Why is The Dune Encyclopedia out of print and How to read it anyway?
It’s not due to lack of interest or any inherent flaw in that magnificent work, which took years to finish and involved about a dozen capable contributors who had nothing but respect for the source material. It’s due to the shittyness of US copyright law and the unbearable ease in which it can be abused. Today, even more than before, the DE would have received widespread (if niche) love and enough Amazon sales to justify additional editions. Think of the Star Wars EU and the Silmarilion — “Expanded Universe” and fanfic culture is only growing in size. And this book was sanctioned and appreciated (regardless of what the Dynamic Duo may try to sell us about it) by Frank Herbert.
The reason for its burial in the mists of time is very specific and very famous: BH and KJH have forbidden it and they hold the rights to the Dune IP. The whole story is told on the Dune Wiki — to save you some time:
“…McNelly repeatedly tried to reprint The Dune Encyclopedia following Frank Herbert’s death in 1986. In 2000, he explained his reasons on the Dune Usenet group:
I am not repeat NOT interested in any financial gain from reprinting the DE. I would like to see it in print again because I am proud of the work done by my many contributors to the volume as well as of the vast amount of material it adds to the Arrakeen saga.[2] Despite his persistence, the Herbert estate refused to allow it. McNelly warned fans against taking matters into their own hands and releasing the Encyclopedia online for free, and hinted at his frustration in the face of HLP lawyers;
I cannot, ethically, legally, or morally or even practically permit anyone to use anything from the DE unless prior permission is granted by the FH estate. And that is as likely as finding open water on Arrakis. And I strongly — VERY strongly — suggest that you do not risk the wrath of FH’s attorneys in using any of this material in a way not permitted by the current copyright laws. Frankly, I know of no one in the a.f.d. [alt.fan.dune Usenet Group] group who has the money to defend him/her self against a lawsuit. I know whereof I speak. [2] The reason for the estate’s refusal to reprint the Encyclopedia may be that many of the ideas and information presented in The Dune Encyclopedia go directly against the later two prequel trilogies, and sequel duology written after Frank Herbert’s death by Brian Herbert (Frank Herbert’s son) and Kevin J. Anderson, which they state complete the original series. Brian Herbert and Anderson have also stated that when writing these books, they drew on Frank Herbert’s own notes, left behind after his death. In response to questions over why the new post-Frank Herbert Dune novels conflicted 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…”
So, yeah. As if writing fanfiction that pretends to be canon wasn’t enough, they’ve shut down a legitimate tome of canonized marvel and wonder (Fremen Recipes! The entire Dune Tarot! History of the Bene Gesserit!) because it interfered with their crappy joke of a retconned, undercooked, ridiculous “franchise” and, ostensibly, made their efforts looks like the 6th-grade fanfic that they are.
If you are thinking to buy this Book, check out The Dune Encyclopedia in PDF before you decide to buy a hard copy https://payhip.com/b/MnzT
The average reader, reading at a speed of 300 WPM, would take 8 hours and 44 minutes to read The Dune Encyclopedia by Willis Everett McNelly.
