Dune by Frank Herbert: Overview

  • Thread starter Turtle
  • Start date
In summary: you know).Yes, I've read "The Belgariad" and it's great. I also recommend "The Malloreon" and "The Elenium". All of Eddings' books are good, but the later writings on the series are not my favorite.
  • #1
Turtle
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0
Can anyone tell me what Dune is about please!
 
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  • #2
Dune never struck me as being a particularly sciency book. Maybe this should be moved to general discussion, where it may get more attention...

Ok... my take:

Contains spoilers!













Some time in the future, there is a war called the Butlerian Jihad, of man against intelligent machines. Man won. The new order of the universe is based on navigators who use a drug called melange to find their way around hyperspace. Melange is found in only one place - Dune, and cannot be reproduced.

The political system of the galaxy is split up into various families. The ruling family seeks to play off the other two houses, the harkoneans and atreides off against each other to maintain it's hold on power.

Other group exist, including the bene gesserits, a group of women who conduct breeding experiments in the hope of producing a messiah. Paul - the main character is the product of the experiment.

Basically, the book is about paul's exploits when the harkoneans carry off a takeover of dune when the emperor grants the atreides management of the spice-harvests of dune. Eventually he realizes his birthright - including ability to see the future, and pulls off a revolution that makes him the new emperor.
 
  • #3
if you're thinking about reading it, do! it's really good.
 
  • #4
I've read only the first book so far, how many are there in the series?
 
  • #5
There are 6 books by Frank Herbert in the series:
Dune, Dune Messiah, Children of Dune, God Emperor of Dune, Heretics of Dune and Chapterhouse: Dune. I've only read up to Children of Dune... well I started reading God Emperor of Dune but quickly lost interest because it was really weird. If anyone has read it please let me know how they liked it.
 
  • #6
Yep. The wierdness increases quadratically as the books progress. Still, many bits make it worthwhile, if you stick to it.
 
  • #7
Does it get...more boring as it goes?

(remembers "Wheel of Time")
 
  • #8
HeeHee. Am currently reading Goodkind's multology. He springs a new menace every dozen pages or so. This used to be called the Van Vogt theory of writing. Does anybody remember van Vogt? World of Null-A? Players of Null-A?
 
  • #9
Originally posted by Beren
Does it get...more boring as it goes?

(remembers "Wheel of Time")

sadly, yes. it all goes downhill after DUNE. i read to children of dune and gave up. (though i hear if one sticks to it all the way to god emperor of dune it gets better.
 
  • #10
Yeah the series does go down hill after Dune I got through half of his second book Dune:Messiah before I tossed it and I couldn't bring myself to read anymore of his books. His son also wrote 5 or 6 books continuing the series. These books took place before the first Dune book and I found them very depressing. They were a bit better than Dune:Messiah. However, Dune the first was excellent and you should try a couple of the books before you make any desicions.
 
  • #11
DUNE

Tell me about your homepage and I will tell you about the beaches of a great lake.
 
  • #12
(remembers "Wheel of Time")

Was that an insult on Robert Jordan's "Wheel of Time" series? If it was, then you better take it back.
 
  • #13
Originally posted by resa3535
There are 6 books by Frank Herbert in the series:
Dune, Dune Messiah, Children of Dune, God Emperor of Dune, Heretics of Dune and Chapterhouse: Dune. I've only read up to Children of Dune... well I started reading God Emperor of Dune but quickly lost interest because it was really weird. If anyone has read it please let me know how they liked it.
Weird in what way?
 
  • #14
Originally posted by SDNess
Weird in what way?
The Weirding way!
 
  • #15
Ah I get it...
 
  • #16
yeah, frank herbert wrote 6 out of the planned 7.
dune
dune mesiah
children of dune
god emperor of dune
heretics of dune
chapterhouse dune

his son wrote 2 trilogies of prequels
Buterlian Jihad
Machine Crusade
Battle of Corrin (planned for September 2004)

House Atreides
House harnoken
House Corrin

overall, the two prequel trilogies are really good. dune is amazing, but the sequels go downhill. it talks about reanimating people through cloning and other weird stuff. i read the whole series, and the last 2 are accually pretty good.
hope this helps
 
  • #17
I LOVE Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time. I hate waiting for the next book to come out.

If you enjoy Jordan, you will love these.

Raymond Feist is an author I highly recommend, beginning with Magician:Apprentice. Anything of his is worth reading. The Riftwar novels are excellent

Also, Daughter of the Empire - Janny Wurtz and Raymond Feist are great together. A continuation on the other side of the rift.

Have you read "The Belgariad" by David Eddings? Anything in that series is good (except I don't care about the later writings on Polgara)
 
  • #18
Since we've slid into fantasy, let me recommend Terry Goodkind's long series that begins with "Wizard's First Rule'. Sometimes I'm tempted to throw the book across the room, and I nicknamed him Terry Badunkind for the things he puts his characters through, but his characterization and storytelling skills are topnotch (better than Jordan's, IMHO) and I always stick it out to the finish.
 
  • #19
Read all of Terry Goodkind's books. He puts more "sexuality" in his books than Jordan, although, Jordan's last few books have had more along these lines than at first. I kind of liked the innocence of the first Wheel of Time books, though. Nynaeve would not approve of what Elayne, Min & Aviendha have done. ;)

Gee, we read the same books. :)
 
  • #20
Originally posted by Evo
Have you read "The Belgariad" by David Eddings? Anything in that series is good (except I don't care about the later writings on Polgara)

I read David Eddings's books when I was 13 and that was when I started to get really interested in fantasy (sparked off by reading both The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings at 11). I have since kind of outgrown the series but I thought it was a good starting point for young (preteens), aspiring fantasy-enthusiasts. The Belgariad was a fine series. The Malloreon didn't do too badly either, but I was starting to get tired of the characters by that time. I also own copies of Belgarath the Sorcerer, Polgara the Sorceress and the Rivan Codex but I am yet to read Pol's biography (not that I resent her or anything). BTW, what is it that makes you spurn Polgara?
 
  • #21
I also read one of the more recent David and Leigh Eddings novels. I think it was called The Redemption of Althalus. There were so many characters in the book that I could not remember their names. Apart from a few interesting ideas, I thought that it was very poorly written (when compared to their previous work). Throughout, the last quarter of the book (enormously thick at around 800 pages I think) I was merely browsing very quickly through. I never really understood parts of the book.

Does anyone else have anything to say about the Eddings's more recent work?
 
  • #22
Originally posted by recon
I am yet to read Pol's biography (not that I resent her or anything). BTW, what is it that makes you spurn Polgara?

I really liked her character at first. But in the last book about her (I can't even remember which one it was), her character just became way too "full of herself". It became so boring and predictable, I never finished it.

Have you read the Dragonlance Chronicles and Dragonlance Legends, Raistlin Chronicles, etc... by Weis & Hickman? I really enjoyed them. Worth reading if you like fantasy.
 
  • #23
Originally posted by Evo

Have you read the Dragonlance Chronicles and Dragonlance Legends, Raistlin Chronicles, etc... by Weis & Hickman? I really enjoyed them. Worth reading if you like fantasy.

No, can't say that I have. I am currently in the thick of reading Dune, The Count of Monte Cristo and The Silmarillion. If I ever get through those three, I'll possibly do the Dragonlance stuff. Is Dragonlance a mind-taxing read?
 
  • #24
Originally posted by recon
No, can't say that I have. I am currently in the thick of reading Dune, The Count of Monte Cristo and The Silmarillion. If I ever get through those three, I'll possibly do the Dragonlance stuff. Is Dragonlance a mind-taxing read?

Not taxing. I'm only familiar with the Hickman and Weis books. There are many authors that contribute to Dragonlance and I've heard they're not all of the same quality.
 
  • #25
Hickman and Weiss give good value for money. I believe some new fantasy writers break in by writing a Forgotten Realms book or two.
 
  • #26
ah, dragonlance chronicles and trilogy is amazing. i personally enjoyed the raistlin chronicles as he is my favorite fantasy char. :-) IMHO, this is wat terry goodkind vs robert jordan is.

TG: sex, some corny lines, good concept of pace, rememberable chars.

RJ: cool magic, good premise, and far too many "who the heck is this woman?"s per chapter.

serriously though, it does disturb me how many books I've read that are in this thread... ;-)
 
  • #27
The Count of Monte Cristo, what a great book. I must have read that book a good 3 or 4 times.
 
  • #28
I have been thinking about this book lately. I would like to read it again. The reason I have had it in mind, is that in Herbert's version of the future, the universe is controlled by trading houses. This seems to be in the startup phase on our own home planet. There have been historically great trading houses, the original spice traders, the tea traders, the rum traders, and the Catholic Church has become a huge trade organization, combined with its religious thing, they are very "Dunian" if you will, costumes too. The role of the Bene Gesserit, women, is somewhat like the historic role of women, what could be more passive-aggressive than a breeding program, that would lead to control?

I have always thought that Dune is a master work, of our time, regardless of the bad sequels, I will carry to my grave the scene where little Alia, uses the gom jabbar to...
Anyway, I haven't read the book, since the early seventies, but it is still with me. Having Sting in the blue bathing suit in the movie version, didn't hurt things one bit.
 
  • #29
Dayle Record said:
I have been thinking about this book lately. I would like to read it again. The reason I have had it in mind, is that in Herbert's version of the future, the universe is controlled by trading houses. This seems to be in the startup phase on our own home planet. There have been historically great trading houses, the original spice traders, the tea traders, the rum traders, and the Catholic Church has become a huge trade organization, combined with its religious thing, they are very "Dunian" if you will, costumes too. The role of the Bene Gesserit, women, is somewhat like the historic role of women, what could be more passive-aggressive than a breeding program, that would lead to control?

I have always thought that Dune is a master work, of our time, regardless of the bad sequels, I will carry to my grave the scene where little Alia, uses the gom jabbar to...
Anyway, I haven't read the book, since the early seventies, but it is still with me. Having Sting in the blue bathing suit in the movie version, didn't hurt things one bit.


Reading dune is a good way to become paranoid.
 
  • #30
I've just finished the first book of The Wheel of Time! It is rather unfortunate that I will be having my exams soon, so I will not be reading the second book anytime soon. :grumpy:

__________________
"Pray that there's intelligent life somewhere out in space / 'Cause there's bugger all down here on earth."
 
  • #31
Hmph... What kind of discussion of current epic fantasy doesn't mention Stephen Brust and George R. R. Martin... :tongue2:
 

What is "Dune" by Frank Herbert?

"Dune" is a science fiction novel written by Frank Herbert and published in 1965. It is set in the distant future on a desert planet called Arrakis and follows the story of a young man named Paul Atreides as he navigates political intrigue and a prophecy surrounding his destiny.

What is the significance of the desert planet Arrakis in "Dune"?

Arrakis, also known as Dune, is the only source of the valuable spice melange in the universe. This spice has a multitude of uses, including extending life and enhancing mental abilities. The control of Arrakis and its spice plays a major role in the political and economic power struggles in the novel.

Who are the major characters in "Dune"?

The main character is Paul Atreides, the heir to the House of Atreides. Other important characters include his parents Duke Leto and Lady Jessica, his mentor Duncan Idaho, and his love interest Chani. The antagonist is Baron Vladimir Harkonnen, and there are also various other factions and alliances that play significant roles in the story.

What themes are explored in "Dune"?

"Dune" explores themes of power, politics, religion, ecology, and human evolution. It also delves into concepts of fate and prophecy, as well as the impact of a person's upbringing on their identity and actions.

What is the legacy of "Dune"?

"Dune" has had a lasting impact on the science fiction genre and has been adapted into multiple forms of media, including films, TV shows, and video games. It is also known for its complex world-building and philosophical themes, making it a beloved and influential work in the sci-fi community.

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