DUNE BLOG

Thursday, July 31, 2008

Frank Herbert Interview & First Paul of Dune Review

A fan has just sent us this video of a Frank Herbert interview, which was posted on YouTube. It's short, but we think you'll enjoy it.

Also, a French website has just run an interview with me, if you're interested: 

Also, Booklist magazine has just run the first review we've seen of PAUL OF DUNE. (The novel itself will be released on September 16.)

"This vital link between the first two books of the Dune saga begins immediately after the close of Dune (1965), well before the events of Dune: Messiah (1970), and incorporates material from Paul Muad-dib's growing up on Caladan. After the battle of Arrakis, Paul the emperor, as he has become, knows the slaughter is just beginning. He has exiled the former emperor and made a marriage of state with the imperial princess Irulan. But his predecessor had enemies who aren't going to love Paul just because he deposed their old adversary, and Paul has many more enemies, known and unknown. If he is to be a better ruler than the one he displaced, the planetary ruling houses must accept him -- at the point of a weapon, if necessary. Remembering that his father was known as Duke Leto the Just, Paul tries to be an Atreides diplomat when reconstituting the Imperium. But between the feuds of the ruling houses, the needs of the Fremen, and his prescience, Paul has little time for himself, and may be losing his sanity. This is good reading, better than Dune: Messiah, actually. Standing well enough on its own for Dune novices, it goes without saying that it's must reading for established fans."

-- KJA