What can possibly match the moment you discover ornithropters 'flap' their wings by electrocuting molluscs?

This is a fascinating addition to the original Dune series - (it was published long before the additional volumes were even thought about). As such its entries really only cover those books from Frank Herbert (Okay I know that the later books are taken from notes and ideas discovered years after his death but we can argue over those all night).

The book is presented like a true encyclopaedia which does mean at times it gets a little dry but once you start the usual hop-scotching through the various entries finding links from one subject to the next you can very quickly find yourself completely different world than you started (literally).

This really only appeals to the fans of the whole saga - if you dont really get Dune then this books is not for you and I guess that is one of its downfalls. The series though widely known and much praised is a huge world to break in to - yes that is part of its appeal that it is so precisely and carefully constructed but it also comes at a cost, you have to invest in this world. But if you do enjoy the worlds that the Spice created then this is a wonderful addition and sadly much missed in print.

Originally published on my blog here in March 1999.

If you look at the back cover, The Dune Encyclopedia may seem to have been the ultimate accessory for the fan of Frank Herbert's Dune series. What is written there makes it sound as though it contains systematically ordered material from the archive of Herbert's own background notes to the series. It lists specific items, which are mostly exaggerated descriptions of articles in the encyclopedia itself ("complete guide to the art of kanly", for example, just means a description of a few of the more common methods of assassination). It is endorsed by Herbert, so it can nevertheless, so it can lay some claim to being authoritative. (He explicitly reserves the right to change the ideas in any later books written in the series, and certainly did so: both Heretics of Dune and Chapterhouse Dune contradict the Encyclopedia.)

The Encyclopedia is not, however, a systematic collection of Herbert's background materials. I am sure that these existed (given the complexity of Herbert's imagined setting for these novels), and they may well have been used to produce much of the material here. The individual articles vary wildly in interest (the one on the geology of Arrakis is particularly yawn inducing) and quality. There is little consistency in coverage; for example, the biographical studies of the major characters are too variable in type and depth to be permitted in a real encyclopedia (which this pretends to be; it uses the conceit that it is a reference work of the far future). The one to avoid is the account of Jessica, mother of Paul Atreides, as the fulfilment of each of Jung's list of human archetypes - male as well as female - and particularly what it has to say about the archetype of "Mother".

Characters are invented for no apparent reason - a playwright, who is basically Shakespeare, right down to the details of the authorship controversy, for example. Some of the articles are distinctly ill advised - whoever wrote the Imperial Poetry account and included quotations from the best poetry of the period must have a very high opinion of their own writing.

There are interesting articles among them; these are mainly the ones to do with people from before the date of the first book, such as the early emperors, the founders of the Spacing Guild and so on.

The conclusion is that this book could certainly have done with a firmer editorial hand.

Absolutely a required volume for Dune fans.

Parallel with this work, I read (and at the time of writing this review I am still reading) an amazing book on the World of Ice and Fire, and how sad it is sometimes that the equally interesting world of Frank Herbert does not have such encyclopaedia.

Do not think, here you can also find a new things, including absolute theories, not confirmed by anything, curious, but still this is just a drop in the ocean.

A very simple book, for real fans, there are always few lovers and a desire to know everything to the smallest detail.

The main advantage of this encyclopedia is the approval of the author himself, albeit with publicity that much should not be taken for truth.

Herbert's son calls this book a fanfiction, which sounds ridiculous, it's funny that he himself, together with a co-author, has been writing those same fanfiction for years, squeezing all the juice out of Dune. I guess how many notes Herbert had to leave before his death so that his son would not starve :)

Eh, I can only dream of a chic illustrated edition of the Dune encyclopedia, and be content with the crumbs available.

Brilliant!
A must have for every true Dune lover

If you've ever read Dune (and the sequels) and you're looking for a resource, this is one of the best. It can actually be difficult to find, and the copy I own was passed to my from my father, and it was passed to him from his father. It really can answer any of your questions about items in Dune, and even provides some images of what they may look like. (Although I really pictured the Sardaukar as looking like something else)

"A must for every Dune fanatic. Some great speculative back story for the Dune Universe. I was disappointed Brian Herbert and Kevin Anderson didn't follow it more closely in their ""preludes"" to Dune. "

This is a nearly indispensable reference guide to the first published set of six Dune novels. Like any good encyclopedia, it can provide hours of pleasure (to someone who is reading or has read the series) from one's simply reading one article and then letting that entry lead to several others! Highly recommended!

OMG. That is all I have to say.

I just love this book. The entries are fascinating and far better than the tripe that Brian Herbert and Kevin Anderson wrote to "add" to the Dune universe. As far as I am concerned, this and the 6 Dune books by Frank are the only Dune canon.

Intense.