Customer Reviews

The Worlds Of Frank Herbert

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Frank Herbert (1920-1986) wrote his masterpiece "Dune" (1965), generating a recognizable turning point in sci-fi literature.

The variety of themes he touched influenced many genre authors thereafter: ecology, political-religious interaction, genetic manipulation, longevity drugs and secret sisterhoods and brotherhoods.

"The Worlds of Frank Herbert" has 1970 as publication date. It comprises eight short stories published between 1961 and 1967 in prestigious sci-fi magazines.

The collection allows the reader to perceive the portentous imagination of Frank Herbert and at the same time why he was better novelist than short-stories writer. IMHO Herbert needed more than a few pages to fully exploit his creativity.

"The Tactful Saboteur", first story in the collection, is a very peculiar one and the best of the book. The backdrop is the ConSentient universe, common environment for "A Matter of Traces" (short story 1958), "Whipping Star" (novel 1970) and "The Dosadai Experiment" (novel 1977). In this scenery humans coexist with several alien races and the Government needs to be slowed down in order to preserve "Sentient Rights".

The story centers on Jorj X. McKie "saboteur extraordinary" of the Bureau of Sabotage who is in search of a missing colleague and mixed up in several schemes.

"The GM Effect" explores genetic memory in a very compact and thrilling tale. I just love this one!

"The Featherbedders" shows Herbert's classical wit to device unexpected plots that run deeper and deeper from a superficially anodyne situation.

The rest of the stories give you an idea about Herbert's imaginative universes!

I recommend this quite short book to sci-fi lovers (especially Frank Herbert enthusiasts) and general public too.

Reviewed by Max Yofre.