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The White Plague Book Review | Pajiba - Scathing Reviews for Bitchy People

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100 Books in One Year #50: The White Plague by Frank Herbert

Cannonball Read / Brian Prisco

Book Reviews | March 3, 2009 | Comments (13)

If someone gave you a book by the author of Dune, what would you expect? It sure as hell wouldn’t be this staggeringly awesome social scarestory in the vein of Dr. Strangelove. To say it blew my mind would be an understatement.

John Roe O’Neill, a molecular biologist doing research in Ireland, watches from a second story bank window as his wife and twin children are decimated in an IRA bombing. He goes insane — developing an alter ego and selling off all the vestiges of his old life — and creates a supervirus that instantaneously kills every woman who comes into contact with it. He unleashes the plague, called the white plague for the spots it causes on the skin, in Ireland, England, and Libya. What’s fascinating is that we are on the side of the terrorist in this, feeling that his reaction isn’t necessarily tragic.

What follows then is a riff on the Irish civil war, world government, religion, and science, all deftly wrapped up in this brutal Armaggedon foxtrot. From the Pope to the President, nobody is safe from the satirical saber of Herbert. Having never read Dune, I didn’t know what to expect from this novel, but Sweet Mary McCrae, was it fucking spot on. It manages to blast everyone, attacking science and religion, the IRA and the British, government and the common folk, each with equal blows.

Written in 1982, it’s frightening accurate and plausible, in the wake of 9/11 and more aptly the Oklahoma City Bombings. All it takes is one mad scientist to poison the well, and the world is thrown into chaos. Feminist treatises could be written on the entire novel — particularly the shocker ending. Well, not so much a shocker, as a viciously black comic goose.

This review is part of the Cannonball Read series. Details are here and the growing number of participants and their blogs are here.


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Comments

I have read every Dune book, by both Herberts. How the fuck did I miss this?

Posted by: admin at March 3, 2009 9:14 AM

Because it's not one of the Dune series. It's one of Herbert's stand-alone novels, like The Dosadi Experiment or Hellstrom's Hive.

Posted by: The Wanderer at March 3, 2009 9:24 AM

Because it's not one of the Dune series.

Twas a rhetorical question.

Posted by: admin at March 3, 2009 9:45 AM

Even Dune is not a bad book. It lifts stuff wholesale from Bedouin culture, sure, but that only makes it, and its message of the problems inherent in manipulating politics with religion, more relevant today.

Now the ten gazillion Dune sequels? Yeah, skip those. But I always thought Herbert was very good about taking current events and overlaying them on science fiction settings.

Posted by: Wednesday at March 3, 2009 9:45 AM

Wednesday, I'm going to guess that you didn't get past either Children of Dune or God Emperor (also known as the depressing one and the really fucking weird one). That's where most fans of Dune usually stop, which is unfortunate because the last two books that Frank Herbert wrote in the series are easily the best.

Now the 'final chapters' written by his son and what's his name is a different story altogether. The prequel books are okay as a sort of appendix to all the backstory but those two can't come close to the depth and elegance of Daddy Herbert.

Sorry I was overtaken by the Dune fanatic within... Hail the passing of Shai' Hulud!.

Posted by: joemama420 at March 3, 2009 10:21 AM

You really should read Dune. There is a reason it is one of the most enduring SciFi novels out there and it is not something that can translate well to the screen so don't be put off by the movie or mini-series versions. Herbert creates one of the most complete fictional worlds there is. He combines religion, science, drugs, trade, sex, genetics and yoga

Even the multitude of sequels have something worthwhile in them. I think the big idea behind the later books is intriguing.

Several other of his stand alone books are also excellent. Particularly the Dosadi Experiment and Destination Void.

Posted by: Frank at March 3, 2009 10:32 AM

funny timing. i just finished reading dune for the first time literally last night. i've never been much of a sci-fi person, but i have to say, it was one hell of a good book. i was really surprised by how engrossed i got pretty much right off the bat. highly recommended.

Posted by: dan at March 3, 2009 12:04 PM

I'm on Heretics of Dune right now. Dune through Children of Dune (don't watch the James McAvoy miniseries, I don't care if he's shirtless, its heresy and terrible) are really good books.

Once you get to God Emperor (which, as Joemama rightly says, is hella sad) things get a little weird.

And yeah it steals stuff from the Bedouin culture, but the point is that these are humans thousands of years in the future, so some stuff from our time survived.

I might try this one. I like Herbert's stuff.

Posted by: Emily at March 3, 2009 1:05 PM

This story sounds like the inspiration behind Battle Tanx on the old N64...

Posted by: alphawhiskey at March 3, 2009 1:37 PM

Just finished the Dune series.

Gripping stuff. It's hard not to get sucked into their world.

Posted by: Recondite at March 3, 2009 4:10 PM

I read this one when I was around 14 years-old. All I remember is thinking that it was a good book (Marijuana does not lend itself to memory retention).

I may have to give it another shot.

Posted by: imk at March 3, 2009 8:51 PM

Glad other people called it out, cause the intro baffled me. What would I expect from the author of Dune? More brilliance.

You know that entire series--that is, that entire universe, rivaled for completeness only by Lord of the Rings (as far as I'm aware, anyway)--was inspired by an article he wrote about sand dunes encroaching a town somewhere out west, and the plan to stop the encroachment with a very particular species of grass? Sounds like a six-book series, right? Right.

Not to mention it was the first seriously recognized literary effort in science-fiction. His publisher was wary that he was writing too long--the guy just starting producing hundreds and hundreds of pages and wouldn't stop--because until that point sci-fi was just pulp adventure. I couldn't have more respect for Frank Herbert, or his works.

Posted by: Kyle at March 3, 2009 10:16 PM

I read White Plague so long ago I had forgotten until I read the summary, and it came right back, after maybe 25 years.
Funnily enough God-emperor of Dune is my favourite of them all (Dune books). I don't count the crap produced by Brian Herbert & Anderson as being relevant, they are so so bad.

The original dune trilogy are great meditations on the corruption of power and religion, with a very definite early environmentalist message. God-emperor seemed to me a man (Herbert) trying far more to come to terms with a personal universe. I love that book.
Ok and The Jesus Incident & The Lazarus Effect also.

Posted by: Donal at March 4, 2009 4:27 AM





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