Serial publication in Analog magazine 1963–1964. First book edition 1965.
Hugo Award 1966, Nebula Award 1966.
The most famous, widely acclaimed and popular of all sf novels
The Duke of Atreides has been manoeuvred by his arch-enemy, Baron Harkonnen, into administering the desert planet of Dune. Although it is almost completely without water, Dune is a planet of fabulous wealth, for it is the only source of a drug prized throughout the Galactic Empire. The Duke and his son, Paul, are expecting treachery, and it duly comes – but from a shockingly unexpected place.
Then Paul succeeds his father, and he becomes a catalyst for the native people of Dune, whose knowledge of the ecology of the planet gives them vast power. They have been waiting for a leader like Paul Atreides, a leader who can harness that force...
DUNE: one of the most brilliant science fiction novels ever written, as engrossing and heart-rending today as it was when it was first published half a century ago.
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Frank Herbert
Franklin Patrick Herbert, Jr. (1920–1986) was a critically acclaimed and commercially successful American science fiction author. Though also a short story author, he is best known for his novels, most notably Dune and its five sequels. The Dune saga, set in the distant future and taking place over millennia, deals with themes such as human survival and evolution, ecology, and the intersection of religion, politics and power. Dune itself is the "best-selling science fiction novel of all time," and the series is widely considered to be among the classics in the genre.
Community Reviews & Rates
29 reviews
8 posts
This book has got all which makes it a marvellous book. The author managed to describe the main characters in a few well-chosen sentences without tiring descriptions and explanations - brilliant! The story itself is quite straightforward but never boring - on the contrary. Each chapter brings new aspects of Dune to the reader. Although I've seen from your reviews and the rating that the second book is not so good, I'll give it a try. At least, I'm forewarned ;-)
23 reviews
0 posts
I consider this a must read for any fan of science fiction. Ron Restorff
8 reviews
0 posts
This series is something that you'll never be able to forget. It took me all of five months to actually read all of this series and I most certainly do not regret it. What Seregil says it true, unfortunatly. The rest of the series was not the best and the ending is somewhat disappointing, but it's worth the read. I also agree that you can not call yourself a sci-fi fan if you've never read this.
260 reviews
3604 posts
Dune is a real classic of science fiction literature. Dune is almost like "The Lord of the Rings of science fiction". This first Dune book is an excellent and entertaining science fiction adventure. In my opinion Dune is one of the best science fiction books I've ever read. I can highly recommend this book to all science fiction fans. (It's a shame that the sequels aren't as good as this book.) By the way, if you call yourself a science fiction fan and haven't read Dune, you should be ashamed of yourself.