Rating: 
Summary: Excellent, Must Read, Classic!
Review: Eco is a masterful author of fiction! This is definitely one of the best fictions I have read!
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic!
Review: In addition to all the superlatives mentioned by other reviewers, sociologists and criminologists will find this a fascinating read. Ecclesiastic crises, close knit communities, and the way the combination of both creates an atmosphere in which deviance is almost never tolerated. Fans of Durkheim and Foucault will find this book especially intriguing.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful.
Review: Eco is a philosopher, historian and semiologist, and has no compunction against liberally seasoning the thick meat of the story with his knowledge and knowledgeable speculations. There are frequent digressions that focus on historical, theosophical and philosophical subjects pertinent to the setting of a 13th century monastery, slowing the pace for brief moments before picking up again as the intriguing plot moves along.William is a learned Franciscan monk that is set to solve the unusual events occurring in a Benedictine monastery. Someone is murdering monks in the peaceful abbey, and William must use all of his resources to solve the mystery. This novel isn't for everyone. Some people will find the frequent digressions slow or tedious while others will find it illuminating. And the frequent use of Latin in dialogue may put some people off. Of course, these are just matters of opinion. The only thing about this book that irked me in any way was the length Eco went to establish that William is a modern-thinking man. Not only does he possess a modern concept of equity, but he actually alludes to future flying machines. A bit unbelievable, but the sort of thing that can be overlooked. All in all, an intelligent novel that not only entertains, but also educates.
Rating:
Summary: Awesome. One of the best books of the 20th century
Review: I don't think that it is hyperbole to describe this book as awesome. I am not the first to sing its praises...I have just finished reading it for the third time, twice in English, once in French, and found it each time more rich and satisfying than the time before. The last reading was intering because the French have had an experience with Catholicism far different than ours, and it appears in the prose. It would be presumptous to give it the number one honors, because the list of 20th century authors in the competition is pretty stiff (Joyce, Faulkner, Kafka, Steinbeck, Grass...), but this book gives all of them a good running for their money. To read this as simply a dark ages murder mystery would be satisfying enough - there are plenty of passages describing odd and quirky, monastic life with enough colorful characters to make a satisfying read. But the book is oh, so much more. It is no accident that the setting is pre-renaissance Italy. The story plays like a tarot spread before us. Adso is the Fool, the library is the Tower, William of Baskerville is the Wizard. The story is that of the Hanged Man. What we have here is the first skirmish between faith and science, This battle is shortly to come to a head in the trial of Gallileo that would see the the Renaissance migrate to Northern Europe. Here is the church encrusted with tradition, threatened by a man of reason and insight. Baskerville is no heretic, but is seen as one...We fight these same battles today, of demagoguery and closed-mindedness. Like William Stryon in Sophie's Choice, the characters play out a simple a drama, but on closer inspection can be seen to represent so much more. Be it Naziism or the Inquisition, a tyrant is still a tyrant, but truth and spirit will prevail regardless. Read Eco's book as a murder mystery if you desire, but see it as Everyman retold, and come to see a gread deal more.
Rating: 
Summary: Hello, Sir Arthur!
Review: The only reason I finished this book was its abundance of words, and I really wanted to practice my Italian. If you don't have this goal in mind - don't bother. The book is really wordy, boring, slightly amusing, and quite pointless. Murder mystery very much like those by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, although completely lacking any hint of brilliance, set in a 14th century monastery, injected with some doctrine, some history, some Latin. (And when I say "some", I mean a lot). It leaves you with a lingering aftertaste of wasted time and trees. The author has an obsession with written word and should stick to semiotics.
Rating: 
Summary: Deep, intricate, philosophical "low" art form
Review: Umberto Eco uses the mystery novel, an art-form erroneously considered low by some critics, to explore deep philosophical issues including the nature of philosophy and knowledge. The labrynthine library is a symbol of the world, filled with knowledge but nearly uncomprehendable in whole. This book reminds me of the works of science fiction writer Gene Wolfe in its influence by Jorge Luis Borges, deep symbolism, and philosophical thought in a genre looked down upon ny many psuedo-intellectuals.
Rating:
Summary: simply great
Review: Eco is number 1 on my top ten authors list.
I loved him after this book, and I love him more after reading more of his books. "The Name of the Rose" is "Three Musketeers" of our century. It has that kind of flavor and adventure and at the same time it is involved and complicated like best works of Hesse.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant
Review: This is one of my favorite books -- it's truly brilliant, and more accessible than some of Eco's other work (such as Foucalt's Pendulum).
Rating:
Summary: A great book
Review: However, The Name of The rose is not just an ordinary histirical fiction book where the elements of the traditional fictitious story give way to a historical-documentary motive. Here we can distinguish two interelated topics: real historical time and time related to ideological moral values. Namely, the last thing makes the book a unique one and I can give advise to everybody to read it.
Vilimir Yordanov Plovdiv Bulgaria
Rating:
Summary: Mystery, philosophy, theology and humor--odd bedfellows?
Review: "The Name of the Rose" is a smart, very European mystery combining chunks of theological controversy, history, mystery and a good lashing of humor thrown in. Eco is a very clever writer; he can combine these seemingly incompatible elements and make a book that's hard to put down. I certainly couldn't put it down as I followed Brother Adso, the monk who narrates the story. When a novice in a monastery in 1327, Adso accompanied the brilliant William of Baskerville on an investigation into mysterious deaths amongst the monks. Each death is more and more bizarre; the method of murder perplexing. The key to the murders is locked in the labyrinthine passages of the monastery, incredibly well-described by Eco. The library, in particular, is fraught with dangers. The descriptions are so vivid that I can close my eyes and picture the scenes in the bath, the kitchens and the library with great detail. Eco is masterful in creating visual richness. The novel is larded with Latin phrases, theological and literary arguments which may annoy readers who have not included these weighty subjects in their education. No matter, you can read this mystery and enjoy the clever revelation of clues and solution. Eco does play on "Sherlock Holmes" with "Baskerville" as a clue to the mental prowess of Sir William. If you like a good mystery and historical fiction, it doesn't get a lot better than "Name of the Rose."
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