Dune
By Frank Herbert
Copyright 1965
687 pages
By Frank Herbert
Copyright 1965
687 pages
I've been interested this year in going back and picking up classics that I overlooked or don't remember. This is one of them. Of course, when I was in high school, Dune was not yet a classic.
It has reached SF cult status, much like Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. This is the first of six books in The Dune Chronicles. Whether or not I read the others remains to be seen; sometimes sequels disappoint.
At any rate, I understand why this is SF classic and a must-read even for fantasy readers. Basically a coming-of-age story, the book has multiple layers and much depth. One could pull commentary out of this book and adapt it to climate change, for example. It's a great study on religion. It even sheds light on today's terrifying issue of cult of personality.
Most of my fiction books go to the library as donations, but this one will stay on my shelf. It feels like a book I may reread from time to time.
This is my all time favorite sci-fi book ever. First read at about 11 and was given a first edition at 16 (which I read to shreds). I re-read this one at least once a year. The rest are crap IMHO but, YMMV. The original is the best to me.
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