Veleda said:
I'm a big fan of the original novel, though I admit by book 3 Herbert kind of lost me with all the Golden Path stuff. This is making me want to go back and finish the cycle as well as read the novels where his son picked up the story.
Thanks for the info, I'm exactly the same with the series, first book is great, superb concept imo - a deep metaphor for evolution, nature or nurture, wrapped in space age feudalism - maybe it was this central anachronism that was just too much, too original & unfamiliar, for those publishers in the 60's to get their heads around, 'cos 22 strikes in a row for such a retrospectively acknowledged classic is beyond unimaginative... its unbelievable. Just like the story after the first book
I actually picked up 'God Emporer of Dune(#4)" a few months ago to have on hand for when my scifi/fantasy switch flips next, but at the same time I won't be surprised if I put it down pretty quick. Out epic-ing the previous zenith to the point of incredulity is how I remember the series going.
Veleda said:
It's a pretty sick commentary of our society that the very best authors can't get publishers, yet their work soars after their death.
Very common in the past certainly, artists & composers were tradesmen, not celebrities. Not so much these days though, I can't recall a person during my lifetime whose work only became recognised posthumously. Nikola Tesla, maybe, but only the west forgot him, Herman Melville (
Moby Dick) was unsuccessful in life, forgotten in death, only to be appreciated 60+ years later, but that was in the 1930's. Vivaldi was a
rock star punk impresario in his day, as world famous as you could be, gradually forgotten after his death (no recordings, limited transcribing), until 200 years later a palimpsest of his scores are found and the '
Four Seasons' is back, it's difficult to conceive that it was away.
No, the generations alive today, when they forget or seemingly fail to recognise a living talent, it's more likely there was nothing there in the first place.
