The Great Dune Trilogy: "Dune", "Dune Messiah", "Children of Dune" ~ Paperback ~ Frank Herbert

Herbert's evocative, epic tales are set on the desert planet Arrakis, the focus for a complex political and military struggle with galaxy-wide repercussions. Arrakis is the source of spice, a mind enhancing drug which makes interstellar travel possible; it is the most valuable substance in the galaxy. When Duke Atreides and his family take up court there, they fall into a trap set by the Duke's bitter rival, Baron Harkonnen. The Duke is poisoned, but his wife and her son Paul escape to the vast and arid deserts of Arrakis, which have given the planet its nickname of Dune. Paul and his mother join the Fremen, the Arrakis natives, ho have learnt to live in this harsh and complex ecosystem. But learning to survive is not enough - Paul's destiny was mapped out long ago and his mother is committed to seeing it fulfilled. Accolades for Dune Hugo Award Winner 1966 Nebula Award Winner 1966 1998 Locus Poll - Best SF Novel (before 1990) 1987 Locus Poll - Best All-Time SF Novel 1975 Locus Poll - Best All-Time Novel Reviews for Dune "Unique...I know of nothing comparable to it except The Lord of the Rings." Arthur C. Clarke   “A portrayal of an alien society more complete and deeply detailed than any other author in the field has managed...a story absorbing equally for its action and philosophical vistas...An astonishing science fiction phenomenon.”-The Washington Post "Powerful, convincing, and most ingenious." Robert A. Heinlein 'One of the landmarks of modern science fiction ... an amazing feat of creation.' -- Analog "So completely did Mr. Herbert work out the interactions of man and beast and geography and climate that [ Dune] became the standard for a new subgenre of `ecological' science fiction." The New York Times Author Biography Frank Herbert was born in 1920 and spent most of early life in the Pacific Northwest of America. He was a professional photographer, journalist and occasional oyster-diver; he also had stints as a radio news commentator and jungle survival instructor. Though he is best known for Dune, he was also the author of several other important science fiction novels including The Green Brain, The Dragon in the Sea and The White Plague. He was awarded the Nebula and Hugo Awards - the highest literary accolades in the world of science fiction - for Dune. He died in 1986.