Product Description

Herbert's evocative, epic tales are set on the desert planet Arrakis, the focus for a complex political and military struggle with galaxy-wide repercussions. Arrakis is the source of spice, a mind enhancing drug which makes interstellar travel possible; it is the most valuable substance in the galaxy. When Duke Atreides and his family take up court there, they fall into a trap set by the Duke's bitter rival, Baron Harkonnen. The Duke is poisoned, but his wife and her son Paul escape to the vast and arid deserts of Arrakis, which have given the planet its nickname of Dune. Paul and his mother join the Fremen, the Arrakis natives, ho have learnt to live in this harsh and complex ecosystem. But learning to survive is not enough - Paul's destiny was mapped out long ago and his mother is committed to seeing it fulfilled.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #4779 in Books
• Published on: 2005-11-17
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 912 pages

About the Author
Frank Herbert (1920-86) was born in Tacoma, Washington and worked as a reporter and later editor of a number of West Coast newspapers before becoming a full-time writer. His first sf story was published in 1952 but he achieved fame more than ten years later with the publication in Analog of 'Dune World' and 'The Prophet of Dune', amalgamated into the Hugo and Nebula-winning novel DUNE in 1965.

Customer Reviews

The Series which Broke the Mould
A novel which broke the mould, reinvented the concept of Space Opera and begot a minor cult, as groundbreaking novels are wont to do.
It’s rather spooky to look at Dune again in the light of the Iraq War, since we have in this book a situation where a desert people are militarily outclassed and dominated by a Superpower which wishes to retain control over the desert’s vital resource.
In this case it isn’t control of oil which is being fought over, but the melange spice of Arrakis, just as vital to transportation between stars as oil is for transportation between cities.
One could possibly compare the USA with the Evil Empire of Shaddam (even that name has a spooky resonance, but with the wrong side) and the planet Arrakis with the Middle East, but one would have to examine Arab-American relations in the Nineteen Sixties to get much mileage from that.
Undeniably, the Fremen are essentially Arabic in flavour, but he rest of Galactic Society is based around a feudal aristocratic system of powerful Houses, presided over by the Emperor Shaddam. It is an aggressive and brutal system in which assassination and treachery are rife.
Interlacing this network of families is the Sisterhood of the Bene Gesserit, an organisation which has its own reasons for an intense interest in the melange spice, a strange organic substance which can endow its users with a form of prescience and telepathy.
Another major player in the politics of the galaxy is the Spacer’s Guild, a professional group of mutated humans who use the properties of the spice to sense changes in space and steer ships through hyperspace across the galaxy. They are also bound into the political web which is battling for control of Arrakis, since without the spice, which can only be found on Arrakis, the guildsmen would be useless, and traffic throughout the galaxy would come to a halt.
Herbert skilfully stage-manages the political manoeuvring and chicanery which may or may not be being controlled from behind the scenes by the Sisterhood. Thus it seems as though politics itself conspires to set in motion the events leading to the fulfilment of a Bene Gesserit prophesy.
Ironically, the religion which is integral to Fremen life contains elements implanted centuries before by the Bene Gesserit in order that the Sisterhood would be welcomed by their society. Thus, the Fremen, like the Sisterhood themselves, also know of the prophecy of the Kwisatz Hadderach.
It’s a clever trick on Herbert’s part, as the coming of the Superior Being can be seen as both the unexpected culmination of a long term Bene Gesserit plan, or the true fulfilment of a long religious expectation on the part of the Fremen.
It’s not by any means an anti-religious book, although it is realistic about the nature of organised religion. It shows that religious systems are, by their very nature, political systems, or at least are tied into the political structures within which they exist.
Herbert’s universe of techno-feudalism is so well realised the reader feels quite at ease with the absurd and anachronistic ideas of Dukes and Barons wielding power over dominions of planets. There is a pervasive atmosphere of decadence and unhealthy opulence (particularly with regard to the House Harkonnen whose Baron is a corpulent gay monster who revels in the sexual gratification derived from the dying throes of his young victims) which is contrasted with the simple yet disciplined lives of the Fremen.
If you've never read these books, then start now. Travel to another world. Enjoy!

The best Science Fiction book I have ever read
I bought this book on the recommendation of a friend, not being particularly interested in the Science Fiction genre at all.
In fact "Dune" was the first real Science Fiction book I read, my previous literary experience being steeped in the genre of Fantasy from the likes of J.R.R. Tolkein and Terry Pratchett.

I was very surprised about just how much I enjoyed this book, and I'd advise anyone that isn't into Sci-Fi and thinks it's just lasers and robots to immediately reconsider.

"Dune" is quite epic in style and atmosphere, although like many groundbreaking novels it does not seem thus at the start. I find Arthur C. Clarke's words on "Dune" quite relevant at this moment:
"[Dune is] Unique among SF novels...I know nothing comparable to it except "The Lord of the Rings""

The Great Dune Trilogy
I first read this series whilst in my early teens. At that time I suppose I was too immature or maybe even naive to understand these books fully. At that time I was just interested in the fact that this was good science fiction that fed my imagination. Now, some fifteen years later, I have read all three again. I found all of them just as frightening (in the way that yes, this could really happen in the future because we do NOT know what is going to happen)as when I first read them. I also found that my imagination was just as furtive now (at 28) as it was then (at 13).
The story, for me, means escapism (from this rotten world we live in today) to another time and possibly dimension to a world that is conceivably worse than this one. It offers the usual struggle for power between two dynasties, with all the violence that that involves to maintain and control the "spice" that is at the centre of space travel (it aids travel so that even whole army's can go from planet to planet). Throw in a little love interest - boy meets girl and falls in love, boy marries girl but then, because he becomes the Kwisatz Haderach (a sort of second coming) he takes the daughter of the then Emperor as his 'concubine'. In addition there is the struggle of a race of people, who have hidden themselves from persecution for centuries, to claim back their rightful home. I can only describe it as a futuristic cross between Romeo & Juliet and the Bible. But with far more violence. And definately more readable.
If you want to read this trilogy, which I strongly recommend, please don't watch the film "Dune" (Dino De Laurentis) beforehand. This film is a real let down for the author and the books because you just cannot bring the same detail to the big screen.