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| Dune (Dune Chronicles, Book 1) | 
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Avg. Customer Rating:  (based on 1036 reviews)
Sales Rank: 21483
Category: Book
Author: Frank Herbert
Publisher: Ace
Studio: Ace
Manufacturer: Ace
Label: Ace
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Unknown), English (Published)
Media: Paperback
Edition: 25 Anv
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 544
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 6.9 x 3.9 x 1
ISBN: 0441172717
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN: 9780441172719
ASIN: 0441172717
Publication Date: September 1, 1990
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Paul Atreides moves with his family to the planet Dune and is forced into exile when his father's government is overthrown. The first book in the series.
Amazon.com Review
This Hugo and Nebula Award winner tells the sweeping tale of a desert planet called Arrakis, the focus of an intricate power struggle in a byzantine interstellar empire. Arrakis is the sole source of Melange, the "spice of spices." Melange is necessary for interstellar travel and grants psychic powers and longevity, so whoever controls it wields great influence. The troubles begin when stewardship of Arrakis is transferred by the Emperor from the Harkonnen Noble House to House Atreides. The Harkonnens don't want to give up their privilege, though, and through sabotage and treachery they cast young Duke Paul Atreides out into the planet's harsh environment to die. There he falls in with the Fremen, a tribe of desert dwellers who become the basis of the army with which he will reclaim what's rightfully his. Paul Atreides, though, is far more than just a usurped duke. He might be the end product of a very long-term genetic experiment designed to breed a super human; he might be a messiah. His struggle is at the center of a nexus of powerful people and events, and the repercussions will be felt throughout the Imperium. Dune is one of the most famous science fiction novels ever written, and deservedly so. The setting is elaborate and ornate, the plot labyrinthine, the adventures exciting. Five sequels follow. --Brooks Peck
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| Customer Reviews: Read 1031 more reviews...
 A SciFi Masterpiece November 13, 2008
A great novel is one that you can read multiple times and get something new from each new reading. Dune certainly qualifies.
This is, I think, my third reading since I read it the first time my freshman year in college. The difference in my reaction to Dune this time were more subtle than my last re-reading. (My first reading had been a year before 9/11 and my second reading about a year after. In many ways, it was like a entirely different novel.) This time, having started down the road to starting a family, I think I have a different understanding of the family relations in the novel.
But subtle difference in my reaction aside, Dune is a novel I can return to again and again because Frank Herbert creates something close to the perfect science fiction novel. Herbert's universe is fantastic and intricately detailed. Societies, economies, and ecologies are all carefully crafted. Each one is entirely alien in some way but the way that Herbert's characters interact with these 'great forces' of civilization are instantly recognizable as human.
Dune, despite its purposeful depictions of human society, sweeps the reader through a story rife with betrayal, political intrigue, violence, and human struggle. Unlike other pieces of science-heavy SciFi, Dune never bogs down.
Herbert's masterpiece, almost half a century after its first publication, certainly still has something to show us about humanity, especially about the relationship between power and society and power and the individual. But there are bits of the novel that feel dated. While not as blatantly as other SciFi works at the time, Herbert's female characters lack some of the verve of the male characters.
Don't let that dissuade you. Dune is a giant in the world of SciFi for good reason. It's well worth the time of any reader with even the smallest disposition towards Science Fiction.
That said, Herbert, and later his son, followed Dune with a string of sequels. I read them all of the Frank Herbert sequels and one of Brian Herbert's after my first reading of Dune. They are all dreck. Don't even bother. But whatever you do, don't miss Dune
 I do not understand why Dune is so popular. November 10, 2008
I first read "Dune" when it was originally published, I enjoyed it. Paul seemed to be an interesting and complex character. I read it two or three times since then. My opinion did not improve. There are two or three spots in the story where I get bored. Also, the story-line has always seemed a bit far-fetched to me. I always wish for more true hard science fiction and less of the psychic stuff.
While I rate it at four stars, I, honestly, do not understand why this book has gotten the huge reputation that it has.
AMAZING BOOK! November 7, 2008
This book is a must for any science fiction fan who appreciates good writing! 5 stars!
"The Sleeper Has Awakened!" ~ Science Fiction Or Prophetic Utterance? October 29, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
With over 1,000 reviews posted on Amazon.com and an overall rating of -4 Stars- I guess there's not a lot left to be said about the late Frank Herbert's classic sci-fi book `Dune'. It has been at least 30 years since I sat down with this book and to this day it still remains one of the most original, enthralling, visionary and mystical novels I've ever had the pleasure to read.
This was truly a novel way ahead of its time. Back then I was primarily fascinated with the elements of mysticism that permeated the story; Paul's visions, the ancient prophecies, the Bene Gesserit, the spice and of course the great sandworms. However now in the light of the world as it exists in the 21st century I clearly see the author's keen foresight at work. His environmental concerns pertaining to ecosystems and the scarcity of water, as well as the foreboding of an impending, universal Jihad bring his story to life in ways unimaginable forty years ago. Maybe he was really Frank Herbert the prophet, not Frank Herbert the author?
Brings Back Memories of Old Sci-Fi Days October 15, 2008
Having read this book nearly 20 years ago (right before I got married), I was recently thrilled to see it being reissued and propped up on a shelf at my local bookstore.
The story of a desert planet without any viable source of water that held an empire together was sheer genius, and author Frank Herbert is to be commended for his insights into the human condition, including those associated with politics, geology, genetics, environmentalism, religion, and many other subtle aspects.
Paul Atreides as the main character was fascinating to read about as he turns from boy to man to god (in the eyes of the fremen, the natives on Dune/Arrakis), and takes control of the most precious item in the universe: the spice melange. The spice extends life, consciousness, but comes at a terrible price: addiction.
The great worms of Arrakis are a vital part of the ecosystem on Dune as they protect their areas of sand and are instrumental in the cycle of spice production.
The feudal system was also an ingenious way to portray a futuristic society that has fallen back onto a path that could lead to stagnation and, ultimately, to the end of humankind.
There's a lot more than this within these pages, too; something for just about everyone, and not just those with a predisposition for science fiction.
This is my all-time favorite novel, and I'd forgotten how much I'd enjoyed it so long ago. Thanks to whomever is responsible for this reissue.
Memories...
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