Cracking Da Vinci's Code: You've Read the Book, Now Hear the Truth

Rating:
Summary: Do you like to form your own opinion? Then don't buy this.
Review: First of all, I haven't read The Da Vinci Code and probably never will. However, I am well aware of the basis for the storyline. After years of studying Christian history and the apocryphal texts of the Old and New Testaments, I can honestly say that Cracking the Da Vinci Code is simply two men's biased rant on what they believe to be an attack on their religion; totally disregarding the fact that Dan Brown's novel is fiction. I've also read many of the books that Brown used for reference and I find it laughable that this large print, under 200 page book is enough to discount thousands of pages of research into this subject.

The authors may be scholars, but this is not scholarly research. YOU CANNOT PROVE ANYTHING BY QUOTING THE BIBLE. Man, this book is lame.

What's worse, a third of these 200 pages is a story about a young girl named Carrie who falls in with a cult based around The Da Vinci Code. No, I swear....I'm not making this up. There's a line that says, "Come on Carrie, It's time we put into action what Dan Brown is talking about." The authors of this book actually go as far as to proclaim The Da Vinci Code as "religious propaganda". They write that Dan Brown has a hidden agenda that consists of destroying the Christian religion and replacing it with a pagan one.

While reading this (it took all of three hours....is that worth your 11 bucks?) I found myself replying over and over, "That's true, but only to an extent." This book is riddled with countless half-truths that only serve the purpose of keeping the fundamentalists happy.

What I find most amusing is this: the evidence of Jesus' and Mary's marriage together does not begin with French traditions, it begins in the New Testament itself. Not the coptic scrolls or any other gnostic source....but the New Testament canon. Anyone with an objective view and an understanding of Jewish traditions can easily discern the possibility that Jesus' and Mary's marriage by simply reading the New Testament. Peter Jones, who apparently can read Hebrew, doesn't seem to have a complete grasp on ancient jewish culture.

This book is written by fundamentalists, for fundamentalists. Anyone who can appreciate research material that presents evidence rather than an opinion should stay away from this biased drivel.

Rating:
Summary: Don't Read
Review: Having read the Da Vinci Code, I was eager to see the religious interpretation of the novel. Instead of finding a well thought out rebuttal to Brown's book, I found an absurdity disguised as a book. Rather than specifically citing quotes from the Da Vinci Code and then proving them false with quotes from the Bible, the writers simply stated that Brown was wrong leaving the reader craving actual proof. Although these writers may be religious experts, they should become proficient in writing well developed papers that actually prove points with hard evidence rather than letting their words battle those of Brown's. In short, these novice writers didn't help the church in their battle of truth, they in fact hindered it with their lack of writing skills.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting, a recommended read
Review: I didn't find the way this book was written particularly impressive, but it still contains some useful and interesting information. I have not read any of the other books out there that debate Dan Brown's ideas, so I have nothing to compare this book to, but the fact remains that Dan Brown does not have everything correct. I found it to be an interesting read regardless of one's opinion on "The Davinci Code" or one's religious persuasion. It is always a good idea to read as much as possible and do your own research from more than one point of view.

Rating:
Summary: I still have questions!
Review: I enjoyed reading the Da Vinci Code, but I knew it was full of fiction labled as facts. I wanted to read a book that would address some of the more egregious examples as well as answer questions about Da Vinci's art, the Priory of Sion, and the Council of Nicea. Instead I read a book which (a)did a fairly decent job of explaining Christian theology mixed in with (b) a cheesy narrative of one-diminsional stereotyped characters and (c) an obvious bias against anyone who did not follow the authors' prescribed beliefs. For example, every time the word "feminist" is used it is preceded by "radical". Hilary Clinton is even mentioned because she is friends with a pagan! I am a deeply committed Christian and I found this book to be offensive. If the intent of the book is to evangalise, it will fail because of its shrill voice. On top of that, other than the Council of Nicea, I still don't have any answers to my questions!

Rating:
Summary: Nevermind the man behind the curtain
Review: oh bother, next they'll be saying the easter bunny, tooth fairy and santa clause are fictional characters too.

Make-Believe-Land is so much more

a) comfortable
b) intellectually non-challenging
c) ideologically compatible
d) feel good
e) all of the above

Rating:
Summary: Separating Fact From Fiction
Review: Separating fact from fiction is never easy, as evidenced by both The Da Vinci Code and the reviews here of Cracking Da Vinci's Code. For example: "Talk about Dan Brown confusing fact with fiction, this book on the very first page quotes Tim LaHaye's book 'Left Behind' as fact when it is nothing but fiction." Fact: Left Behind is indeed more fiction than fact and is just as guilty of confusing the two as is The Da Vinci Code. Fiction: The first page of Cracking Da Vinci's Code does not quote Left Behind but is an endorsement by Tim LaHaye.

Again: "After reading the credentials of the two authors, I was sure they would provide a non-biased viewpoint of the novel. Boy was I wrong. From the first page of the book, the authors begin preaching rather than convincingly arguing. Whats (sic) worse, they introduce this girl named Carrie in their book who is having 'sexual' problems with her 'typical' male boyfriend. The book immeadiatly (sic) begins reading like a young Christian adult book. They state that Mr. Brown has an agenda...I think they too have an agenda." Fact: Parts of the book are indeed poorly written. Fiction: "From the first page of the book, the authors begin preaching rather than convincingly arguing." The authors' agenda is crystal clear but that is intellectual honesty, not preaching. There is no such thing as "a non-biased viewpoint" or argument. Honest intellectuals recognize and disclose their biases, presuppositions, and conclusions up front. Dishonest intellectuals do not.

Peter Jones is an honest intellectual with a Harvard/Princeton pedigree. Aware of his expertise in Gnosticism and paganism, I picked up this book to help me separate fact from fiction in The Da Vinci Code. I was not disappointed.

I'm now reading Dan Burstein's Secrets of the Code-talk about riding another's coattails!

Rating:
Summary: Christian attempt at damage control
Review: Title says it all.

If the bible-thumpers have nothing to hide, why are they having a conniption over The Da Vinci Code?

Makes you wonder....