Philip K. Dick

An item at American Writers Museum

Philip K. Dick is among the most influential science fiction authors. In works like Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (1968) and Hugo Award-winning The Man in the High Castle (1962), Dick considered the nature of reality. Is there a hidden "real" reality? What makes a human being "human"?

His fans include writer Jonathan Lethem, editor of the Library of America series. In an interview, Lethem described Dick's "doubleness," explaining, "There's a layer of satirical or fantastical inventiveness-he's one of the great idea men of all literary history-but there's also this personal emotional stake."

AMERICAN VOICES

An exhibit at American Writers Museum

American writing is distinctive, diverse, and comes in many forms from across the nation. The 100 authors featured here represent the evolution of American writing. Learn more about each writer on the timeline by turning the panels below their portraits. Explore centuries of writing by pulling, turning, and touching the interactive elements on the counter.

This is not meant to be a list of the greatest or most influential writers. Instead, we present authors and works as part of the American story as it grows and changes. Taken together, this rich literary heritage reflects America in all of its complexity: its energy, hope, conflict, disillusionment, and creativity.

American Writers Museum