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Direct Descent

Direct Descent is a 1980 science fiction novella by American writer Frank Herbert. It was based on his short story "Pack Rat Planet" published in 1954 in Astounding Science Fiction and was marketed as an illustrated story, with over 60 pages of illustrations to compliment the narrative.

Last revised
Jun 30, 2026
Read time
≈ 1 min
Length
110 w
Citations
1
Source
Direct Descent
AuthorFrank Herbert
LanguageEnglish
GenreScience fiction
PublisherAce Books
Publication date1980
Publication placeUnited States
Media typePrint (Paperback)
Pages186
ISBN0-441-14897-2
OCLC7051228
Dewey Decimal813/.54 19
LC ClassPS3558.E63 D5

Direct Descent is a 1980 science fiction novella by American writer Frank Herbert.1 It was based on his short story "Pack Rat Planet" published in 1954 in Astounding Science Fiction and was marketed as an illustrated story, with over 60 pages of illustrations to compliment the narrative.

Plot summary

Set in the far future, it consists of two stories about how the peaceful Archivists of the library planet Earth have to deal with warmongers arriving and trying to exploit knowledge for power.

References

References

  1. Commire, Anne. Something About the Author. Vol. 37. p. 70. ISBN 0810300699.