Did I fall for a meme?
I get the complexity of the world and different themes he tries to adress through it, but it all comes through incredibly dull and trite prose.
I'll probably finish it, because it's an easy read, but does it get any better? Some poignant turns of phrases? some inventive metaphor? please?
Or is this basically ASoIaF in space for the rest of the book?
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>Some poignant turns of phrases? some inventive metaphor?
yes those are generally things I find important when reading
dont read sci fi and fantasy then, go read some lib art graduate written garbage
as if fantasy or scifi can't be wel written?
what an asinine statement. Plenty of herbert's contemporaries were far more capable wordsmiths while remaining in genre.
The question is why this book is so revered when the writing is so bad.
>The question is why this book is so revered when the writing is so bad.
Plans within plans. But for real, I love Dune, but I make no bones about it being clunky as frick when it comes to the prose. Herbert's dialogue is laughable more often than not. But it is still fun. You read it for the fun story, not for poignant turns of phrase or whatever.
The book doesn't have op's "Some poignant turns of phrases, some inventive metaphor" but I like some of the dialogue because it fits the characters well ("My brother will have your head", "Do you think that this is a circus?"). There's a lot of hyperbole but Herbert does an excellent job of giving just the right amount for the reader to fill in the rest without going into exposition territory.
this deranged hostility to basic craftsmanship is how genregays drove all the talent away and killed their own genres. hope you enjoy the slop
>muh mcfuggin metaphors
It's genre fiction, it's all bad. If it were good it would just be literature. Now you know not to waste time on genre fiction recs from philistine genre fiction shitters.
DUNE came along in a time of eco-brainwashing and convinced a generation it was a good book, and the sheep followed.
It's a shit book, and so many better world building books exist, but it filled an early niche and it's hard to kill.
>so many better world building books exist
Name them pls
The Expanse series (books are rare case of the TV show is good adaption BUT the books continue the story beyond, and are much better fleshed out too)
The Culture series by Iain Banks
House of Suns by Alastair Reynolds (start there, standalone novel but then if you like it, the Revelation series is his larger work)
Wizard series by John Varley (and other Varley stuff as well, but that series is hugely a world building exercise)
I've skipped Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Burroughs, and other classics worth reading for so many other reasons too.
I also didn't list series that are mostly on Earth since that's less "world building" in the literal sense.
You should read Senlin Ascends by Josiah Bancroft. You won't be disappointed
Thanks. Will check it out.
I thought of Ringworld by Larry Niven (his stories in that vein as well but Ringworld was the capstone)
Lots of Reddit lists worth mining for more (not that I'd agree with all of them, but im sure I missed some others I'd agree with:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Recommend_A_Book/comments/19b7x5o/sff_worldbuilding/
It doesn't improve. The second book is about as satisfying as the series ever gets and it's still profoundly unfinished.
>reads pulp sci fi genre shit from a 1960s magazine for nerdy children
>is surprised that it's poorly written
learn critical thinking skills and you won't find yourself in these situations
>but it all comes through incredibly dull and trite prose.
That's basically every genre fiction sci-fi book ever (except PKD). Just read literary fiction, you'll thank me later.
yes
Not every book is gonna have the best prose in the world. You read dune for the thoughtfully crafted political drama.
get a better minds eye and fill in the details yourself, darling
Dune is an acquired taste like beer or coffee, I gave up it twice, the third time I finished it in like 2 nights then I read all the other books. It is addictive like spice
The 4th book is the only one I consider to be legitimately good.
>Or is this basically ASoIaF in space
I wish, then it'd be good. None of the factions in Dunc are half as interesting as the houses in GoT. They're all moronic parodies.
>expecting ornate prose from an ideas man
shiggy
Herbert’s prose becomes much more palatable in a subsequent reading. The second book is an excellent tragedy.
>Shakespearean Mohammedanism
>in space
Paul should’ve died at the end of the first book.