Posted on 02/02/2015 3:27:28 PM PST by Perdogg
Yeah, I would say HP Lovecraft is the equivalent to horror that Tolkien is to fantasy and Herbert is to sci fi. He has his own little world of interconnected stories and a persistent mythos that he even allowed other authors to build on.
He wrote a lot of short fiction though, but he did a few novels as well. I think “The Dunwich Horror” or “At The Mountains of Madness” are probably the better of his novels, if you want an introduction to his style.
Thus Dune is a grown up kind of science fiction, complicated in ways that are uncommon for the genre. For me, the sequels were inferior.
Never read the book, but saw all screen adaptations. Loved it.
BTW, you actually got through the Silmarillion?
I am also reading Dune now, for the third or fourth time. It is definitely my favorite Sci-Fi book and one of the best novels I have ever read of any genre. None of films do it justice. I read the sequels years ago but as I recall, they were not as good as the first book.
You will be tempted to read the sequel. DON’T!
Dune is a really good read but, stop right there. Trust me.
First, stop what ever you are doing, right now, and read or reread, PAGE 15.
Get that out of the way.
Fear is the mind killer, the little death.
The first 3 Dune books were amazing but reminded me in many ways of the Azimov Foundation trilogy.
Both stories or series take place in the distant future where the Galaxy has largely been subdued and earth is but a distant unconfirmed place of origin, the stuff of legends.
The Dune series I reread in the 80s because several new books were added to the series.
Only the reader can decide for sure, but I say that beyond the 3rd book, that series diminished fast.
I loved the movie and the Sci Fi Channel remake. Your mileage may vary.
Dune ? Good
Dune Messiah? Meh.....just ok.
Children of Dune? Couldn’t finish it
Dragonriders of Pern would be a good re-read and could make a good movie series if kept faithful.
:)
“Dune” is fantasy, not science fiction.
Try E.R. Eddison’s “Ring Ouroboros” and “Fish Dinner in Memison”. He published before Tolkein.
The Cryptonomicron book was one if the coolest books that I have ever read.
Dune is an interesting vision of the distant future where a somewhat techno-phobic society has forbidden thinking machines, which almost destroyed humanity about 10,000 in their past.
Monarchies generally rule on some planets, while the ruling structure on other planets (IX, for example) government is indeterminable. The entirety of planets is ruled by an Emperor. Power struggles occur on an inter-planetary level.
OOps, I meant “Worm Ouroboros”.
Also, look into James Branch Cabell.
When I was in HS, I was in an independent reading class. My preference was always sci-fi. My teacher HIGHLY recommended the book.
Can't say I was overly impressed.
It was Okay. But I couldn't see the rave.
Comes down to one thing.
Your Mileage May Vary.
Read it and make your own decision.
I picked up "Dune" again a couple of years ago and started to re-read it (I often re-read books). I was really struck by what I now perceive as bad writing. As an example:
The Lady Jessica gets quite a build up. She's a member of the Bene Gesserit, highly trained in all political arts, highly trained to read emotion in others, and to control emotion in herself. Her abilities in these areas are almost superhuman.
So, what do we see in the first 20 or so pages? Well, she loses control of herself 3 or 4 times, she underestimates multiple people, and other people consistently see right through her flimsy lies.
Then of course there is Dr Yueh, whose training may be even more intense then her own. Yeah, he is broken and turned into a traitor. That should be impossible. It's about as easy as making a sandwich.
I decided the whole thing was a bit like George Lucas -- really creative guy, found a really great story to tell. Then tells it badly.
I read all of the Dune books that Frank Herbert wrote, though God Emperor of Dune.
I tried reading three different books his son wrote, the prequels set thousands of years before “Dune”, describing the Butlerian Jihad, foundation of the Bene Gesserit, rise of the first emperor.
All of the books Frank Herbert wrote are good, though the third one is bogged down by detail. Skipping ahead 3000 years with God Emperor of Dune actually becomes interesting. The next books, too, like Chapterhouse are fascinating. Frankly, you could read “Dune”, maybe read the first sequel and skip forward to “God Emperor of Dune” and “Chapterhouse” to skip the drama.
I would advise you to skip the “Dune” prequels by the author’s son. He tries to cram in a lot of petty drama, which falls flat in a series that subtly plotted other thousands of years and the fate of mankind. He made things worse by trying to shoehorn in the origination story of EVERYTHING. It cheapens the broader political movements hinted at in the “cannon” and in some cases even contradicts them. For example, his prequel where Jessica is pregnant with Paul says she was placed there by the Mother Superior after a lot of manipulations, while the original book says the Duke’s buyers picked her. Dude, read the books you’re ripping off and trying to build upon.
As to his sequels intended to carry on the plot from “Chapterhouse: Dune”, it utterly, completely fails. Take characters that are the product of thousands of years of eugenics and brilliant even for an improved human race, and he makes them make incredibly stupid decisions and mistakes that even the reader knows they wouldn’t do - all to amp up the volume and emotion level. Oh, and he brings back the really, really old enemies from his other prequels, especially those from the Butlerian Jihad prequels. Dude, enemies of humanity aren’t going to wait 20,000 years and until people are literally scattered to thousands of worlds to then come back and try to wipe us out. Utterly, completely lazy writing complete with trope-tastic and a horrid disappointment.
Interesting. I’m going to read that Neil Stephenson bunch of books mentioned on this thread. I have been reading the Rivers of London series by Ben Aaronovitch — a Dr Who author writing books that are a mix of Harry Potter meets NCIS. Also read Shelly Adina’s steampunk Magnificent Devices series.
Thank God for Kindle!
Interesting is how “spice” reminded me much of today's politics of “oil”.....which commerce and military...transportation etc. is dependent on. I watched the movie more than a few times and saw each time something more that aligned with the politics of oil today.....of course I watched with that in mind as well.
I preferred the movie over the read..... easier to keep the characters front and center.
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