Dune by Frank Herbert
Gryphon - Grade 11
Rating: 4/5
At the age of fifteen, Paul Atreides who is soon to be known as Maud'Dib, travels with his family to the sandy desert planet, Arrakis, to rule alongside his father. On Arrakis, water is extremely scarce and 400-meter-long sandworms guard "the spice", a rare and valuable drug that allows one to gain visions of the future. As House Atreides attempts to manage the planet after the reign of the House Harkonnen, tensions rise as the Harkonnens make their move to take Arrakis back.
I found Dune to be quite interesting and one of the better books I've read. The author does a good job engaging the audience and the worldbuilding that went into it is extensive, to the point of the author putting a terminology sheet, cartographic notes, and several appendixes at the end of the book. The plot and world that Frank Herbert built are very intricate, vast, and captivating. At several points, I got chills or was shocked by some revelation.
However, at times, I found it a little difficult to follow the writing. It also felt like the author had spent a little too much time working on the geography, politics and ecology of Dune and not enough on the personal relationships between the characters. We learn very little about any of the characters' lives before Arrakis. During my reading, I never felt a lot of attachment to any of the characters and I feel like that removed some of the gravity and importance of the story's events. Nonetheless, despite all that, Frank Herbert did an awesome job crafting a world and story full of wonder. I would recommend this to anyone looking for a good sci-fi or adventure story.