Friday, April 19, 2019

Dune


Dune is the multiple award-winning first book in the series by Frank Herbert. A classic, I've read it several times.

from the back of the book:
Dune is one of the rare novels that has met with unanimous praise, both in science fiction and literary circles. Since the time of its first publication, it has become a best-selling classic, hailed as a landmark in the field and as an amazing feat of creation.
Wikipedia describes it,
Set in the distant future amidst a feudal interstellar society in which various noble houses control planetary fiefs, Dune tells the story of young Paul Atreides, whose family accepts the stewardship of the planet Arrakis. While the planet is an inhospitable and sparsely populated desert wasteland, it is the only source of melange, or "the spice", a drug that extends life and enhances mental abilities.[7] As melange can only be produced on Arrakis, control of the planet is a coveted and dangerous undertaking. The story explores the multi-layered interactions of politics, religion, ecology, technology, and human emotion, as the factions of the empire confront each other in a struggle for the control of Arrakis and its spice.
Fantasy Book Review says,
Frank Herbert’s Dune is easily one of the most layered works of fiction produced during the twentieth century. From examining Byzantine political gambits to the human penchant for hero worship, Herbert using a far-flung future setting to examine the best and worst aspects of human nature. Dune is easily one of the primary masterpieces of science fiction.
The New Yorker praises it, calls it a classic, and says,
“Dune” is an epic of political betrayal, ecological brinkmanship, and messianic deliverance. It won science fiction’s highest awards —the Hugo and the Nebula— and went on to sell more than twelve million copies during Herbert’s lifetime. As recently as last year, it was named the top science-fiction novel of all time in a Wired reader’s poll.
The Guardian says, "It has sold millions of copies, is perhaps the greatest novel in the science-fiction canon and Star Wars wouldn’t have existed without it. Frank Herbert’s Dune should endure as a politically relevant fantasy". SFReviews.net opens with this: "Literary landmark and pop culture icon, Frank Herbert's epoch-making Dune has for so long held the crown as the Most Important SF Novel Evar".

12 comments:

  1. Sounds good, I will see if I can get it on my kindle. Valerie

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I have always enjoyed it. The sequels aren't as good, and there are a lot of sequels, but the original deserves its "classic" status.

      Delete
  2. Sigh. I tried to get into this series back in college. Didn't work for me.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I loved the first one. I was increasingly disappointed by the sequels. The original is the only one I've kept on the shelf.

      Delete
  3. I avoided Dune for years, until a couple of years ago, then I wondered why, it is a fabulous story with interesting characters.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Isn't it, though! I read it first in high school, and have re-read it several times through the years. I was incredibly disappointed with the sequels, tho I have a Children of Dune mini-series around here waiting for me to watch it.

      Delete
  4. I've actually read Dune, but remember very little about it. Have a lovely Easter, dear.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I realized I had forgotten a lot when I re-read it this time. Must've been 15 years or more since I read it last.

      Delete
  5. I read the series long ago. I remember thinking the first one was the best. (Kind of like Star Wars--LOL!) ;)

    They made that movie that I didn't like at all.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The first one was the best. I read a few of the others but gave up that effort. It's been adapted more than once. It'd be hard to do justice to the book.

      Delete
  6. I recently picked up a copy of this book as I have never read it. It was really popular back when I was in college. Guess it is time to give it a read. Happy Easter weekend. Hugs-Erika

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I don't know if this is one of those books that's fallen off the general radar? It's still well worth reading :)

      Delete