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jae0141's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death and Death
Moderate: Suicide, Death of parent, and War
thevampiremars's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
“Greatness is a transitory experience. It is never consistent. It depends in part upon the myth-making imagination of humankind. The person who experiences greatness must have a feeling for the myth he is in. He must reflect what is projected upon him. And he must have a strong sense of the sardonic.”
I didn’t really know what to expect going in. I knew it was a science fiction classic featuring a young man called Paul on a desert planet that may or may not be called Dune, and I knew that there were big worms and something to do with spice – a rough outline, nothing more.
I think Dune can best be described as sci-fi for history buffs. It’s full of political intrigue, factions and dynasties, empire building, and so on, but also of note are the incessant spoilers courtesy of Princess Irulan. We are told who these characters are and what they will go on to do, to the extent that it sometimes feels like watching a reenactment of what happened or a dramatisation of a well-known legend rather than events unfolding in real time. At first I was thrown off by it but I adjusted and learnt to accept the writing for what it is instead of getting hung up on what I thought it would be.
Dune is, above all else, a story about expectations and adaptation. Having to adjust my own perspective in response to this curveball of a novel meant there was a neat parallel between my own reading experience and the experiences of the characters on the page having to adjust to life on Arrakis – a good avenue for sympathy and connection.
Paul, our protagonist, is entirely shaped by the expectations placed upon him. He takes on various names and titles over the course of the story (Duke Paul Atreides, the Kwisatz Haderach, the Lisan al Gaib, Muad’Dib, Usul) and these personas seem to supersede any true sense of self he may have once had. His identity fractures and frays at the climax; not only does he flit back and forth between multiple selves, he also refers to them in the third person and assigns them different motives and personalities (“You have the word of a Duke [...] but Muad’Dib is another matter.”) I don’t know if I’d insist that Paul is plural, but his selfhood is certainly compromised and complicated by all these assumed identities.
Of course, while I’m on the topic of identity, I have to talk about gender – this book is riddled with it. I wouldn’t be the first to point out that women exist in this narrative only as they relate to men, and that they’re portrayed as intuitive, emotional, nurturing, and, above all, passive. I also wouldn’t be the first to note the queerness inherent to the Kwisatz Haderach, a boy with access to powers normally possessed only by women, who can see “both masculine and feminine pasts” – “the male who can truly become one of us.” Paul has a drug-induced epiphany late in the novel wherein he claims women are givers and men are takers, and that he himself is “the fulcrum” who cannot give without taking nor take without giving. That moment serves as a good demonstration of Dune’s strange synthesis of essentialism and transgressiveness. And I must say, the fulcrum quote really resonated with me as a genderqueer person.
I’ve talked about Paul, now it’s time to talk about Baron Harkonnen. He starts off as a vague force of evil that influences the actions of others, only becoming a fully fledged character after the betrayal of Duke Leto. Herbert could not have made it any clearer that this guy is a villain we’re supposed to loathe. Not only is he a power-hungry capitalist, he’s also an incestuous pedophile and (even worse!) he’s very fat. Yeah, the fatphobia is... not great. And that’s not the only thorny issue here. Dune is inseparable from its Orientalist manner, genocide is treated as set dressing, and eugenics (though criticised) does seem to be granted some legitimacy within the narrative. I don’t want to dwell on these problematic elements but at the same time I can’t disregard them.
Does Dune deserve four and a half stars? Probably not. Am I going to give it four and a half stars anyway? You bet. It’s not beyond criticism (far from it) but I thoroughly enjoyed it nonetheless. I’m curious to see where the story goes from here and I’ve already ordered Dune Messiah, but I won’t be reading it just yet because I have quite a backlog of unread books to work through first.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Sexism, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Addiction, Body horror, Child abuse, Genocide, Gore, Incest, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicide, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, and War
Minor: Alcoholism, Animal death, Child death, Gun violence, Homophobia, Self harm, Excrement, Islamophobia, Cannibalism, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol
kristinallard's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, Violence, and War
melancholymegs's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I can objectively see why this book is held in such high acclaim. But subjectively my feelings toward this book are pretty neutral. Will continue the series, but not in the immediate future.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Racism, Violence, Death of parent, Murder, Colonisation, and War
Moderate: Child death, Drug use, Genocide, Slavery, Torture, and Pregnancy
Minor: Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual content, and Suicide
norwegianforestreader's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Genocide, Suicide, Torture, Grief, and War
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Addiction and Death
grimviolins's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Suicide, Violence, Death of parent, Murder, and War
he_slaughtered's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pedophilia, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Slavery, Suicide, and Kidnapping
Minor: Fatphobia, Homophobia, and Sexual violence
queer_bookwyrm's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
3.5 ⭐ CW: slavery, religious oppression, violence, torture, murder, suicide, rape, murder if a child, selective breeding, incest mention
Dune by Frank Herbert is a classic that I've been meaning to read for a long time, but avoided it because this big boy is intimidating. Although this was a long and slow paced read, it was enjoyable.
We follow Paul Atreides who is being tested by a Reverend Mother to see if he is really human and able to withstand pain. Paul is special, when his Bene Gesserit mother was told to birth a girl, she chose a boy instead and raised him in the weirding ways. Paul can also detect truth and see into the future. The Reverend Mother thinks he may be the Kwisatz Haderach they have been breeding for generations. If that sounds like a lot, just know this is only the tip of the iceberg.
This book is very involved. Herbert has created an entire history and culture for the world and includes a glossary and several other appendices at the back that gives I'm depth detail about the religion and politics of this society. Basically, we have a chosen one trope with political intrigue and commentary on the weaponization of religion as a means to colonization and oppression.
Herbert has used a blend of Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Bhuddism, etc. as the basis for the Bene Gesserit religion. Herbert reveals that the Bene Gesserit don't actually believe in their religion, but use it as a means to push an agenda and infect lesser nations with their prophecies. This backfires.
There is just so much to cover with this book. There were so many details that at times it dragged the story along. This is not a fast paced action type of story. Paul's growth throughout the book was very interesting. I liked seeing him embody the dual aspects of Duke and Muad'dib.
I think if you are patient, this is worth a read and I now look forward to the movie coming out in October.
Dune by Frank Herbert is a classic that I've been meaning to read for a long time, but avoided it because this big boy is intimidating. Although this was a long and slow paced read, it was enjoyable.
We follow Paul Atreides who is being tested by a Reverend Mother to see if he is really human and able to withstand pain. Paul is special, when his Bene Gesserit mother was told to birth a girl, she chose a boy instead and raised him in the weirding ways. Paul can also detect truth and see into the future. The Reverend Mother thinks he may be the Kwisatz Haderach they have been breeding for generations. If that sounds like a lot, just know this is only the tip of the iceberg.
This book is very involved. Herbert has created an entire history and culture for the world and includes a glossary and several other appendices at the back that gives I'm depth detail about the religion and politics of this society. Basically, we have a chosen one trope with political intrigue and commentary on the weaponization of religion as a means to colonization and oppression.
Herbert has used a blend of Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Bhuddism, etc. as the basis for the Bene Gesserit religion. Herbert reveals that the Bene Gesserit don't actually believe in their religion, but use it as a means to push an agenda and infect lesser nations with their prophecies. This backfires.
There is just so much to cover with this book. There were so many details that at times it dragged the story along. This is not a fast paced action type of story. Paul's growth throughout the book was very interesting. I liked seeing him embody the dual aspects of Duke and Muad'dib.
I think if you are patient, this is worth a read and I now look forward to the movie coming out in October.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Rape, Suicide, Torture, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Pedophilia, Slavery, and Religious bigotry
Minor: Incest
saphirabloom's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Child abuse, Death, Drug use, Pedophilia, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Colonisation, and War
Minor: Child death, Fatphobia, Sexual violence, Slavery, and Suicide
francesstcyr's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death of parent, and War
Moderate: Child death, Genocide, Slavery, and Suicide