The Dune Encyclopedia
The Dune Encyclopedia is a 1984 collection of essays written by Willis E. McNelly and multiple other contributors as a companion to Frank Herbert's "Dune" series of science fiction novels. Overview. "The Dune Encyclopedia", written by McNelly and 42 other contributors as a companion to the "Dune" series, was published in paperback in 1984. It describes in great detail many aspects of the "Dune" universe not covered in the novels themselves, such as character biographies and explanations of key elements, including planets, factions like the Bene Gesserit and Mentats, the spice melange, and technology such as  heighliners and stillsuits. Publication. "The Dune Encyclopedia" was published by Berkley Books, an imprint of Putnam, the publisher of all of Frank Herbert's "Dune" novels. The cover called the work "complete" and "authorized". Additionally, Frank Herbert approved the book, considering it "amusing" and "fascinating". The "Encyclopedia" was compiled and published between "God Emperor of Dune" (1981) and "Heretics of Dune" (1984), and Herbert "read large portions of "God Emperor of Dune", then in the final stages, to McNelly during the compiling of the volume so that McNelly could keep abreast of developments." Herbert himself wrote the foreword for the  Encyclopedia (dated November 1983), which noted: "The Dune Encyclopedia" is written as an encyclopedia published within the "Dune" universe itself, edited by "Hadi Benotto", a fictional archaeologist mentioned by Frank Herbert in his novels "God Emperor of Dune" and "Heretics of Dune". Rather than claiming to contain absolute fact about this universe, the introduction by Benotto notes that "readers of "The Dune Encyclopedia" should understand its limitations: it is not designed as a definitive study of the entire eras encompassed by the Atreides Imperium" and that a portion of the (fictional) source material is shaped by the interests and influences  of the God Emperor Leto II. In 1999, McNelly stated that he had proposed to Frank Herbert that they collaborate on a "Dune" prequel novel, expanding upon the Butlerian Jihad story presented in "The Dune Encyclopedia". He noted, "FH and I had discussed writing it together and he agreed with my general plot outline, completed first chapter, and so on but his untimely death prevented us from continuing." Reception. Colin Greenland reviewed "The Dune Encyclopedia" for "Imagine" magazine, and stated, "Unlike existing reader's guides to the worlds of Tolkien and others, "The Dune Encyclopedia" is itself a work of  fiction, rich in imaginary footnotes and learned sources, and 'newly discovered information'. Herbert himself is (of course) delighted, but promises 'Issues still to be explored as the Chronicles unfold'. Where will it end?" Relationship with subsequent novels. Some ideas in "The Dune Encyclopedia" were contradicted in the later "Dune" prequel series of novels (1999–present) written after Frank Herbert's death by his son Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson, as well as their sequel novels "Hunters of Dune" (2006) and "Sandworms of Dune" (2007), which complete the original series. Brian Herbert and Anderson have stated repeatedly that in writing  the sequel and prequel novels, they used Frank Herbert's own notes found after his death. In response to questions over why the new post-Frank Herbert "Dune" novels conflict with "The Dune Encyclopedia", the book was declared non-canon on the official "Dune" website in a letter credited to McNelly, Brian Herbert, and Anderson: