Dune Scholar

My first online course “Dune 101” has launched! I’ve designed the course with lessons on author Frank Herbert’s life and influences, the 20th-century historical context, setting and factions, and key themes in Dune through audio-visual content based on my research. Check out the Dune 101 course page for more information. This is part of my expansion beyond books and articles into different content types to bring my research and insights to life in new ways. It’s a learning process for me but I hope to reach new audiences and use the power of visual media to enhance understanding about this

Whether you’re an old or new Dune fan, the recently published essay collection Discovering Dune: Essays on Frank Herbert’s Epic Saga will have something to interest you. Edited by Dominic J. Nardi and N. Trevor Brierly, with a foreword by Timothy O’Reilly, this book by publisher McFarland holds itself to academic standards while being largely written in an accessible style that will appeal to a wider audience. The book showcases several interesting topics across 14 main chapters, divided into 4 sections: Politics and Power History and Religion Biology and Ecology Philosophy, Choice, and Ethics In the Politics and Power section,

I’m pleased to announce the publication of my book Frank Herbert’s Dune: A Critical Companion! It is part of the “Palgrave Science Fiction and Fantasy: A New Canon” series and brings together previous scholarship and new approaches to Dune to give fresh insights into the complexities of this science fiction classic. In this book, I show why Dune deserves a place in the science fiction and fantasy canon. After a review of Herbert’s life and the historical context of the U.S. and science fiction genre in the mid-20th century, there are chapters on five key themes in Dune: politics and

There’s a new translation of my 2016 journal article “Epic World-Building: Names and Cultures in Dune” into Portuguese! Construção de Mundo Épica: Nomes e Culturas em Duna. Thanks to the translator for helping make this scholarship more accessible beyond English-language readers.