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A classic Sci Fi story told in its entirety without cuts
“Dune is a wonderful book. Hearing it told on audio cd's allows you to use your imagination to create the world you're hearing about. If you are reluctant to buy this set because you saw the awful film version of Dune put that out of your mind. The movie had nothing to do with the real story of Dune which is artful, exciting -- thrilling really. This audio book is suitable for teenagers to adults and would be appreciated by any lover of classic science fiction.”
An amazon user wrote this on 2009-12-26. -
Great book
“Great book! Great story and author. If you played the Dune game series, this book is a must have.”
An amazon user wrote this on 2009-12-25. -
A great classic
“Engaging to the point where it is hard to stop reading, with wife already asleep on your side while you are trying to keep on reading in silence!”
An amazon user wrote this on 2009-12-19. -
An Enduring Science Fiction Classic
“The year is 1981 and my father is reading Dune aloud to my mother in their bedroom. The door is open, and even though I'm supposed to be in bed, I keep creeping out of my room to hear the story. Since I have just learned how to read, my ambitious father has tried to get me to read the Hobbit--and failed--due to my childish dislike of tea parties. (Don't worry, I will eventually read the Hobbit on my own and love it. I will also eventually love tea parties. The world continues in its course.) Little does Dad know that he is unleashing science fiction with all its transformative ideas on his four year old daughter. I eventually get tired of waiting for my parents to read Dune at night and start sneaking it out during the day. Granted, my first reviews of Dune (exposited to my patient mother) run along extremely limited lines like: "And then Paul runs into the desert and lives in the caves and wears a stilsuit and rides giant worms!" But with each successive reading the world of Arrakis opened up further and further, with new implications to consider. This was science fiction as I imprinted on it.
An amazon user wrote this on 2009-12-18.
Dune is an epic and densely plotted science fiction novel. Herbert was obviously exploring ideas about ecology, evolution, biology, inheritance, colonialism, war, drugs, and most especially, religion, as he tracks the journey of Paul Atreides from promising ducal heir to guerilla fighter to religious figure. We are introduced to Paul and his mother, on the departure from Paul's birthworld, Caladan, a water-rich planet much like Earth. The departure is inevitable, as Paul's father, Duke Leto has been maneuvered into a switch of planetary fiefs for political reasons. Paul, adolescent, on the cusp of early manhood, will be tested by the Bene Gesserit, a religious order founded in eugenics theory, dedicated to providing mankind with their ultimate saviour. They believe Paul has a chance to be that saviour, the Kwisatz Haderach, but are not completely sure. They can not afford to have a potential Messiah haring off to the arse-end of the universe without examining his potential. Paul passes their test, and is declared human, although the Bene Gesserit reserve their judgement on his full potential. They warn him of the political trap set for his family, but more or less, consign he and his mother to the vagaries of fate.
Arrakis, aka Dune, while a desert planet, is not entirely barren. For one thing, it is the sole location in the known universe where spice (the wonder drug of the 11,000s) can be produced via complicated biological processes involving giant sandworms. Space-faring navigators require this drug to perform their role, the wealthy of the galaxy live and die by the production of spice, and the major religions and science/technological orders use spice as well to enhance prescience or mental faculties. The previous rulers of Arrakis, the Harkonnens, are also life-long enemies of Paul's family, the Atreides. The Harkonnen, as one might imagine, are pretty pissed (outwardly) about being forced to give up their motherlode of wealth and power, and have already set in motion plans to seize what they once held and overthrow the Atreides once and for all. (Nifty writer trick that Herbert pulls off here: He doesn't try to conceal the big horrible plan or the main bad guys or the betrayer. He tells you. In the second chapter! And it works, because while we know, the Atreides do not fully know how to evade the trap that is being set for them.)
When the jaws of the Harkonnen trap finally close around the Atreides family, Paul and his mother are forced to take to the harsh desert of Arrakis to escape. It is out in the desert that Paul meets up with the indigenous people of Arrakis, the Fremen. He and Jessica agree to teach the Fremen their Bene Genesserit ways in exchange for the Fremen knowledge about the desert. The Fremen also believe that Paul might be the prophesied Kwisatz Haderach, something which Paul and Jessica duly exploit as Paul grows to adulthood. As he grows in power, he works to overthrow the Harkonnen.
This is pretty much my go-to book for science fiction virtuosity. It sits next to Enders Game and Foundation on my shelves as the classics from my childhood. Frank Herbert does an excellent job of seemingly effortless world building. He doesn't try to clumsily exposit the mythical references upon which the bedrock of Dune's religious ambience is built. (Unlike the clumsily written prequels offered up by his son and Kevin J. Anderson, who decide inexplicably to shuffle half the mythos out and replace with things like "feng shui" in the Bene Gesserit birthing rooms. Give the prequels a pass, as the two I read made only the most cursory attempt to align with Herbert's original vision.) He doesn't bang you over the head with science, although one character Kynes is prone to philosophical musings about biology. There's a wonderful balance of court intrigue, military politics, ecological concerns, questions of morality, explorations of religion, and Machiavellian ruler-princes deciding how to best run the universe. For the action-starved, tense scenes with killer storms and giant sandworms larger than buildings will keep you turning the pages. Arrakis is rendered with gritty, textured harshness, and the struggle of humans to transform their world and their universe is set in strong relief against this.
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My all-time favorite novel
“This first Dune novel, along with the second one one of the series (Dune Messiah) is my all time favorite novel of any kind. I first read it as a teenager and have read it at least once a decade since. I am currently re-reading this edition on my brand, spanking new Kindle and it is every bit as good as I remember it. I am amazed that each time I read it, as I pass through different periods of my life, I find different things to enjoy about the story and pick up something new every time. I cannot recommend this book highly enough! This is why it's my first Amazon book review. I couldn't come up with a better first book.”
An amazon user wrote this on 2009-11-24.
