Name: Dune
Rating: 4.160475914103309 (1723 reviews)
ISBN: 9780593099322

Frank Herbert

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. 

Dune

Gem Koeman

Amelia Reinertsen

Sophie

Jasper

Jafe

I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear is gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.  

tianna

dang pham

Madison Bowyer

thought I was going to love it like the movies but I only liked it

brings so much depth to the movies and the movies bring the book to life 

Brian Nguyen

thought I was going to love it like the movies but I only liked it

brings so much depth to the movies and the movies bring the book to life 

laika rockaway

Follows the adventures of Paul Atreides, the son of a betrayed duke given up for dead on a treacherous desert planet and adopted by its fierce, nomadic people, who help him unravel his most unexpected destiny.

Jacob

Like everyone says, it gets better on re-read. Can’t wait to read it again next year. 

Tristan Currie

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.

DUNE

“there is no escape—we pay for the violence of our ancestors.”

- pleasantly surprised! this exceeded my (very low) expectations, and i have much more respect for mr frank than i did before, when all i knew were the villeneuve adaptations

- everyone is wildly exaggerating about the difficulty level of dune. i’ve watched and loved the movies (therefore already familiar with the terminology) so maybe i’m an exception to the rule, but if you’re acting like this is the most complex piece of fiction ever, i’m afraid you haven’t read much fiction

- the prose was lovely, and dune talks about technology vs culture in ways that i thought were surprisingly modern for a book from the 60’s ( 

“once, men turned their thinking over to machines in the hope that this would set them free. but that only permitted other men with machines to enslave them.”

“it is shocking to find how many people do not believe they can learn, and how many more believe learning to be difficult.”

- i think the scale of dune makes it hard to pinpoint what exactly the book is actually about. is it a book about faith? imperialism? power? control? or maybe it’s a book about emotion, and the power you gain once you learn how to control your own impulses (something something, fear is the mind killer)..... i don’t know. if the thematic picture was a bit clearer (or smaller?) then i’d like dune much more

- i haven’t really explained why i hate big sci fi and fantasy novels, so let me do so now: they typically don’t value your time. often, a 700 page epic might spend 30-40% of the page count teaching you about the world, the politics, the magic systems, religions, cultures, or other chunks of exposition. if i’m spending a significant percentage of your story learning about the rules of your story, i’m always gonna be pretty pessimistic about the whole experience. a book as long as dune should feel like it’s lit on fire with every page; if it’s demanding several months of my time and energy, i want to be proven at every moment possible that it deserves that extra effort

- so, was dune worth the time invested (3 months, give or take)? well.... not really. i’m glad i’m more familiar with frank herbert because he’s a very quotable author, but i doubt i’ll pick up another book in this series any time soon. either way, picking up this book was all with the end goal of being more familiar with the world before dune part three comes out this year. i never expected to love the book

smile??

- “there is no escape—we pay for the violence of our ancestors.” (p.186)

- pleasantly surprised! this exceeded my (very low) expectations, and i have much more respect for mr frank than i did before, when all i knew were the villeneuve adaptations

- everyone is wildly exaggerating about the difficulty level of dune. i’ve watched and loved the movies (therefore already familiar with the terminology) so maybe i’m an exception to the rule, but if you’re acting like this is the most complex piece of fiction ever, i’m afraid you haven’t read much fiction

- the prose was lovely, and dune talks about technology vs culture in ways that i thought were surprisingly modern for a book from the 60’s ( “once, men turned their thinking over to machines in the hope that this would set them free. but that only permitted other men with machines to enslave them.” (p.14); “it is shocking to find how many people do not believe they can learn, and how many more believe learning to be difficult.” (p.84) )

- i think the scale of dune makes it hard to pinpoint what exactly the book is actually about. is it a book about faith? imperialism? power? control? or maybe it’s a book about emotion, and the power you gain once you learn how to control your own impulses (something something, fear is the mind killer)..... i don’t know. if the thematic picture was a bit clearer (or smaller?) then i’d like dune much more

- i haven’t really explained why i hate big sci fi and fantasy novels, so let me do so now: they typically don’t value your time. often, a 700 page epic might spend 30-40% of the page count teaching you about the world, the politics, the magic systems, religions, cultures, or other chunks of exposition. if i’m spending a significant percentage of your story learning about the rules of your story, i’m always gonna be pretty pessimistic about the whole experience. a book as long as dune should feel like it’s lit on fire with every page; if it’s demanding several months of my time and energy, i want to be proven at every moment possible that it deserves that extra effort

- so, was dune worth the time invested (3 months, give or take)? well.... not really. i’m glad i’m more familiar with frank herbert because he’s a very quotable author, but i doubt i’ll pick up another book in this series any time soon. either way, picking up this book was all with the end goal of being more familiar with the world before dune part three comes out this year. i never expected to love the book

Jó világépítés, de nehezen indul be, aztán amikor élvezetes lesz, elég elsietettnek érződik az utolsó negyede.

Elég kevés a scifi része, inkább az emberi kultúra, történelem, hadviselés, szellem az, amire ki van hegyezve.

A film világa sokkal sötétebb, és a könyv számomra minden aspektusban gyengébb.

Martin Messmer

Jó világépítés, de nehezen indul be, aztán amikor élvezetes lesz, elég elsietettnek érződik az utolsó negyede.

Elég kevés a scifi része, inkább az emberi kultúra, történelem, hadviselés, szellem az, amire ki van hegyezve.

A film világa sokkal sötétebb, és a könyv számomra minden aspektusban gyengébb.

It is hard to deny the genius of Frank Herbert. The literary genius of 

 is impossible to miss, although at times it can make the story muddled and the characters often appear flat and unrealistic. Still, the setting, political intrigue, and mystery of this world Herbert has built is truly a sight to behold, and I look forward to the rest of the series.

Justin Goins

It is hard to deny the genius of Frank Herbert. The literary genius of Dune is impossible to miss, although at times it can make the story muddled and the characters often appear flat and unrealistic. Still, the setting, political intrigue, and mystery of this world Herbert has built is truly a sight to behold, and I look forward to the rest of the series.

A fascinating thought experiment in desert ecology and the significance of religious belief.

Incredibile world building and characters, and the plot of religious war is very interesting, but unfortunately poorly executed. Also it's incredibly hard to feel for the main character when he's basically a robot who knows everything.

Gemma

Lukas

A deluxe hardcover edition of the bestselling science-fiction book of all time--part of Penguin Galaxy, a collectible series of six sci-fi/fantasy classics.sics.

the intricacies of the world building and politics and emotion are so fascinating and the blend of what is our present and the book’s ancient past is seamless. everyday i think about leto “loverboy” atreides

Denis you did the lord’s work turning this shit into such masterpieces. 

Alicia Evans

It's a hard read, but charming in the way The Lord of the Rings is. The worldbuilding was awe-inspiring. 

In the beginning, there is information overload. I had to slog through the various people and terms mentioned. It becomes much more bearable after that. The pace is slow throughout, but there are thoughtful or entertaining bits here and there.

Shivram

It's a hard read, but charming in the way The Lord of the Rings is. The worldbuilding was awe-inspiring. 

In the beginning, there is information overload. I had to slog through the various people and terms mentioned. It becomes much more bearable after that. The pace is slow throughout, but there are thoughtful or entertaining bits here and there.

Before The Matrix, before Star Wars, before Ender's Game and Neuromancer, there was Dune: winner of the prestigious Hugo and Nebula awards, and widely considered one of the greatest science fiction novels ever written. Melange, or 'spice', is the most valuable - and rarest - element in the universe; a drug that does everything from increasing a person's life-span to making intersteller travel possible. And it can only be found on a single planet: the inhospitable desert world Arrakis. Whoever controls Arrakis controls the spice. And whoever controls the spice controls the universe. When the Emperor transfers stewardship of Arrakis from the noble House Harkonnen to House Atreides, the Harkonnens fight back, murdering Duke Leto Atreides. Paul, his son, and Lady Jessica, his concubine, flee into the desert. On the point of death, they are rescued by a band for Fremen, the native people of Arrakis, who control Arrakis' second great resource: the giant worms that burrow beneath the burning desert sands. In order to avenge his father and retake Arrakis from the Harkonnens, Paul must earn the trust of the Fremen and lead a tiny army against the innumerable forces aligned against them. And his journey will change the universe.

Took me a while to get into it, but once I got past the first third I was hooked and finished it pretty fast (for my standards). 

Probably should have read it before the movies came out so I would have been able to have my own interpretation of the characters instead of the actors, but even then the book is so much fun !!

Also so much to analyse in terms of sociology/religion/politics but I’m a bit too dumb for that, so I’ll leave that part to other people. 

Bastiaan

Took me a while to get into it, but once I got past the first third I was hooked and finished it pretty fast (for my standards). 

Probably should have read it before the movies came out so I would have been able to have my own interpretation of the characters instead of the actors, but even then the book is so much fun !!

Also so much to analyse in terms of sociology/religion/politics but I’m a bit too dumb for that, so I’ll leave that part to other people. 

Greatest work of fiction I've ever read, utter peak.

Amin K.

Definitely going to listen again at some point. Paul's character development was definitely interesting 😮😮

Susan

The setting and main characters are nice, but I just found it way too confusing. I got 2/3 of the way through and some big 'reveals' didn't make any sense to me, so I gave up.

I can see why people love it, but it’s not my bag. Enjoyed it much more having watched the two newest movies first.

Laura Hurst

Opposing forces struggle for control of the universe when the archenemy of the cosmic emperor is banished to a barren world where savages fight for water

Honestly, — and especially compared to what I think are “Science Fiction’s Supreme Masterpiece[s]” — this really didn’t do much for me. My memory of it is already kinda bendy. Unusually low degree of savage infighting for a succession saga (e.g. everything from Bhagavad Gita to idk The Sopranos). Many shimmering moments, though. I do feel the need to engage with the worldwide ass net of superfans out there. I waited twelve years to read this and I’m excited to finally see the films/docs.

Alex Noble

Great fantasy to sink into. Lots to think about. Herbert’s pulls from a breathtakingly wide array of historical, cultural, scientific and religious inspirations woven together swiftly. That alone makes it worth reading.

Angeline Bien

Drew Nerbas

This book was hard to get through I won’t lie, it took me forever and having exams half way through reading it did not help. However, the world building is incredible and the way the story is told is very unique. The characters were a bit too robotic and felt unenjoyable for me personally but I think overall, it was a good book.

Dune

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