Rating: 
Summary: Insipid, Inaccurate, and Inexcusable
Review: The reviews for this book and the fact that it was on the best seller list intrigued me. However, upon reading it I was sorely disappointed. The writing style reminded me of those banal R. L. Stine's books. What's more, I am unclear why Mary Magdelene is supposed to be worshipped over Jesus. I mean Jesus is a really cool person, whether you are religious or not, most people can agree with that. This cult of Mary thing didn't make sense. I just didn't get why this secret society was supposed to be worshipping her. It seemed like the author was trying to downplay the works and honor attributed to Jesus, but yet elevate Mary Magdalene because she supposedly married him? And then there was the whole goddes thing. I felt the author took a bunch of unrelated myths and pieced them together in a nonsensical manner. For a book that toted puzzles of logic, the premise given for Mary Magdalene being worthy of worship was illogical. The puzzles in the book were interesting, but everything else was flat and not fleshed out. In short, this book was a big waste of both my time and money. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone as it panned out to be just a bunch of hype
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Summary: The Holy Grail--another new twist
Review: The DaVinci Code has disfunctional families, murder, suspense, Ludlum-like characters and a great story. It was a worthwhile read that sent me to the internet to research "The Last Supper" and a few secret societies. It's hard to get the ending to a book about the Holy Grail just right in fiction, but Dan Brown completed the DaVinci Code with the perfect ending.
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Summary: Page-turner of a book!
Review: Great book, but don't think it's something you can start and stop from time to time. Well-written in plot, descriptive in setting and characterization. I loved comparing with friends who figured out what and when. Highlight...find others who have read this and compare notes on who would play the screen version.
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Summary: Don't Read this book if you are devoutly Catholic
Review: Although none of the revelations in this book are new, for most readers this will be their first exposure to The Priory of Sion and commonly held beliefs (by religious historians) that most of Christianity is a ....perpetuated by politicians (see Constantine the Great) and that the Bible as it exists today is nothing more than revisionist history to ensure the survival of a political empire and the power of the church. If you have an open mind you will find this book spellbinding. Though the ending is slightly anticlimatic, the journey is well worth the read.
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Summary: Running To What
Review: Running To What
Into the Wild, by Jon Krakauer, is the story of a young man who after college, let go of his family connections and the majority of his material belongings to lead a life of tragedy. The life of Chris McCandless was a curious one. Many people have been fascinated and dumbfounded by the choices he made in life. His behavior was not as extraordinary as many seem to think. Chris was simply attached to the idea of the pure independence. One can only hypothesize the reasons for his extreme behavior, but really we will never know the true reason he ventured out on the adventure he did. Chris took off and disappeared like he did because of he seriously disapproved of his father Walt. He held a great resentment towards his father for cheating on his mother when he was a child. Yet that was merely an individual incident he used in order to have a "reason" for his ill feelings. Chris had an underlying problem with his father's expectations and ideals. He resented his father's choices and way of life. This resentment towards his father is what led him to completely detach from his family, change his name and wander off to the west. Chris' distaste for his father began when he took his first road trip cross-country. Before his trip he was following his father's footsteps en route to financial success. He had started his own copy business in the neighborhood at the age of twelve and, later had done sales for a local contractor, eventually having his own crew of people working under him. Over all he had a hint of capitalism running through his blood and seemed to be good at it. On his trip he visited his hometown of El Segundo, California and discovered that his father had cheated on his mother with his first wife when Chris was a child. When Chris was two years old, Walt fathered another son with his first wife, and led a secret life. Upon finding out about Walt's dishonesty, Chris simply kept his feelings to himself and allowed his bad feelings to build and build. It wasn't until two years later that his true colors began to show. His anger started to seep out and the fact that he wasn't happy became apparent to his mother. Chris' father valued financial stability and the approval by society but this type of success wasn't important to Chris who he valued freedom and individualism. At one point in the book his ill feelings about money are discussed. Chris' mother Billie stated that the lifestyle they provided for Chris and his sister was one he was embarrassed by. "Her son, the teenage Tolstoyan, believed that wealth was shameful, corrupting, inherently evil" (115). Where did this attitude towards capitalism emerge? Some believe that Chris was influenced by his readings. Chris' opposition of money and societies materialism stems from his father's devotion to popular values. Chris' moral code derived from his lack of respect for his father; therefore, he rejected anything that Walt considered to be correct. In graduating from college Chris felt like he had fulfilled his requirements for his father and set off to lead a life disconnected to all that could resemble the life he knew. Had there been a better relationship with his father Chris would have been a different person. His ideas might have been more cognitive, cautious and less extreme. Yes I believe he would have still been one to seek wild forms of adventure, but perhaps he would have remained in contact with his family. Instead of traipsing into the wilderness of Alaska anonymously, Chris might have notified his family of his plans in case he never made it out. Chris entered the wilderness with an attitude that he would survive and if he didn't then so be it. If Chris had a desire to be apart of his families' lives then he probably wouldn't have been on such a selfish rampage; therefore, he wouldn't have been so daring and would've brought more supplies for himself. Loving his family could have given him something to live for, perhaps a sense of value. In order to feel like an individual the children feel the need to break away and find their "own way of living. In the case of Chris, his father clearly had a control issue. Even though it was not intentional, the over baring control and pressure he imposed on Chris truly ruined the potential of any sort of good father-son relationship. It was the act of his father's dishonesty that gave Chris a reason to despise his father and everything he did or thought. It is because of the reasons that I feel Chris McCandless decided to sever his ties with his family, seek validation through his readings and create his own reality and path for life. He let go of a capitalistic way of life, partly because he liked the idea of it, but mostly because he disliked his father's way of life. *All quotations correlating to page numbers are by J. Krakauer in the Anchor Books edition of Into the Wild (New York, 1996
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Summary: Popularity doesn't make it a good book
Review: I had high hopes for this book... and it disappointed me in every which aspect it possibly could. The research verges on the pathetic, the originality is a joke, character development doesn't exist, and yet, it becomes such a huge best seller. It is obvioudly a work of fiction, but it should have been believable or else... I cringe to think what a disservice this book will do for the masses by blurring the line between the historical and the make-believe in such a gross manner. Judging by how badly conceived were the technological marvels the author describes, I can only imagine that the historical and the theological points it attempts to make are equally laughable. Do yourself a favour and read something well-researched, such as Foucault's Pendulum, by Umberto Eco. I found the writing style of presenting "a shocker" every couple of pages to be especially annoying; even more so because most of the "surprise twists" can be spotted miles away. This may ok for an airport read or to pass the time when you really have nothing better to do (as when you're shipwrecked in a remote island with nothing else to read).
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Summary: Excellent fast paced read
Review: I must say, I read a lot, and I usually move from one book to the other without much thought... but I LOVE this book! I finished it on Thurs. and gave it to my officemate on Friday, she's almost done it now. As soon as I get it back from her I'm going to re-read it. It really opens your mind to the possibility that history, especially church history isn't always what it seems. Very well researched and documented.
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Summary: Mystery, Suspense, and Speculation
Review: I LOVED this book, so much I purchased all the author's other works. The best part about this book is that all the research and secrets are true! Many other reviewers have noted the similiarities to Holy Blood, Holy Grail, but even the author himself quotes from the book. He's not trying to restate what others have said, but map his story around the subject. Intense and intriguing, a great read.
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Summary: Very good read and informative too..
Review: this book is a must read.. full of interesting things about the vatican and it's inner workings...very intrigueing and suspenseful.. i loved it..
Rating:
Summary: I'd give this no Stars if I could...
Review: The level of my disapointment in this book has it tied as one of the worst novels I've ever (tried to!) read. Now I never, ever stop reading a book. I've spent precious time and money, and feel I owe my investment to the author as well as myself to finish their story. I read every genre of fiction: mystery, romance, western and sci-fi so my tastes are broad and sometimes quirky, so I expected to enjoy this book. Instead, I had to put it down before I threw it out the window. The story was infamatory towards religious groups and oddly lacking in truly interesting characters. The synopsis was the most entertaining part of this book. The author (or his publisher) obviously has an exceptional P.R. machine, because that seems to be the strongest point of this endevor. This reader's review is save your money on this over-hyped, boring, bizarre book.
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