About the author
Frank Herbert was an American science-fiction writer, journalist, photographer, and ecological consultant. In Dune and its five sequels, he joined planetary ecology to empire, religion, charismatic leadership, and the long consequences of attempts to control the future.
Herbert connects court politics to the physical life of the desert: water discipline, sandworms, spice harvesting, and plans to alter the planet's ecology. Every institution sees Arrakis differently, and each tries to turn belief, scarcity, or ancestry into power.
Where to start
Start with Dune. It establishes Arrakis, spice, the Atreides family, and the ecological and political forces that drive the series. Continue in publication order with Dune Messiah; later volumes become stranger, more philosophical, and increasingly concerned with the danger of the hero created in the first book.
