I’m fairly certain I’ve read Frank Herbert’s novel, Dune. I own a battered paperback copy of the book, bought many years ago. Certain passages in the book are underlined or highlighted, and many words in the detailed terminology appendix are circled. Still, that may or may not be not be my handwriting; there’s a phone number scribbled on the last page, an 800 number with no explanation, and that’s not in my crabbed handwriting, so who knows.
I really wanted to watch the latest movie adaptation of the novel, as the previews looked fantastic. But, timing failed me, or maybe it was the fact that no one else in my immediate family seemed eager to head to the movie theaters to watch it; we tend to make the movies these days an occasion, and for some reason Dune didn’t make the cut.
Dune is on my mind lately, though, because of the movie. I do remember watching the David Lynch adaptation, many years ago, and thought it was too comedic. Setting aside the multiple appendixes, the book clocks in at nearly 500 pages. I’ve not read any of the sequels, of that I’m sure. And yet, if I did read the book, not much of it stuck with me. Supposedly it’s a notable book, one of the major achievements of science fiction. And yet, neither this book nor the series appealed to me, and I can’t remember reading anything else by this writer.
Herbert was friends with Jack Vance and Poul Anderson, and I’ve read far more of their books than Herbert’s books. Yet, for some reason, Dune gets more press than either of those two authors combined. Surely he wrote other stories, and not just books set in this series?
Jack Vance has authored far better stories than anything by Frank Herbert, but maybe they’re not as cinematic. Regardless, I wonder whether it’s worth my time to re-read the novel, and if I do re-read it, whether I’ll remember anything about it two or three years from now? As far as Jack Vance, I remember many details of his stories and novels. Then again, I’ve read them multiple times.
As far as the book goes, when I do think of it, I tend to remember scenes from the earlier movie, and not passages from the book. I find that somewhat annoying, but maybe that speaks more to the lack of excitement the book provided, or the visuals (however unintentionally funny they came across) from the Lynch movie. Dune likely is not a book I’ll ever re-read, not any of the sequels. Still, the previews looked good, and maybe I’ll get a chance to watch the sequel on the big screen.
