Claim: The Man in the High Castle is set in 1962.

The Man in the High Castle -LRB- 1962 -RRB- is an alternative history novel by American writer Philip K. Dick . Set in 1962 , fifteen years after an alternative ending to World War II , the novel concerns intrigues between the victorious Axis Powers -- primarily , Imperial Japan and Nazi Germany -- as they rule over the former United States , as well as daily life under the resulting totalitarian rule . The Man in the High Castle won the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 1963 and the Tähtivaeltaja Award in 1993 . The book would later receive a two season 2015 TV adaptation also under the name , The Man in the High Castle .   Reported inspirations include Ward Moore 's alternative Civil War history , Bring the Jubilee -LRB- 1953 -RRB- , various classic World War II histories , and the I Ching -LRB- referred to in the novel -RRB- . The novel features a `` novel within the novel '' comprising an alternate history within this alternate history wherein the Allies defeat the Axis -LRB- though in a manner distinct from the actual historical outcome -RRB- .