This was one in a series of short fiction collections that Berkley put out by big name SF authors in the 1980s; I've previously read ones by Asimov and Clarke. I remember spotting this one new in 1985 and not having the budget. Recently I picked it up as a free library discard to see what I missed thirty years ago, in spite of others' reviews suggesting it is misspent time. I feel as though the editors thrust this collection upon Herbert when he didn't have time or inclination, but there's a lot of memorable quality here to make up for it, my favourite being "Passage for Piano". What does the collection's title mean? There's no story here by that name. Perhaps it refers to the eye of the observer, since a frequent theme of these stories is the flaws of scientific methods.

Introduction - Frank spends no time introducing his stories, speaking instead to David Lynch's 1984 movie "Dune". He acknowledges the film fell short of fans' hopes, and lays the blame on editing room cuts that television could have made room for. That was later proven by a superior second attempt that he didn't live to see. Despite his "alive and well" comment, Herbert died less than a year later and this collection was, in fact, his swan song (posthumous works aside).

Rat Race (1955) - this is not the first story Herbert published, but it's close. It shows its age in the usual ways (poster on the sheriff's wall, sending the nurse out for a hamburger, etc.). I liked Welby, but I found his credulity a bit incredible. A couple of Chekov's guns fired perfectly.

Dragon in the Sea (1955) - I'd like this one more if it wasn't front-loaded with enough technical information and crew background to float a novel. In fact that's exactly what Herbert did with it the following year. This shorter version is only the beginning of the story and leaves you hanging.

Cease Fire (1958) - a chemist develops a new weapon, in this Cold War sci-fi relic that carries an interesting and convincing message.

A Matter of Traces (1958) - I like the presentation of far-flung future as an old-timer's past, and how the atmosphere of our pioneering days may one day be replicated as we explore other worlds. This story incidentally introduces Jorj X McKie, who also appears in Herbert's novel 'The Dosadi Experiment'.

Try to Remember (1961) - Herbert was reaching for something like what Ted Chiang did in 'Story of Your Life', but the resolution here is unfortunately more forced and awkward.

The Tactful Saboteur (1964) - the character Jorj X. McKie appears again, this time in a feature role. Herbert wrestled with gender-neutral pronouns long before the rest of us, and introduced chairdogs long before they appeared in the Dune series.

The Road to Dune (1985) - this is the new addition that Herbert underserves, offering no story but merely a series of too-brief descriptions for eight illustrations from the Palace at Arrakeen. Herbert was clearly not daunted by the art presented to him by Burns, since his descriptive language conjures images even more vast and detailed.

By the Book (1966) - solid story about a troubleshooter trying to sort out problems with an important colonizing project. It bogged down in technical details, but I liked the atmosphere.

Seed Stock (1970) - according to the back cover this was Herbert's favourite among his stories. He packs a lot into fourteen pages, but I expect he was most proud of its demonstrating how science might impede adaptability, or perhaps for its striking out against aesthetics.

Murder Will In (1970) - a confusing-at-first story about an alien body-snatcher, with some interesting twists. Herbert could have launched a good novel or two from this, especially if one of them explored the throwaway line about the encounter with a hive mind.

Passage for Piano (1973) - a pianist's prized possession is at stake, due to the colony ship's weight restrictions. I'm a sucker for this kind of thing.

Death of a City (1973) - the City Doctor concept interested me, and the mention of an ornithopter, but alas it was only a thin excuse to set up a May-Sept relationship fantasy.

Frogs and Scientists (1979 or 1985?) - a short allegory about the blind spots that science is prone to.

Hugo-award winning Jim Burns did the illustrations, comprising one of his earliest efforts, and he has the privilege of adding some concluding written pieces about himself and his work. ( )

Interesting. My favorite part of this book of short stories is the introduction. The introduction is mostly focused on the movie version of Dune. I'm not a huge fan of the movie. In fact I did not read the novel until university primarily because of the movie. A friend of mine advised me to read the novel and wow was I surprised. Still I found the introduction significant. For many reasons. One he kind of explains what his purpose was in creating Paul and the storyline of the original novel. Also he clearly explains that his novels are a contract with intelligent readers and he has an abhorrence of spoon feeding fans, he finds it demeaning and manipulative. I often wondered how he would feel about how his son and KJA have altered his universe. I don't think he would be pleased at all. The novels themselves are a form of sell out, they are written not because they have anything to say but inorder to milk an award wining franchise. This is especially painful considering how the prequel "McDune" novels have suggested the original canon was manipulation by Irulan. Why didn't BH and KJA confine their non-writing abilities to his original storyline? Their writing is much worse and I kinda thinjk FH would not appreciate his legacy tampered with like this.
'That's how I wrote the novel, wanting you to participate with the best of your own imagination. I did not aim for the lowest common denominator and "write down" to anyone. You and I have a compact and my responsibility is to entertain you as richly as possible, always giving you as much extra as I can. I assume you are intelligent and will enlist your own imagination.'

Did not finish. That is, it was given to me to register at bookcrossing.com & release, and so I looked it over, read the story 'Seed Stock' (listed as being the author's favorite) and decided to pass.

Some nice artwork for the die-hard Dune fan. The stories are disappointing. ( )

...All in all quite a few ups and downs in this collection. I suppose The Tactical Saboteur was the highlight for me but Try to Remember, Seed Stock and Passage for Piano are also strong stories. On the other hand there are quite a few stories that are not all that great. If you are familiar with Herbert's work you will enjoy this collection for the way he tries out various concepts and themes he uses in his novels. In general though, I think he needs a little more space than a short story offers to really do his writing justice. I enjoyed reading this but I don't think it'll be up for a reread in the near future. It has reminded me I really need to get my hands on a copy of the first ConSentiency novel Whipping Star though. Eye is for the real fan only. Which is probably just as well, I don't think it is currently in print.

Full Random Comments review ( )