Dune (Dune, #1)

by Frank Herbert

[ladygrey]

This is a masterpiece of science fiction. Delightfully complex and layered, full of political and religious intrigue in the midst of an incredibly full formed universe.

There are parts, I noticed the second time I read it, where he delves into a great deal of pedantic information. In most books I would consider this a flaw, but in [b:Dune|234225|Dune (Dune Chronicles, #1)|Frank Herbert|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1434908555s/234225.jpg|3634639] it only makes the world more real to be sitting in a staff conference and have them discuss the everydayness of equipment and troops. And [a:Frank Herbert|58|Frank Herbert|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1168661521p2/58.jpg]'s story is so well formed it never stands out as boring or useless information; it's folded into and a part of the story.

Herbert laces so many interesting and powerful themes through the story:

- political intrigues and the manipulations of power, especially how the underestimated wield the real power

- the role of women in the society, how they were overtly the "lesser" but subversively much more powerful and more in control of the tides of destiny than the men.

- the sacrifice of the self for a larger goal, about surrendering to the machinations of power. This theme comes into play even more in Children of Dune but is still present in Paul and the choices he makes for survival and for revenge

- and about love that is real and love that is subjugated to power and love that is unfulfilled. Herbert isn't a exceptionally emotional writer, but he alludes to all of these in engaging ways.

I especially love his sense of language. The words he created are exotic and this exceptional blend of vowels and consonants.

My favorite thing, though is how complex the whole thing is. The politics of intrigue upon intrigue, loyalties tested and divided and reformed, the religion harnessed and shaped; all of which are only possible because his characters are so fully and deeply formed make [b:Dune|234225|Dune (Dune Chronicles, #1)|Frank Herbert|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1434908555s/234225.jpg|3634639] a vibrant and seemingly real world.

"She asked me to tell her what it is to rule," Paul said. "And I said that one commands. And she said I had some unlearning to do."
She hit a mark there right enough, Hawat thought. He nodded for Paul to continue.
"She said a ruler must learn to persuade and not to compel."