The Worlds Of Frank Herbert

by Frank Herbert

The Worlds of Frank Herbert is a collection of eight short stories written by science fiction author Frank Herbert. All of the stories in this collection had been previously published in magazines.

This collection consists of:

The Tactful Saboteur
Committee of the Whole
Old Rambling House
Mating Call
A-W-F Unlimited
The Featherbedders
The GM Effect
Escape Felicity

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Short Stories, Science Fiction Fantasy, Collections, Fantasy, Anthologies

191 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published December 1, 1970

About the author

Franklin 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.

Reviews

[Adrian · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the pen of the man who wrote DuneDune, comes a wonderful book of 8 short stories that are all different and none whatsoever to do with Sandworms or Muad'ib.

From an invention that will alter the way all governments function in the future, to a house swap with aliens ; from designing space armour for women, to aliens that sing to get pregnant; from a genetic memory drug to technologically and mentally advanced aliens who can't be bothered to interact with anyone.

All great stories and a fun read.

(As an aside this book is one of the few remaining from my original "library" of over 3000, that got "lost" over 30 years ago now)

[Jacob · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well that ended on a silly sexist note. Sadly it had a lot of sexist notes to it throughout. All the sad earmarks of using fake science to back up prejudice instead of allowing science to free you from the grip of prejudice. Happens often in Vintage SciFi but normally FH doesn't get tripped up by it. This collection he did.

[Sam Cooke · Rating 2 out of 5]

A collection of short stories, especially by an author you vehemently enjoy, is hard to give a rating to. Some of these were clever, others painfully slow, and sadly some were sexist. Alas, sexism is not a stranger to vintage Sci-fi, but it is not something I have come to expect from Frank Herbert. Worthwhile to read if you are a die-hard Herbert completist (*raises hand*) and for fans of vintage sci-fi books. The Tactful Saboteur is included in this collection and it is a great short story. Perhaps read that one on its own.

[Philip Wyeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

A hit-and-miss collection with a few real gems. I didn't read these in order, actually stumbling upon a couple of the better ones first, and thus was disappointed by the inconsistency.

BEST:
-"By the Book": Perfect mix of efficient world-building, urgent crisis, and unique character's methods to solve it. Very well crafted and paced.
-"Escape Felicity": Immersive tale of space travel and the intense thoughts inside an astronaut's mind. The alien encounter was dramatic and resolved cleverly. Hints of fun here too.
-"The GM Effect": Imaginative take on genetic memory and its implications across the educational, political, military, and economic spectrums. I predicted the ending, but it was still impactful.

GOOD:
-"Mating Call": At times weird and intense. Shines with its creativity, but the over-the-top Laoconia character gets repetitive.
-"The Featherbedders": Starts off well with tension and an immersive set-up, but too many tone and/or macro-perspective shifts don't make for a completely satisfying result.
-"A-W-F Unlimited": Definitely fun, full of creative zingers and social insights, but the dialogue is a bit long-winded and the female characters sound like they were written by Asimov (that's not good).

PASS:
-"The Tactful Saboteur": A sort-of mystery that falls flat as an exercise in... cross-species understanding? The final trial scene was pedantic and didn't lead to any concrete takeaways, unfortunately. The character Jorj X. McKie appears in a couple of Herbert's books, so people who like Jorj might enjoy this little snack.
-"Committee of the Whole": Even more forced than the previous story. A lecture to humanity about its destructive potential in front of Congress. Just hasn't aged well in post-Cold War era.
-"Old Rambling House": Alien real-estate entrapment? Just flat every which way, and not saved by what's revealed in the last few paragraphs.

Definitely check out the three winners, they're solid.

[Zantaeus Glom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Masterful sf by a witty writer of great skill. Thus far, I have found Frank Herbert's 'aliens' to be the most 'alien', his attention to fine detail is to be lauded; not only did I have great interest and empathy in these myriad beings; due to the depth of Herbert's characterization I was also deeply moved by their plight. It is a real shame that this collection seems to be out of print. (if you write speculative fiction, this is a MUST-READ!)

I don't know if Frank Herbert wrote any more short stories, but if he did I'd love to track them down, as he has a sly wit absent in so many other writer's working in the same idiom.

I wasn't hugely taken by the first story 'The tactful Saboteur' but the others were wholly engrossing, and many times his 'alien' dialogue actually made me laugh out loud. Fr what its worth I do hope more people get a chance to read 'The World's of Frank Herbert', as it is a glorious planetoid, and one well worth the trip.

The final story 'Escape Felicity' is an absolute hoot!

[Brian Washines · Rating 3 out of 5]

Early stuff from the creator of Arakkis, and all its spicy tidbits. Just shows the range of Herbert's bureaucratic linguistic pasta bowl he calls Brain. Yes, science fiction can and will be seemingly impenetrable at times with its speculative terms but then again, exploring is half the fun. Nice addition to mine collection.

[Kyle · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first couple of stories didn't particularly grip me, and at first I found myself wondering how this was the same author who wrote Dune. After these near-duds, though, the stories improved, with good writing and engaging themes.

Good enough that the collection could have been five stars if not for the first couple, which have brought it down to a four.

[Nathan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Being a long time fan of an author has certain difficulties, especially if your desire to love their work comes up against mediocre examples of it. It's happened to me with even some of my most beloved writers. Yet, after my initial resistance I have no choice but to call it like it is. I'd loved Herbert's Dune series for many years. They're such deep, imaginative, relevant works of fiction, let alone Sci-fi. Yet as I've managed to scrape together some of his earlier and more obscure works, I've found myself often disappointed. Some of his stand alone novels, like the Dosadi Experiment, really do stand alone, having satisfying breadth and depth. But I have to honestly say that the short stories found in Worlds of Frank Herbert barely seem like they were written by the guy. Every story seemed underdeveloped with little to no payoff. Somebody must have wacked him with the talent wand halfway through his career because these early short stories certainly weren't promising. I'd like to think they just contain a complexity that I somehow missed, that the fault is in me, not in Herbert. But I suspect otherwise. I'm just thankful that he eventually became worthwhile.

[Patrick · Rating 2 out of 5]

The main thing I learned from this collection is that I really don't like Frank Herbert's short fiction. Indeed, in digging a bit deeper, I learned that Herbert's short work is considered some of the weakest of his bibliography. It's easy to see why. Among the stories I finished:

"The Tactful Saboteur": This story establishes one of Herbert's other story universes, but damned if I could tell you what the opaque plot was about -- if anything. (1 star)

"By the Book": Standard-issue mid century sci-fi. Not particularly novel or exciting. (2 stars)

"Committee of the Whole": A brilliant rancher uses a senate hearing to announce that he has given humanity the means to individually create weapons of mass destruction, meaning that man will either have to mature and learn restraint or destroy itself. An interesting -- if naive -- idea poorly executed. (2 stars)

"Mating Call": Traditional sci-fi tale about researchers who accidentally impregnate most of the human race with alien-human hybrids. Would have been better if I could have properly interpreted the tone. If it's meant to be "humorous," it mostly succeeds. If it's meant to be serious, well... (2 stars)

Average: 1.75 stars.

[Joachim Boaz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Full review: https://sciencefictionruminations.com...

"I have long been a fan of Frank Herbert. In my youth I scarfed down Dune (1965) and all its sequels and cried (metaphorically) when his son Brian Herbert made a mockery of his vision. I even read the more dubious novels in Herbert’s canon: from The Green Brain (1966) to the co-written [...]"

[Sean Hall · Rating 3 out of 5]

A mixed bag of stories from 1958-67, some of which I found hard to get into - somewhat lengthy procedural sequences and dialogue exchanges, but every now and then there are unique concepts and fantastic details of a world not our own. I like how Herbert brings into his stories a fascination with insects and his occasional inclusion of the existence of sex and breeding.

[Liz Brau · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun read for a Herbert fan! Many of the short story ideas you can see in other novels, and the Saboteur short story gives some extra detail to the Pan Spechi (woh, I just got that name - pan species), one of my favorite aliens in Frank's world.

[Andrewcharles420 · Rating 1 out of 5]

Love the author, but this compilation of short stories really has nothing to offer. Has all the worst aspects of short stories--just a hint of a good idea in every other story with 30 pages of irrelevant wrapping around it to provide context, and no plot or character development.

[Aaron the Pink Donut · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not his best work. This collection will appeal only to those die hard completest of Herbert's Work

[Josh Lehman · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF. A slog to get through. Cared about zero of the characters or the stories surrounding them.

[Tbfrank · Rating 2 out of 5]

Despite the Goodreads description, this edition contains 9 stories with the addition of By The Book which appeared in the August 1966 issue of Analog.

Virtually all the stories contain familiar tropes from Aliens Among Us to First Contact to Man vs Technology and Man vs Bureaucracy. They also are a clear reflection of the mores and tastes of the late 50's and 60's with human and male centric biases.

Herbert is more properly known as a novelist and these stories illustrate that though he could follow the form he was more adept when his stories had a far greater scope. The themes he exploited later are also seen as several of these stories pit man against an uncaring and impersonal government.

While little more than an average example of the genre, two stories caught my attention: The Featherbedders (1967) about two different alien species living on the earth in plain sight - reminiscent of Zenna Henderson's The People; and Exit Felicity (1966) a story of First and Second contact, maybe more. 

[Philip Athans · Rating 5 out of 5]

Faltered a bit in attempts at humor but this short collection of short stories showcased a few ideas further expanded upon in Dune and other novels. Of value, like most short story collections, primarily for the super fan.

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not sure what the intent of this book originally was. No introduction, no back cover copy, just a few stories thrown into a book. The stories did seem to revolve around the theme of having a particular occupation, and they were decent stories, but, well, I guess that's that.

[Corentin Gastalle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Recueil de nouvelles indépendantes écrites avant et pendant Dune, ça va du médiocre au sympa... J'ai pas été convaincu. Par contre c'était sympa de déceler les éléments qui deviendront centraux dans la saga Dune.

[Robert (NurseBob) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thought-provoking, and sometimes just provoking, this is a fine collection of imaginative fiction showcasing not only Herbert's talents as a writer but also his apparently deep distain for all things governmental and bureaucratic.

[Eric · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some clever ideas in there, but I just don’t love short stories. I like the tactful saboteur the best I think.

[Attila Erdei · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting selection of short stories. Reminds me of Asimov but the theme is random and not formed around one world.

[J.R. Santos · Rating 4 out of 5]

The awf might be the best in the bunch. Funny and very current.

[Jobby · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always love reading stuff by Frank Herbert. This book has 8 short stories by him. Some are set in the far future while others feel like they are almost modern day. They are all clever though and all get you thinking.
The first story, Tactful Saboteur, features the familiar character of Jorj X McKie, who was the main character in the novels Whipping Star and The Santaroga Barrier.
Mating Call must have the freakiest ending (a grim twist to it). I also really enjoyed Old Rambling House and The Featherbedders, both of which have Frank's nice little signature twist.
A-W-F Unlimited is probably the weakest story of the collection but does provide some light relief in the midst of the other stories.
Overall a really enjoyable read. Which is what you'd expect from Frank Herbert.

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an excellent selection of way, way out there Herbert stories. The experience was only lessened by having already read a few of the stories in other collections.
I enjoyed the collection so much that I have already passed it on, and also I have (once again) randomly discovered that one of the short stories is linked to a short novel I already own an old paperback copy of (oh, the days before spellcheck) and have begun reading.

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some good vintage Herbert here. Especially 'The Tactful Saboteur', introducing Jorj X McKie, later star of 'Whipping Star' and 'The Dosadi Experiment'.

From memory, that was the first Herbert short I read and 'Dune' the first novel.

Made me a lifelong fan.

[bluetyson]

The Worlds Of Frank Herbert by Frank Herbert (1970)

[Louise Armstrong · Rating 2 out of 5]

A bit dated and like so much old SF, not much of interest for girls.

[*Kashi* · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent collection! Love the "Mating Call" and "Tactful Saboteur"

[Norman Howe]

Science-Fiction