30. Dune

Dune. Frank Herbert. 1965. 687 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: In the week before their departure to Arrakis, when all the final scurrying about had reached a nearly unbearable frenzy, an old crone came to visit the mother of the boy, Paul.

Premise/plot: Dune is a science fiction classic originally published in 1965. At the center of this one is a young man, Paul Atreides. His father is Duke Leto; his mother is Jessica, a Bene Gesserit. Is Paul the one?
Will he fulfill ancient prophecy? Perhaps. Perhaps. All in good time. The novel opens with the family preparing to move planets. Duke Leto has been given the desert planet, Arrakis, aka "Dune." But though this is technically a "gift"--one that he couldn't refuse--it's more of a gift horse. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that once the family arrives their lives will become even more endangered. The powers that be--multiple powers--have decided that Duke Leto should die; all the pieces--the pawns--are in place. It's just a matter of time before the House of Atreides is wiped out completely. His father's fate seems set in stone, however, there is hope for the boy and his mother. If there wasn't hope then this would be a much, much shorter novel. Most of the action occurs AFTER the murder of the Duke as Paul and Jessica flee for their lives and take refuge with the planet natives, the Fremen. Their safety among the natives depend on Paul fulfilling ancient prophecy.

As Paul matures his supernatural abilities deepen. One of his powers seems to be seeing all the possibilities of the future at once. He sees how every decision influences those futures: new futures open up; others disappear. Will Paul be wise enough to use his power for good? What does he have in mind for his followers? his planet? the galaxy?
 
My thoughts: I first read Dune in 2019. (I've copied the premise/plot from that earlier review.) At the time, I thought I would never reread Dune. The new adaptation of Dune had me curious. I knew I would need to refresh my memory with the novel before watching the movie. 

This time around, I really enjoyed the first third to the first half of the novel. I feel it might have been opposite the last time around? The second half may be more action-packed, at least I thought so in my first review, but I felt more of a disconnect. The first half really focuses on the adjustment period--maybe a few weeks??? The second half time has grown fuzzy and uncertain (in my opinion). It's like watching someone's life on fast forward with occasional stops to slow down the action. But I felt a huge disconnect. I didn't feel I got the chance to know ANY of the characters. And I didn't get a good sense of setting or lifestyle. I felt cheated of that time. Perhaps I am completely alone in that. Maybe most readers just don't care how Paul and Jessica adjust to living with the Fremen, what that day-to-day lifestyle looks like. And I'm not saying we need diary-like entries chronicling every day for weeks, months, years. But *some* to just establish relationships and ground the readers in the new-to-us culture/society. I feel it would have gone a long way in making me care. But now, it's like one moment you're just being found/rescued/discovered by this tribe...and then boom the next chapter you have a wife and a child and are thinking about when to make your move politically.

© 2022 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews