Dune

Rating:
Summary: The book that others try to be...
Review: I have now read Dune twice, and it remains, upon completing it a second time, just as good, intriguing, and thought-provoking as it was the first time around. It's one of those rare, wonderful novels after the reading of which no other books seem quite good enough to read for a while. In fact, Dune is so great that though I own the sequels, I haven't yet been able to read them for the fear that they might in some way diminish the masterpiece that is the original.

When I first read this book, my schoolwork and social life suffered through the days it took to read it. I almost literally couldn't put it down. This novel is so engrossing, so enthralling, and so REAL that you wonder how you ever enjoyed the shallowness that is most sci-fi novels. In fact, Dune isn't just the best science fiction novel of all time, it's one of the best pieces of literature, period.

And it is a very real world. The multilayered plots, the believable science, the shades-of-gray characters, the religions, emotions, technology...everything. Arthur C. Clarke is quoted in the book as saying that, "Unique...I know of nothing comparable to it except The Lord of the Rings." It's true.

Any type of plot synopsis I try to give here would be hopelessly muddled and confusing, so I'll forgo that in this review and simply say that, to use the old saw, If you only read one book this year, read Dune.

Rating:
Summary: Herbert creates a unique and beautiful universe.
Review: One of my all-time favorite novels, I cannot say enough good things about it. It's a book that every science fiction fan will instantly fall in love with. It's the kind of book you can also read over and over, and you will find new meanings each time.

The novel follows the young Duke Paul Atreides in his feud with the rival noble house of Harkonnens. The politics in this universe of the future are complex as well as very deadly. In addition, every family in the galaxy is driven by their greed over the addictive spice that is mined from the planet Arrakis, or Dune. A mind-enhancing drug, the spice is expensive, difficult and dangerous to mine, and very valuable. Whoever controls the spice calls the shots.

Paul and his mother become outcasts after the Harkonnens raid their home on Dune and kill the old Duke. Then begins the adventure which transforms Paul into a legend in his own time. Throw in suspicious natives, a demented baron Harkonnen, an Atreides traitor, ancient rituals, psychic abilities and giant sand worms and you've got a definite page-turner by a fabulous writer. If you'rea sci-fi fan and haven't read this book, you're truly missing out!

Rating:
Summary: I only only gave it five stars because there was no eleven
Review: There is something about Dune that keeps me coming back for more. I've read the novel three times, and three times I've learned something new, and my appreciation has grown in accordance. Paul Maud'dib, or Paul Atreides, is easily the noblest figure in contemporary sci-fi. From his early training with the colorful Duncan Idaho, to the Gom Jabbar, to the desert sands of Arrakis with his beautiful Bene Gesserit mother Jessica and finally his fateful entrance into the Fremen culture, the story of Paul Atreides becomes the story of Dune. Dune becomes bigger than all of us. If there is magic in this world, it belongs to Frank Herbert.

Rating:
Summary: Great classic
Review: Many people have already written fine general reviews here of this novel, so I will limit myself to a few specific comments and observations. In reading Dune, I recalled an interesting much earlier short story by Herbert that shows his interest in human nature and political intrigue. Written in the 50's, a full ten years before Dune, it shows his fascination with these themes can be traced at least back till then. Entitled "Cease Fire!," it is about a time in the future when weapons based on conventional high explosives become obsolete because they can now be detonated remotely by a revolutionary new invention. This basically throws warfare back into the Middle Ages. At the very end of the book, someone hands the main character an old book, saying that this is what warfare will be based on from now on. He looks at the book, and it is Machiavelli's "The Prince."

I found this sort of interesting given the important place psychological warfare, political intrigue, and human psychology in general occupy in Dune. Obviously Herbert had been thinking about these issues for some time before writing the book, in addition to the novel's important ecological themes.

Rating:
Summary: Dune: Action, Power, Drama, Love!!!!
Review: This book was a little slow to start off. The first few chapters about Paul (Muad'Dib the main character) and his family are essential to the plot development but after those chapters this book is a wild ride. Once Paul meets the Fremen and trains them in his special Bene Gesserit mind and body control fighting techniques he builds a Fremen army. With this immensely powerful army he eventually rules the universe. Filled with vivid hand to hand combat scenes and wonderfully majestic settings (Herbert is like Picasso) this book should cost alot more then it is priced. If you are a fan of Sci-fi this book is a must-read. (Just be careful of the big "alien" words that are hard to pronounce)

Rating:
Summary: Dune will take all of your other books...
Review: ...and beat them up. You just won't be able to look at them the same way any more. Dune is just that kind of novel.

As you may already know, Dune is the story of Paul Atreides, the young son of a Duke in the far future. The world that Frank Herbert creates is lush, imaginative, and oftentimes genuinely alien to ours. Though this book can be taken as a straight-out story of a young Messianic figure who wins over a corrupt Emperor and a vile Baron, that would be silly. Paul is a very human character, as are most of the others you get to meet in Dune. This is where the book really shines, and where David Lynch's movie really failed. The lovingly detailed political factions and ways represented within Dune are fascinating to read about, and you'll come away wanting more.

Of course, this is provided in ample measure, and any reading of Dune should be followed with a reading of Dune Messiah, which is less of a sequel and more of a continuation necessary to understand the character of Paul.

Dune is a book about ideas--including the morality and politics of a messiah figure. It's not a book you should go into looking for another adventure story, and not one you should come out of without at least having a different perspective to look on philosophical and sociological issues from. It's not a marvel of storytelling (not that it's bad), but it does just make you wonder.

Pick up Dune. If you like it, you have plenty to follow it up with. If you don't, it's only a few bucks out the window.

Rating:
Summary: Another amen
Review: I read this book the first time when I was a freshman in high school. I 've probably reread this book a half dozen time since then, although I hadn't picked it up for ten years. This summer I finally picked it up again. It is still my favorite book.

Rating:
Summary: Maybe the Greatest Science Fiction Novel Ever!
Review: Frank Herbert's novel 'Dune,' ranks among the great works of fiction and is perhaps the greatest of it's genre. The novel is a subtle but effective weaving together of political intrigue, heart-racing action, intense story, and incredably well-drawn characters. Paul Atredies, the young son of the Duke Leto, and his family are removed from their home world of Calidan to oversee operations on the desert world of Arrakis, or as it is better known, Dune. The story that follows sees Paul grow not only into a man, but into a super-human being capable of destroying the hated enemies of the Atredies, the evil Harkonnen. Herbert's understanding of human nature serves him well in this novel and his concerns about our own ecology are apparent. Like Asimov's 'Foundation,' series and the 'Childe Cycle' of Gorden R. Dickson, Herbert's 'Dune' is a classic of Science Fiction that will ignite any reader's imagination.

Rating:
Summary: Confusing but fulfilling
Review: This book is incredibly well written in that you always know only as much as the author wants you to know. Set in this confusing future, the author runs a twisting course through the life of Paul Atreides, allowing the reader to discover the universe as they read. It's an exciting reading experience that I'd reccommend to any diehard sci-fi fan.

Rating:
Summary: Deliciously enriched with Herbert's writing
Review: Herbert's done it. Widely regarded as THE scifi novel, Herbert's Dune makes Star Wars or Star Trek seem like kittens. The flow is impeccable, the writing much enriched, and the philosophy and politics are outstanding! The story pits the soon-to-be-legendary Paul Atreides against the evil Harkonnen. Paul explores the reaches of his "powers" and the prophecy he was born to fufill. I look forward strongly to reading the rest of the Dune novels. If you love a thickly based scifi novel, with writing that is so powerful that it makes you quiver, Dune is the novel for you!!!