Radio Free Albemuth (Posthumous) First Edition Reference

Radio Free Albemuth is the original version of what became VALIS. Dick wrote this novel first, then discarded it and wrote VALIS as a more ambitious treatment of the same autobiographical material — his 1974 mystical experience. The original manuscript was published posthumously by Arbor House in 1985, revealing an alternate version of Dick’s most personal narrative.

The Book

Where VALIS splits Dick into two characters (Phil Dick and Horselover Fat), Radio Free Albemuth maintains a more straightforward autobiographical approach. The novel follows Nicholas Brady, who receives transmissions from a divine satellite orbiting Earth. The simpler narrative structure makes it more accessible than VALIS, though less formally ambitious.

First Edition Identification

Publisher: Arbor House, New York Publication date: 1985 Format: Hardcover in dust jacket

Market Values

• First edition, fine/fine: $20–$60
• Unsigned: all copies are unsigned (posthumous publication)

Radio Free Albemuth is essential context for understanding VALIS — the two novels together show Dick working through his mystical experience in fiction, approaching the same material from different angles.