Dune
Frank Herbert
The first book, which the first two films adapted between them.
About 608 pages, roughly 12 hours.
All book-to-film guides
Read it before you watch it: Dune: Part Three
Dune: Part Three is reported to adapt Frank Herbert's Dune Messiah. This guide covers what to read first, how long it takes and what to read next.
Dune: Part Three
The release date in U.S. theaters, including IMAX.
- Warner Bros. Pictures releases the film, with Legendary Pictures.
- Denis Villeneuve directs, as he did the first two films.
- Press coverage describes the film as drawn from Dune Messiah.
Announced details checked .
Read this first
Read Dune first if you have not: the first two films adapt it, and the third film continues that story. Dune Messiah is the book the film is reported to adapt, and it is less than half the length of Dune, so it makes a quick second step.
Dune Messiah
Frank Herbert
The 1969 novel the film is reported to adapt. It picks up Paul Atreides's story years after Dune, with him on the imperial throne.
About 279 pages, roughly 6 hours.
If you loved it, read next
Foundation
Isaac Asimov
A mathematician foresees the fall of a galactic empire and sets up a Foundation to keep knowledge alive. A classic of big ideas more than action.
Hyperion
Dan Simmons
Pilgrims heading for the Time Tombs on a distant world trade life stories on the way, in a layered novel that takes its shape from the Canterbury Tales.
The Left Hand of Darkness
Ursula K. Le Guin
An envoy tries to win a cold world's rival nations over to an alliance, in a slower novel about trust, politics and difference.
Leviathan Wakes
James S. A. Corey
A ship officer and a detective in the asteroid belt are pulled into one mystery that could set Earth, Mars and the Belt against each other.
Ender's Game
Orson Scott Card
Ender Wiggin, a gifted child recruited to Battle School, is pushed through zero-gravity war games while humanity braces for another alien attack.
Where to start
Start with Dune if you have not read it: the first two films adapt it, and it sets up everything in the third. It is long, so allow a good stretch of evenings. Dune Messiah picks up Paul Atreides's story years later, with him on the imperial throne, and it is less than half as long. It is the book the film is reported to adapt. After the film, these five picks lean on big ideas. Foundation and Hyperion offer scale, The Left Hand of Darkness is about politics and culture, Leviathan Wakes moves faster, and Ender's Game is the quickest read. Ender's Game includes violence involving children, so check it before giving it to a younger reader.
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