Posted on 02/02/2015 3:27:28 PM PST by Perdogg
I apologize for the vanity, but I know that FR is a community of avid readers. Last year, I read "The Hobbit", "The Lord of The Rings" and "The Silmarillion".
I read that Arthur C Clarke referred to "Dune" as 'The Lord of the Rings' of Science Fiction.
What are Freepers opinion of Dune (the book not the movie) and should I continue with the sequels? I saw the film 30 years ago, I remember receiving a sheet with a primmer at the movie theatre after buying a ticket.
also, is there a Gothic horror equivalent to "Dune" of "Lord of the Rings"?
bfl
Dune is one of the all-time classics of SF literature, and it's well worth your time. I find Frank Herbert's prose a little dry, but he is nearly up there with Tolkien as far as creating a rich fictional world.
In my opinion, the first two sequels—Dune Messiah and Children of Dune are well worth your time, They continue the story of Paul Atreides, the principal character of Dune. Any sequels after that you can afford to miss, as they got progressively worse, though not outright bad. (I personally found the fourth book, God Emperor of Dune, quite interesting.)
The David Lynch movie adaptation from 1984 is an infamous bomb. It probably makes the most sense if you're already familiar with the novel, and its visuals are stunning. However, Lynch took a lot of liberties with the story, and rarely for the better. The Sci-Fi Network broadcast a three-part miniseries, Frank Herbert's Dune, around 2000. It's a more faithful adaptation and is well worth looking up. (They later made Children of Dune, which covers the first two sequels, and stars a young James McEvoy. It's not as good, but it's OK.)
also, is there a Gothic horror equivalent to "Dune" of "Lord of the Rings"?
Good question. The only Gothic work I know of offhand that has the same kind of epic scope as Dune is Mervyn Peake's Gormenghast trilogy. But it's not a horror story.
It was the Muslim/Arabic elements that led to an epiphany I had a few years ago on my third or fourth reading of Dune: "Oh lord, this is basically Lawrence of Arabia in space!"
Dune is the Awesome, Perdogg.
The modern horror novel is basically the evolution of the Gothic novel. So if you haven't read Stephen King, give him a try. Probably the two novels that would best fit the "Gothic" description are his two epics The Stand and It (both of which I think I saw someone recommend earlier). Consider also 'Salem's Lot (a kind of retelling of Dracula) or The Shining (which takes place in a haunted hotel).
Since you enjoyed Tolkien, you might also consider Charles Williams, who was a friend of his (and a fellow member of the Inklings writing circle that also included C. S. Lewis). Look into War in Heaven, Descent into Hell, or All Hallows' Eve.
A fun read. Like another freepers said it has Muslim undertones that I just now am realizing. The Fremen have a quasi desert Muslim type religion.
Loved it when I was 13. Have re-read it as an adult, and think it worth reading if you’re an s-f fan because it’s a classic, but I didn’t love it the second time. Enjoyed it, but for whatever reason didn’t think it as good as the best of Heinlein (who admittedly cranked out some awful books as well), Asimov, or Phil K. Dick.
Haven’t read the sequels. Not a fan of sequels as a rule, and don’t read them unless someone I trust convinces me they’re great stuff.
Who was Gordon Sumner, an actor in the movie? I recall seeing it and the guy riding the giant worm with some sort of harness.
He used to play bass and sing in a band called The Police.
In the movie, he played Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen, who had the bad fortune to go up against Paul “Muad’Dib” Atreides in his Kwisatz Haderach form.
Who knew? I was a good friend and admirer of the late general of the same name.
“Dune is notable for and sometimes difficult to follow due to its complicated, sprawling story...”
Huh, I found it complex in the sense of rich and dense, but not at all complicated in the sense of hard to follow. Paul provided a “center” that tied things together, and for me the plot zipped right along, pulling the reader with it.
I remember thinking the sequels sounded a lot less focused, though.
Loved Asimov’s robot series. Always wanted to like his non-sf mystery stories (”Tales of the Black Widowers”?), but they were woefully predictable and not that good; the robot series had that mystery aspect but were also good s-f.
Unfinished Tales is awesome if you're a hardcore Tolkien scholar.
Back in younger days I devoured Science Fiction books. On the advice of like-minded friends, I picked up Dune and began reading it. I got about two chapters in and completely lost interest.
Don’t know what it was about that book, but it just didn’t do it for me. Same with the movie.
First read it when I was 16. Absolutely loved it, though it can be a little ponderous at times.
Top of the box literature.
I've read most, if not all of the books that have been discussed on this thread.
Jean Auel has done us all a service by presenting the world of our ancestors in a digestible oeuvre.
The first few times, I went through it at 70 mph. I slowed down and relished it after that...
It's The Good Stuff. Chew it slowly.
My recollections are now more than thirty years old, but my impression is that Dune did not provide a normal level of detail and exposition. More than once, I had to wonder what was happening and why. This seemed to be a result of Herbert’s economical writing style and a choice to leave some aspects obscure.
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