Play Audiobook Sample
Time Out of Joint Audiobook
Play Audiobook Sample
(3.00) - 3,516 listener ratings
Quick Stats About this Audiobook
Total Audiobook Chapters:
Longest Chapter Length:
Shortest Chapter Length:
Average Chapter Length:
Audiobooks by this Author:
Publisher Description
Ragle Gumm has a unique job: every day he wins a newspaper contest. And when he isn’t consulting his charts and tables, he enjoys his life in a small town in 1959. At least, that’s what he thinks. But then strange things start happening. He finds a phone book where all the numbers have been disconnected, and a magazine article about a famous starlet named Marilyn Monroe, whom he’s never heard of. Plus, everyday objects are beginning to disappear and are replaced by strips of paper with words written on them, like “bowl of flowers” and “soft-drink stand.” When Ragle skips town to try to find the cause of these bizarre occurrences, his discovery could make him question everything he has ever known.
Download and start listening now!
"Started slow, but that may have been a function of the fact that I hadn't read a summary and had no idea what it was about. Without giving too much away, it's kind of like The Truman Show, only weirder of course. The mystery of what was really going on here kept me hooked."
— Julie (4 out of 5 stars)
Time Out of Joint Listener Reviews
-
" Dick has some fun ideas, e.g., words on a slip of paper replace the things they represent He could have used a mentor to improve his choppy style, though. "
— Dr., 2/3/2014 -
" Great read keeps you guessing. (Truman Show, anyone?) "
— Jennifer, 1/28/2014 -
" For the first four-fifths of this book, Dick gradually and carefully builds an atmosphere of paranoia and uncertainty with regard to what is real and what is illusion. Unfortunately, the last fifth of the book undoes a lot of this introductory work with an ending that is not up to the same level. "
— Dan, 1/27/2014 -
" This was a great book if you like science fiction! What a great twist ending. It sucks you in from the beginning because you are trying to figure out if the main charature is really crazy of if it's the rest of the world. "
— Meghan, 1/1/2014 -
" I liked it, but it was disappointing to figure out the reality Ragle Gumm was looking for, I imagined something more sci-fi, more trippy and imaginative. Perhaps because I know how little close he was guessing what 1998 would be like? However, it's a definite page-turner, the characters are mildly entertaining and likable and the story is intriguing (that wears off in the last 60 pages with the revealing of the so called reality). "
— Anca, 1/1/2014 -
" Sort of fizzled out at the end for me, but reads like a good Twilight Zone episode. I found myself wondering how much of this story inspired movies like The Matrix. Overall I liked it. It was a solid 4 until the last few chapters. "
— Jaycob, 6/22/2013 -
" Great story, like almost all of his; this time the writing didn't get in the way of enjoying the story. "
— Stan, 5/28/2013 -
" Philip Dick was always thought-provoking! What is reality, and what isn't? He'll take you for a ride... "
— Sharyl, 4/17/2013 -
" Although this book is, like most of Dick's work, terribly plotted and poorly written, its characters undeveloped, I rather liked it for the outrageous premise. As ever, the theme is that things are not as they seem and the hero is, but for a single talent, much like you or me. "
— Erik, 4/12/2013 -
" Another very powerful exploration into sanity/insanity, very well written. "
— Dominic, 4/4/2013 -
" The slow beginning is obligatory to achieve the reward. That payoff is one othe best last fifty (or so) pages of fiction I have read in a while. "
— Gil, 3/14/2013 -
" This is perhaps my favorite book by one of my favorite authors. It is simultaneously one of his most coherent, intriguing, and whacked-out plots. "
— Tony, 12/7/2012
About Philip K. Dick
Philip K. Dick (1928–1982) published thirty-six science fiction novels and 121 short stories in which he explored the essence of what makes man human and the dangers of centralized power. Toward the end of his life, his work turned toward deeply personal, metaphysical questions concerning the nature of God. Eleven novels and short stories have been adapted to film, notably Blade Runner (based on Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?), Total Recall, Minority Report, and A Scanner Darkly. The recipient of critical acclaim and numerous awards throughout his career, Dick was inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame in 2005, and in 2007 the Library of America published a selection of his novels in three volumes. His work has been translated into more than twenty-five languages.
About Jeff Cummings
Jeff Cummings, as an audiobook narrator, has won both an Earphones Award and the prestigious Audie Award in 2015 for Best Narration in Science and Technology. He is also a twenty-year veteran of the stage, having worked at many regional theaters across the country, from A Contemporary Theatre in Seattle and the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta to the Utah Shakespeare Festival in Cedar City and the International Mystery Writers’ Festival in Owensboro, Kentucky. He also spent seven seasons with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival.