Dreams are messages from the deep.
...
Welcome back to Book Club, Fremen. Prophets have a way of dying by violence, and any man who backs into a cave with no exit deserves to die. The prophet that steps up to speak yet finds no escape from the fanatical legions, worshiping at the shrine of Mud'dib's father's skull, will fall to grains of spice upon the edge of a crysknife, precious gift of Shai Hulud.
Thou shalt not make a machine in the likeness of a human mind --
Yet here I am, typing on my computer, which processes and computes.
God Emperor of Dune is the fourth novel in Frank Herbert's epic Dune saga, and as of finishing I truly think it's my new favorite. Dune is an absolute masterpiece, and one thing I like so much about it is how deconstructionist it is. However this kind of storytelling comes in full swing only after the first novel, and while I like Dune Messiah in concept, I think it doesn't have the same breadth of skill that's present in the very fabric of the first novel. Children of Dune was a good read, but stopped just short of great in some ways. God Emperor of Dune, however, is pure genius -- partly because of how relevant it is, contextually, to how the saga begins.
Make no mistake, though. This book is masturbatory, pretentious, and obtuse. It's difficult to fully grasp what exactly was going on, and the story is so far up its own ass with weirdness in the setting, the dialogue, the everything, that it is probably far from everyone's cup of tea.
However, one man's trash truly is another man's treasure. Everything has its niche, and I'm elated to say that God Emperor of Dune is in one of my many niches. I love books that make me think. I love stories that present information through a unique lens, and compound on themselves with one strange twist after the next. This is one of the most atypical stories I've ever experienced. No protagonist hero, classic triumphs, or epic battles to be found. Instead we have a really esoteric, longform diary log, essentially, about the nature of humanity and its pitfalls of faith and leadership, where each chapter is prefaced with our titular character waxing poetic about his thoughts and knowledge, all a guise under the lens of bizarre clone-cross-generational eugenics, thousands of years of feudalism, dodgy Imperium politics, buzzword buzzword meaning! Themes! Themes! Meaning meaning meaning, philosophy??
That may look like a dig, but I promise it's not. Droplets of concept in Dune are carried through to the end in God Emperor. The original story's wild tangle of ecology, sociology, and criticizing power structures unwind into each of their own threads, then tie back together through God Emperor Leto II's actions, words, and intentions. And the most fascinating part of it all, to me, is that while he has noble ends, his means are as vile as they come. God Emperor of Dune is a story of lessons, hubris, and a look at the inevitable devil that arises from any one god. When I finished reading it, I went back through my copy of Dune and moved the tabs marking annotations from the side to the top (so it'd fit better on a shelf) and nearly every line I marked was relevant to what happens in this fourth book somehow. Some of them are quite sneakily done, too...
(For reference; check pages 10, 483, and 537 of the 2020 print/modern English trade paperback of Dune after reading both novels)
It also has a very, very weird romantic subplot -- and in any other book, all of the content written in said subplot would be absolutely atrocious. But once again a unique piece of art proves to me that there truly are no rules; for God Emperor of Dune uses what would traditionally be laughably awkward nerdy-men-writing-women tropes into really fitting portions of the story, and I wouldn't have it any other way.
Just due to the nature of this series, it's really hard to talk in-depth about what makes it so great without spoiling a lot of important stuff, so I'll leave it at that. I had to get my thoughts out about it as soon as I finished reading, because it was one of those books that I think I'll remember for years to come, and I want something to point to so I can recall why exactly that is. One final note on that, too; if you're a writer, or an aspiring one, then -- well, first of all, stop aspiring and get to writing -- but I seriously recommend that you read Dune, and at least Dune Messiah after. It's a perfect example of how to write a story that is more than just its plot, as my friend puts it. It teaches invaluable things that you can use in your career -- or hobby -- going forward.
Until next time. I pray to the Old Man of the Desert that you and the water of your kin find peaceful rest and lovely food this Thanksgiving.
- Austin
