The Shifting Realities of Philip K. Dick: Selected Literary and Philosophical Writings is an anthology of Dick's non-fiction edited by Lawrence Sutin, published as a First Vintage Books Edition in 1995 (ISBN 0-679-42644-2). The Boston Phoenix praised it for unearthing gems for both casual and serious Dick readers.
The collection assembles philosophical essays, journal entries, speeches, and plot scenarios in which Dick explores the nature of reality, sanity, and humanity. Sutin's editorial introduction positions Dick as both a brilliant science fiction writer and a visionary philosopher who chose to couch his speculations in fiction. The volume includes autobiography, critiques of science fiction, and provocative essays such as "The Android and the Human" and "If You Find This World Bad, You Should See Some of the Others." Two chapters of a proposed sequel to Dick's award-winning novel are also included.
This collection is significant as the most comprehensive single-volume gathering of Dick's non-fiction writings, demonstrating the astonishing range and eloquence of his lifelong philosophical inquiry. Sutin, who also authored the definitive Dick biography Divine Invasions and edited In Pursuit of VALIS, was uniquely positioned to curate this material. The volume remains essential reading for understanding Dick as a thinker and philosopher alongside his identity as a novelist.