The Man Who Japed

By: Philip K. Dick

Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini

Following a devastating nuclear war, the Moral Reclamation government took over the world and forced its citizens to live by strictly puritanical rules—no premarital sex, drunkenness, or displaying of neon signs—all of which are reinforced through a constant barrage of messaging to the public. The chief purveyor of these messages is Alan Purcell, next in line to become head of the propaganda bureau. But there is just one problem: a statue of the government’s founder has been vandalized and the head is hidden in Purcell’s closet. In this buttoned-up society, maybe all a revolution needs is one really great prank …

©1956 A. A. Wyn, Inc (P)2025 Recorded Books

Not his best

I’m a huge PKD fan but this isn’t his best work. It was written early in his career and the story doesn’t really work. It’s confusing, disjointed, and not really too interesting.

However, you can hear the elements and themes that made it into his later and more popular works like “A Scanner Darkly” and “We Can Remember It for You Wholesale.” It was interesting to see PKD progress.

Narration is amazing.