Dune

Dune

By: Frank Herbert
Published: 1965
Pages: 890
Series: Dune (#1)
Quote: “And the price we paid was the price men have always paid for achieving a paradise in this life—we went soft, we lost our edge.”

Goodreads description:

Set on the desert planet Arrakis, Dune is the story of the boy Paul Atreides, heir to a noble family tasked with ruling an inhospitable world where the only thing of value is the “spice” melange, a drug capable of extending life and enhancing consciousness. Coveted across the known universe, melange is a prize worth killing for….

When House Atreides is betrayed, the destruction of Paul’s family will set the boy on a journey toward a destiny greater than he could ever have imagined. And as he evolves into the mysterious man known as Muad’Dib, he will bring to fruition humankind’s most ancient and unattainable dream.

Review:

Dune has been on my TBR list for many, many years. I heard there is a new movie based on the book coming out so I decided now is finally the time to read it. I haven’t seen the old movie yet either.

I have some tips if you read the book. So without any spoilers…..if you want to read Dune, and I recommend you do if you enjoy sci-fi, here’s some pointers:

• You won’t understand half of the things being discussed right away. It’s okay, keep reading, you didn’t miss anything. Herbert doesn’t go into the backstory of every little thing. This is actually refreshing even if I did initially keep skipping back thinking I must have missed the backstory somehow.
• The POV is constantly changing, even from paragraph to paragraph. Once again, you aren’t missing anything. Just go slow and accept it.
• There’s an appendix in the back that I didn’t read (my library ebook had expired and disappeared before I got to it!) but from what I’ve read online, you shouldn’t read it first. Read the story, then you can be filled in with the appendix afterward that apparently goes into more of the backstory.

I’m not going to lie, it took me about a month to read this book. I was interested in the story, but not necessarily the characters. How can a book be so long and detailed but the characters not be detailed? I don’t know, but that’s how it seemed to me, and if I’m not super invested in the characters I tend to take longer to read the book. But it was worth taking so long and I did enjoy the story. I plan to continue with the series and watch the movies.

Advertisement