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Frank Herbert: Unpublished Stories
Even the author of DUNE—the best-selling science fiction novel of all time—had trouble getting published. At first. Frank Herbert wanted to be a writer, and though today his name is practically synonymous with world-building and epic science fiction, Herbert didn’t start out with a particular genre in mind. He wrote mainstream stories, mysteries, thrillers, mens’ adventure pieces, humorous slice-of-life tales. And, yes, some science fiction. For the first time, this collection presents 13 completed short stories that Frank Herbert never published in his lifetime. These tales show a great breadth of talent and imagination. Readers can now appreciate the writing of one of the field’s masters in a kaleidoscope of new stories. “For the first time this collection publishes many different genre short stories by the acclaimed author of the novel DUNE. It is a rarity that we get to see the many different types of tales the author wrote that until now were never published. Fans of Frank Herbert will love to discover these newfound treasures and will like this author even more than before.” — Gary Roen, Midwest Book Review
318 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 5, 2016
44 people are currently reading
201 people want to read
About the author
Frank Herbert
564 books16.8k followersFranklin Patrick Herbert Jr. was an American science fiction author best known for the 1965 novel Dune and its five sequels. Though he became famous for his novels, he also wrote short stories and worked as a newspaper journalist, photographer, book reviewer, ecological consultant, and lecturer.
The Dune saga, set in the distant future, and taking place over millennia, explores complex themes, such as the long-term survival of the human species, human evolution, planetary science and ecology, and the intersection of religion, politics, economics and power in a future where humanity has long since developed interstellar travel and settled many thousands of worlds. Dune is the best-selling science fiction novel of all time, and the entire series is considered to be among the classics of the genre.
The Dune saga, set in the distant future, and taking place over millennia, explores complex themes, such as the long-term survival of the human species, human evolution, planetary science and ecology, and the intersection of religion, politics, economics and power in a future where humanity has long since developed interstellar travel and settled many thousands of worlds. Dune is the best-selling science fiction novel of all time, and the entire series is considered to be among the classics of the genre.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
January 20, 2022
I got this book as part of the Humble Book Bundle: Super Nebula Author Showcase (2017), and I have been reading it on and off for more than a year now.
This book includes unpublished works by Frank Herbert, collected by his son. The works vary in genre, but saying this is a mixed bug is generous. In truth, most of these work would have better stayed unpublished. While some are mildly entertaining or amusing, most are forgettable. I can't say that I see anything "Herbert" in this works.
The collection might appeal to researchers or to extreme fans, but to most readers this is a waste of time. Two stars out of five.
This book includes unpublished works by Frank Herbert, collected by his son. The works vary in genre, but saying this is a mixed bug is generous. In truth, most of these work would have better stayed unpublished. While some are mildly entertaining or amusing, most are forgettable. I can't say that I see anything "Herbert" in this works.
The collection might appeal to researchers or to extreme fans, but to most readers this is a waste of time. Two stars out of five.
January 8, 2020
These thirteen short stories by Frank Herbert, (mostly) unpublished in his lifetime, range across a number of genres and styles, and from pretty decent to absolutely awful. Some appear unpolished, with repetitive writing and apparent continuity errors; putting them out in this state does the author no service. The stories would also benefit from more context, such as information about when they were written, and which publications they were submitted to and rejected by. (Such information is provided for a few of the stories in
Dreamer of Dune: The Biography of Frank Herbert
by Brian Herbert.)
The standout piece by far is "Wilfred," a very entertaining anecdote about a singer who fakes a new identity. "The Illegitimate Stage," a screwball comedy about a bohemian couple putting on a play for a wealthy benefactress, is also rather amusing. These stories in particular demonstrate a more playful side of Frank Herbert, rarely seen in his published writing.
Of the suspense-driven stories, I found "The Yellow Coat" the most compelling, effectively sketching its main character at a turning point. "The Little Window" has been convincingly read by Brian Herbert as a metaphor for his father's "quiet desperation" at a low point in his career, and this emotional resonance adds interest to an otherwise humdrum pulp tale. Other entries struck me as almost entirely generic. The less said about the stories with apparent "serious" literary pretensions the better.
Of the two science fiction stories included, one, "Public Hearing," is simply a draft version of the story later published in nearly identical form as "Committee of the Whole." Its inclusion seems like padding, or a careless mistake. The other, "The Daddy Box," is a very slight tale, but also has some parallels with the author's life and with Dune , and could therefore be of interest to fans.
The standout piece by far is "Wilfred," a very entertaining anecdote about a singer who fakes a new identity. "The Illegitimate Stage," a screwball comedy about a bohemian couple putting on a play for a wealthy benefactress, is also rather amusing. These stories in particular demonstrate a more playful side of Frank Herbert, rarely seen in his published writing.
Of the suspense-driven stories, I found "The Yellow Coat" the most compelling, effectively sketching its main character at a turning point. "The Little Window" has been convincingly read by Brian Herbert as a metaphor for his father's "quiet desperation" at a low point in his career, and this emotional resonance adds interest to an otherwise humdrum pulp tale. Other entries struck me as almost entirely generic. The less said about the stories with apparent "serious" literary pretensions the better.
Of the two science fiction stories included, one, "Public Hearing," is simply a draft version of the story later published in nearly identical form as "Committee of the Whole." Its inclusion seems like padding, or a careless mistake. The other, "The Daddy Box," is a very slight tale, but also has some parallels with the author's life and with Dune , and could therefore be of interest to fans.
July 17, 2019
I really love Frank Herbert, but I perfectly understand why these stories were unpublished before.
December 27, 2022
Unpublished Stories is a collection of 13 short stories written by Frank Herbert and never published during his lifetime, only two of them sci-fi, which was published in 2016. One can see the focus of Herbert on the characters, on their motivations and their inner thoughts, the way their actions affect the whole.
The collection consists of:
- The Cage - a soldier is sent to a psych ward after a head injury where he is tortured by a sadistic caretaker under the threat of pinning some mental illness on him
- The Illegitimate Stage - a couple of play stage professionals are hired to materialize a play written by a wealthy sponsor, then start to form a bond with the hapless woman
- A Lesson in History - a husband experiences the tension of remembering his war days and his mistress then, while having to hide all signs from his wife
- Wilfred - a story about the total psychopathic transformation of a man and the bafflement of society around him
- The Iron Maiden - a young soldier begs for advice from his more experienced friend on how to woo the girl he is in love with
- The Wrong Cat - a woman is terrorized by a murderous madman
- The Yellow Coat - a cowardly man becomes stronger from pushing through danger and trauma, but no one believes it
- The Heat's On - a fireman investigates a strange series of deaths by fire
- The Little Window - an unexpected event shakes the owner of a shoe shop and his nephew from their complacency
- The Waters of Kan-E - a story of survival in the Polynesian ocean
- Paul's Friend - another story about survival at sea
- Public Hearing - a scientist explains to helpless politicians that their armed power has become obsolete when everyone can build a world destroying weapon
- The Daddy Box - an alien device starts fixing humanity by starting small
Even without any actual connection to Dune, there is evidence of the seeds of the novel in many of the stories within. For example in A Lesson in History, there is the idea that a woman can discern the thoughts of a man from tiny disparate actions and gestures. In The Yellow Coat a man's psyche is transformed by adversity. In Public Hearing the weapon described is very similar to a Dune lasgun, while The Daddy Box features a way to change a society by tackling the basics of the family unit.
The stories are short and the collection is not a big book. If you are interested in how Frank Herbert's mind worked, this is something that is worth reading, without any of the stories inside being really that special. I enjoyed the book, but without my interest in the author I would not probably have recommended it to anyone.
The collection consists of:
- The Cage - a soldier is sent to a psych ward after a head injury where he is tortured by a sadistic caretaker under the threat of pinning some mental illness on him
- The Illegitimate Stage - a couple of play stage professionals are hired to materialize a play written by a wealthy sponsor, then start to form a bond with the hapless woman
- A Lesson in History - a husband experiences the tension of remembering his war days and his mistress then, while having to hide all signs from his wife
- Wilfred - a story about the total psychopathic transformation of a man and the bafflement of society around him
- The Iron Maiden - a young soldier begs for advice from his more experienced friend on how to woo the girl he is in love with
- The Wrong Cat - a woman is terrorized by a murderous madman
- The Yellow Coat - a cowardly man becomes stronger from pushing through danger and trauma, but no one believes it
- The Heat's On - a fireman investigates a strange series of deaths by fire
- The Little Window - an unexpected event shakes the owner of a shoe shop and his nephew from their complacency
- The Waters of Kan-E - a story of survival in the Polynesian ocean
- Paul's Friend - another story about survival at sea
- Public Hearing - a scientist explains to helpless politicians that their armed power has become obsolete when everyone can build a world destroying weapon
- The Daddy Box - an alien device starts fixing humanity by starting small
Even without any actual connection to Dune, there is evidence of the seeds of the novel in many of the stories within. For example in A Lesson in History, there is the idea that a woman can discern the thoughts of a man from tiny disparate actions and gestures. In The Yellow Coat a man's psyche is transformed by adversity. In Public Hearing the weapon described is very similar to a Dune lasgun, while The Daddy Box features a way to change a society by tackling the basics of the family unit.
The stories are short and the collection is not a big book. If you are interested in how Frank Herbert's mind worked, this is something that is worth reading, without any of the stories inside being really that special. I enjoyed the book, but without my interest in the author I would not probably have recommended it to anyone.
September 18, 2017
When an author is known for one work (or type of writing) it is very interesting to have the opportunity to read from his or her early or unrelated efforts. Here we are treated to a mostly non-genre collection from Frank Herbert, of course best know for Dune. An entertaining set of stories that show a surprising range. The two stories that are science fiction have an almost 'Bradbury' quality and are set on terra firma, with no galactic empires in sight.
July 24, 2022
No wonder they were unpublished - timid little things, hewing very close to the basest formula for marketable fiction at the time they were written, taking no chances whatsoever. Might work as filler in some magazine or other, but collected here, for the people who suddenly discovered "Dune" and became instant completists, they offer nothing but concentrated mediocrity.
April 2, 2023
I really didn't expect much from this but it wasn't bad. I think that some of the works were better ideas than stories and probably shouldn't have made it into publication. I'd also say that some of them felt really dated and there definitely wasn't enough science fiction for this to have been included in a science fiction bundle, but I mostly enjoyed the read.
January 13, 2024
Truth in publishing alert—not all of these stories were unpublished. It's also not the best collection of Frank Herbert's work. Most of the stories are enjoyable, but few really have the power of his sf classics. Still, any true fan of Herbert's is going to enjoy the chance to read these tales. A couple of them are very memorable.
June 3, 2018
Interesting read, mostly not science fiction. Some are good, others less so. Guess that’s why they were unpublished.
June 22, 2018
Variable, both in standard, style and topic.
From the mundane to the surprisingly good - well worth a read, if just to see where he came from.
From the mundane to the surprisingly good - well worth a read, if just to see where he came from.
November 7, 2022
Mostly average, "meh" stories, but the last one is exceptional.
February 7, 2023
Interesting short stories by a master story teller.
June 22, 2016
The master of short stories at his best .
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews