of a Second Civil War. It was nominated for a Nebula Award in 1974 and a Hugo Award in 1975, and was awarded the John W. Campbell Memorial Award for Best Science Fiction Novel in 1975. TV star Jason Taverner is no more. Overnight, he looses his ID cards, the re
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…awful ones. The Martian is probably one of the worst popular and hyped books I've ever read, together with Ready Player One. If I had to pick one PK Dick book it wouldn't be Scanner Darkly but Ubik or Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said. Also I think some important non-English fiction is missing. Yevgeny Zamyatin's We is a foundational dystopian book, Roadside Picnic is great, 20000 Leagues under the Sea and Ten Billion Days and One…
on “Science Fiction Books Everyone Should Read” ↗The VALIS trilogy and his exegesis are probably the most philosophical but almost most impenetrable of his works. Some of his intermediate period stuff, like Flow My Tears the Policeman Said and Radio Free Albemuth is a softer landing, as you can see the ideas that lead to his later work building from his earlier more facile metaphysics. I re-read his corpus last year in the order he wrote…
on “The hypersane are among us, if only we are prepared to look” ↗Related: Philip K. Dick's Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said is a great novel on this topic. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flow_My_Tears,_the_Policeman_S...
on “The paper passport's days are numbered” ↗A bunch of William Gibsons. Philip K. Dick's Ubik, A Scanner Darkly, and Flow My Tears, The Policeman Said. Clifford D. Simak's City. Classics.
on “Ask HN: What book have you given as a gift?” ↗J.R.R. Tolkien: The lord of the Rings (lost count) Philip K. Dick: Ubik, Flow My Tears The Policeman Said, A Scanner Darkly, etc. too many to count (many more than twice) William Gibson: everything at least twice Neal Stephenson: Snow crash (three times, I think) Clifford D. Simak: City H. P. Lovecraft:…
on “Ask HN: Which books did you read at least twice?” ↗…those who want to delve into one of the best writers who has ever lived (of course hardcore PKD fans might disagree with the following, and I'd be happy to debate with them :-): STARTING POINT: - Ubik, Flow My Tears the Policeman Said, The Man In The High Castle, A Scanner Darkly, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? - those are his most famous novels, self contained, and the most accessible. They're fantastic, and a great entry point…
on “Philip K. Dick: A Visionary Among the Charlatans (1975)” ↗So many great examples to choose from. PKD might have been the most creative in this area - Can-D is one of his most striking creations, but another interesting one is KR-3 in Flow My Tears, The Policeman Said.
on “Soma, Spice and Substance D: A History of Drugs in Science Fiction” ↗If that’s the only book of his you’ve read, you’re really missing out - it’s good, but not his best. I would recommend, and you are welcome to ignore should you choose: Ubik Flow my tears, the policeman said Dr Bloodmoney Radio Free Albemuth Time out of joint A scanner darkly Mary and the giant And finally as an aside, 334 by Thomas Disch. Fun fact: Dick shopped Disch to the feds for in his view pedalling…
on “Philip K. Dick: A Visionary Among the Charlatans (1975)” ↗…and there's some of that in PKD, at least on the surface level. I do think PKD improved as a writer in the 1970s, once he kicked his drug habit and slowed down his hyperactive output; from this era, Flow My Tears the Policeman Said, A Scanner Darkly, and the VALIS trilogy all has some beautiful writing and show Dick as a deeper and more mature writer. As for the rest of the sci-fi genre, there's a lot of talent among his contemporaries.…
on “The Essential Philip K. Dick” ↗Wasn’t a fan of the Three Stigmata, personally. I quite like to recommend “A Maze Of Death” as a starter, and the short story collections. There are some very weird (and IMHO great) concept novels like “Flow My Tears the Policeman Said”. And of course “A Scanner Darkly” After a while you get a feeling there’s a sort of semi-coherent PKD reality out there, in which continuity is less important than the concept being played with, but…
on “The “baseline” scene in bladerunner 2049 was written by Ryan Gosling” ↗“A Scanner Darkly” captures a moment in American drug culture intersecting with the cult of Scientology very artistically, in my opinion. “Flow My Tears, The Policeman Said” is among Dick’s peak stuff, too.
on “Philip K. Dick: A Visionary Among the Charlatans (1975)” ↗I think Flow My Tears, The Policeman Said is a great title. It sets up the narrative style and loads the gun for a incoming tragedy.
on “Philip K. Dick: Stanisław Lem Is a Communist Committee (2015)” ↗…Everytime you think you've got a handle on what's happening, he pulls the rug out from under you, all the way to the end. Some of his other books try to do the same thing, but tie things up too nicely (like Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said).
on “How to Build a Universe That Doesn't Fall Apart Two Days Later, Philip K. Dick” ↗I adapted The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch for the stage many years ago, but was refused permission to perform it by P. K. Dick's estate. It is truly a masterpiece! We ended up using Flow My Tears, The Policeman Said, since that was an existing adaption by a friend of Philip K. Dick's that they had no control over.
on “Ask HN: What are your favorite sci-fi books?” ↗This is the passage in Acts (…”he (the eunuch) went away rejoicing”) which Philip K Dick took as a divine sign to him because he claimed to have written an independently inspired scene in _Flow My Tears, The Policeman Said_
on “Africa's Merchant Kings” ↗